The Playground of Titans

This chapter involves size-changing! You've been warned! XD There was gonna be a size-change episode with Third Gen eventually; it's tradition for most cartoons to have at least one. That said, nothing super plot-moving happens in this one, just a lot of tiny-sized accidents and interactions that highlight the characters' relationships and ending with a warm-hearted, but tough-loving resolution. Otherwise, beware of several mildly gross and weird moments in this chapter.

The Playground of Titans

He was almost there. The outside world was in his grasp. In just 500 more yards, he would be out the front door. His minuscule frame could run under the door and escape. Then he just had to make it to Erin's house, just around the next block. He just had to get her or her mom's attention and he would be safe. …Except at this level, Erin's house was hundreds of miles away. At normal size, it would take no more than five minutes to walk from his house to Erin's, but down here, at the level of an ant… it would take days. That's not to consider the dangers of the outside world. Giant insects that he would have to fend from, even bigger animals that would eat him much more swiftly, more tremendous people who would squish him flat, and worse, he would have to cross the street. Not only would he have to dodge the gargantuan tires of cars, but their extreme speed would send him blowing away like a hurricane.

He was powerless. A menial ant in this great big world. But at least out there, he would be free. He would rather take the chance and journey to Erin's house than stay here any longer. But he would never get the chance. A great purple sneaker thudded the floor with an extreme quake, blocking the rim of the door. "Mackie, Mackie, Mackie…" came the reprimanding tone of his mother, her voice and size dominating him like an omnipresent deity. "You didn't really think you were getting away, were you? Have you forgotten my keen senses?"

"L-Leave me alone, Mom! If you're not gonna make me big, I'd rather be at Erin's!"

"Oh, Mack, you know the procedure by now. All you have to do is pass my tests and I'll make you nice and big. We've only done this for years, you know."

"I'M TIRED OF IT! I DON'T WANNA LIVE LIKE THIS!"

"Come on, Mack, not many operatives get good experience like this." Her tone was condescending and brimming with ulterior motives. "And at least you're safe under your nice, loving mother. Would you rather I invite other operatives to train you? Christina, Jason… perhaps Laruta?"

Mack was at a loss for a response. The only thing that would make this worse is if those people saw him like this. No, if any other sector saw him like this. "That's right." His mother knowingly affirmed. "Now, let's go back to your 'biome,' shall we?" She lowered a vacuum down.

"No! No! NOOOOOOO!" The vacuum's suction was weak, designed only to inhale tiny bugs or objects, but it was just right for Mack. He landed inside its glass prison, doomed to be returned to his miniature jungle. All he could do was curl up and cry. The only two who knew this truth were Erin and Nora, his sectormates and the only ones he could confide in. Well, Erin was better for comfort than Nora… the latter actually seemed more excited by the notion of shrinking. But anyone else… it was already too late for their sympathies.

He could already see them outside this jar. Hallucinations on how they would react. He could see every operative laughing at him. Delighted by his insignificance and mocking him. Mack had nothing to his name at home… only the smarts and know-how his mother gave him. He could only use that to mock and talk down on everyone else. This resulted in beatings from the stronger operatives and scorn from most everyone else. He'd been arrogant since Cadet Training, but despite the feedback, it was the only way he felt empowered.

But if they saw him like this… it would all be over. He could see Laruta and Silica wiping their boogers on his jar, Robi and Jolene licking the glass like the dimwitted kids they were… and the powerhouses simply placing him on the floor, squashing him like the ant he was. That was how it would go… and his mom knew that, too. Even just the other week at lunch, Perry stuck a bug in his cupcake as a prank, earning a laugh from everyone.

"…No." Mack had enough. He was tired of being the only one to suffer like this. They deserved it, too. They all did. In fact… tomorrow, they were scheduled to go to a huge playground. The KND rented out the whole place to celebrate recent victories. Maybe there, if he played his moves right, he could give them a taste of his despair. And he knew just who to start with…

Sharon Woods

Adventure Station was an indoor playground designed to resemble a forest. There were hollowed trees to climb, a cave with rubber stalactites, and a makeshift Western village with a jail, a room of rubber crates and flour sacks, and an artificial horse carriage. The village was built on the second layer of the playground, along with a giant bird's nest. There were also several slides, as well as a ball pit.

In celebration of their victory over an intense mission, the Kids Next Door had come here to let loose and be free. It had become tradition for the young heroes to conquer any awesome-looking playground they set their eyes on. Some operatives were inside while others were occupying the outside portion.

The kids all placed their shoes on shelves lined along the wall, as was a simple rule the playground had. The children ran about the fortress in excitement, excited to explore or play with their friends. Spike and Jason were chasing each other in a wild game of tag, Robi was splashing around the ball pit, and Joto, Mazu, and Koda were rearranging the rubber boxes in the storage room.

Perry Uno viewed up at the playground alongside his friends, Ralph Gilligan and Max Murphy. Ralph was a chubby boy with blue eyes, blonde hair, a blue button-up shirt, black shorts, and tall white socks. Max had short brown hair, a red shirt, blue jeans, and socks. Perry himself had messy black hair, wore a black T-shirt, blue jeans, black socks, and green glasses over his freckled face.

One wouldn't assume Perry to be Supreme Leader at a glance. He was pretty short at 9 years old and was indistinct from any average kid. Still, he was a well-rounded boy who enjoyed playing with his friends. He was nice and friendly with all his operatives and always full of optimism and wisdom. Not to mention pretty good with a sword. While Ralph didn't look like it, he was actually a boy from a rich family, but he was a good buddy to his friends and also a fan of airplanes. Max was well-known for his chaotic sense of humor, but on average days like this, his humor was kept calm and reasonable at best.

"Hey, Ralph, let's go check out that cave!" Perry ushered.

"I dunno, man, I'm worried you'll get lost~" Ralph teased.

"I will not! There's no way it's as big as a real cave!"

"Oh, crud!" Max cursed. "I left my phone in the bathroom. I'll be right back." He hurried off.

"I'm going ahead." Perry called, running to the cave. "Wait up for him in case he takes a while!"

"Okay!" Ralph replied.

The inside of the cave was dark and presented an eerie feeling. Perry appeared to be the only one in here at the moment. He looked up around the rubber stalactites. He felt one and threw a punch at it. It felt and swung like a pointed punching bag. "Heh heh! I'm totally gonna get them with this when they come!"

Unbeknownst to him, somebody was sneaking up on Perry. They saw him run into the cave and decided to sneak in from another entrance. Fortunately, nobody else was around. "Heeeey, Perry~?"

Perry turned: a boy stepped around a stalactite. He had black hair, a white T-shirt, dark glasses, and jeans. The dimness of the cave made his smirk look eerie and ominous. "Mack? What's up?"

Mack revealed a mechanical gun from behind his back. "Surprise!" A bright ray fired from the gun and struck Perry! In a flash, he seemed to vanish from the spot.

Perry was knocked back from the sudden blast, dizzying his vision. After it faded, the boy tried to get a grasp of his bearings. …The ground around him seemed to get a lot darker. The dim light made it difficult to process everything… the ceiling of the cave seemed to have gotten a lot higher. Furthermore, the hanging stalactites were unbelievably gigantic. One of them was still slightly swaying: the same one Perry had just punched a moment ago.

The next sight made him reel back in terror: Mack was towering over him. He was utterly enormous, planting his socked feet mere inches to Perry's sides. Based on the scale of them, and though the very fact was sudden and alarming, Perry deduced he was roughly the size of an ant. "M-Mack?! WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME?!"

Mack didn't really hear him, but he could imagine the fear and anguish Perry was feeling right now. He couldn't even see his tiny leader among the complex textures of the floor, but he was smiling with the utmost satisfaction. "That was for sticking a bug in my cupcake."

"WHAT?! Mack, the only reason I did that was 'cause you were being a jerk!"

"I hope you enjoy yourself down there. See ya~" And with that, Mack turned his back and marched out of the cave, leaving his leader tiny and alone.

"MACK, WAIT! I'M SORRY! PLEASE CHANGE ME BACK! DON'T LEAVE ME HERE!!"

Alas, Perry's pleas became pointless as Mack had left the cave. Fear coursed through his little heart, feeling insignificant under the hanging rubber, mountain-sized stalactites.

Mack Strongarm was one of the smartest boys in KND, but his brains had earned him a bit of an ego. He liked to act intellectually superior to everyone, but this resulted in some of the stronger kids like Spike or Christina to beat him up. The other day at lunch, Mack was teasing Perry over how he had gotten the last cupcake in Moonbase Cafeteria. But as Perry later noticed a bug on the floor, he decided to prank Mack and ruin his dessert, prompting the nearby kids to laugh.

Perry had expected some form of revenge on Mack's part, but he wasn't expecting anything this extreme. He didn't expect to literally be shrunken, reduced to a mere bug on the playground floor. It wasn't surprising Mack would have such a device: his mother was a brilliant scientist, and Perry had heard that size rays were one of her favorites. Even the very notion of being shrunk was something they'd heard their parents deal with, and some operatives had abilities based on the art. That said, this was certainly a first for Perry… and a big inconvenience as far as he was concerned. It would take him forever to cross this miles-wide cave, let alone get back to his friends. He was completely alone and powerless.

"Hey, Perry, we're back!"

Perry heard rumbling and saw two colossal, shadowed giants stepping through the cave. Their forms became clear as Ralph and Max. Perry nearly wet himself at the terrifying sight of his own titanic friends. The two were blissfully walking and looking left and right, totally oblivious to the situation. "Perry, where are you?" Ralph asked, his voice echoing like a god.

"Are you sure he came in here?" Max asked, his clownish voice amplified to the tiny's ears.

"RALPH! MAX! I'M DOWN HERE! HEEEELP!" Perry screamed desperately for his friends to hear him. Right now, they were his only hope of getting out of this situation. He was completely powerless, so he needed his friends to help him. Unfortunately, his screams failed to reach their ears, and they had no idea he was right under their noses.

"Yeah, he said he was." Ralph stepped forward a bit. The toes of his colossal sock crashed inches away from Perry, before lifting off for the next step. As the gargantuan sock flew right over him, Perry felt his heart stop. His own friend nearly squished him and he had no idea. With just a simple, swift step, Ralph could've ended Perry's life. It was from this instance alone that Perry realized the danger he was in. This had become more than an inconvenience.

However, Perry braced himself when Max casually stepped forward, stopping directly over him. His friend's sock was the size of a mountain, but since it was so close, it was Perry's only chance. The boy raced forward and managed to grab a tiny string hanging from Max's sock. With any hope, he could make his way upward.

"Hey, maybe he went into that tunnel." Max noticed the hole in the wall.

"You're smaller than me, so you check it out. I'll look over here." Ralph said.

Perry hung on as Max walked toward the tunnel. His foot lifted and curved upside-down as he crawled inside. There were red stairs leading up along the tunnel, as well as small lights to guide the way, and Max had to lift and shift his legs with each step. Perry was unable to keep up with the constant shifting, so he fell off the sock and tumbled onto one of the red steps. "MAX, WAIT! MAAAX!"

Alas, he could only watch as his friend kept climbing up the tunnel. Perry was left alone on the step. At his size, this step was the size of a great field, big enough to hold their school, a football field, or otherwise, and to think there were plenty more like this within the tunnel. There was no real way out of here, so Perry chose to wait on the step. Eventually, someone else may come through, and he could try to get their attention.

Hearing something, Perry turned toward the gaping entrance of the tunnel, seeing a figure crawling in: Jolene Kemuri. Eight years old, Jolene had dark-blonde hair in pigtails, a pudgy face, and pretty blue eyes that bore a clueless stare, clothed in a frilly white dress. "HEY! JOLENE! HEEEEY!" Perry cried at the child.

The girl's eyes narrowed down as she tried to climb the step. "…?" She seemed to stop as her eyes focused on the tiny thing on the step.

"YES!" Perry yelled, racing toward her looming face. "Jolene! It's me, Perry! Take me to your friends! Please!"

"…" There was a glint of curiosity in her eyes. She thought it was an ant at first, but it actually seemed like a little person.

With a curious instinct, the girl brought her index down to Perry. Jolene's hands had a hint of fatness to them, and this was evident in even climbing her finger. Perry grew hopeful as Jolene raised him to her eyes. "Uh…are you a Minish? You look an awful lot like this guy I know…"

"Jolene, it's me! You gotta show the others!"

"Uhhh…" Holding her finger this close compelled her to use double vision. Perry, seeing the way her eyes morphed, caught on that she was losing focus. Jolene had somewhat of a complicated mind, sometimes slow to act and hard to think. "Maybe I'm hallucinating. Mom says that if I don't get enough water, I'll start to see mirages, and I think all this dust in here is nullifying my water intake. But in case you AREN'T a hallucination, I'll take you to Robi."

"Yes, do it! Whoa, hey, be careful!" Perry clung onto the finger as Jolene crawled backward out of the tunnel. Setting foot back in the cave, the claybender jogged toward the ball pit, keeping her finger stable. Perry was patient as she climbed the ball pit steps: the pit splayed out like a lake to his vision, and each green ball was bigger than two houses. And across that lake, Robi McKenzie, his orange-haired 7-year cousin, was splashing around like a huge, fuzzy, friendly monster.

"Hey, Robi!" Jolene climbed on the rim of the rounded entrance. "I wanna show—whoa!" But she stumbled forward when her knee bumped the rim.

"AAAAHH!" Perry went flying from the sudden momentum. The tiny leader made for a soft landing in Robi's mountainous, thick head of frizzy hair. Perry had always thought Robi's hair was complex, but never on this scale! In no time, Perry was tangled up in all the endless, looping strands, each as thick as quality rope.

Robi was totally clueless that his own big cousin was struggling in his own hair. "You okay, Jolene?" Robi asked, waddling toward her.

Jolene pulled herself up and looked at her finger. "Oh…never mind. I sort of imagined a tiny Perry on my finger and wanted to ask if he was really there, or just in my brain."

"A… tiny Perry?"

"ROBI, HELP!" Perry struggled to climb to the surface of the strands. "ROBI! HEY, JOLENE, LOOK OVER HERE!" He was high enough to be able to see Jolene's eyes. If only she would glance up a tad, she could-

"LOOK OUT BELOW!" And with not much of a warning, Spike came diving into the pit.

"WAAAAAHHH!" Perry, seeing his colossal figure plummeting like a falling mountain, braced for the absolute end.

"AAAH!" Robi screamed, his fluffy hair serving as a cushion for Spike's belly. Robi keeled over from his weight, Spike landing upside-down in the pit before falling on his back.

"You won't get away that easy!" Jason Dimalanta jumped in and smacked Spike in the face. "Tag! You're it!" He about-faced and climbed out.

"RAH!" An angry Spike flipped himself upright, pushed Robi aside, and ran after, some balls bouncing out of the pit in his haste.

That exchange happened too quickly for Perry to process: when Spike had fallen on top of Robi, Perry was in the impact point of his bellybutton. Spike wore a black top with matching shorts, going with his signature black, spiked hair, along with spiked bands on his wrists and ankles. Since his belly was uncovered, Perry was spared from a crushing fate inside the naval.

As Spike continued his pursuit, Perry had clung onto his naval, being pressed against it as Spike ran. "Dang it, Spike, you could've killed me!" Perry yelled, though knowing Spike couldn't hear him. Spike was a rude and careless boy, not caring who he tripped over in his wild games, and even a bully to some kids. Being stuck in his naval at this speed made Perry want to vomit. Jason was Spike's favorite rival, and this playground was the perfect place to play their reckless games.

Jason was a tan-skinned boy with black hair, an open green vest with no shirt underneath, and black shorts, defined mostly by his raccoon ears and tail. Aside from being an excitable explorer, Jason was also a strong boy who loved a good fight, to which Spike was a good match. There was a 3 year difference, with Jason being 11 and Spike 8, so the former usually came out on top with his faster, stronger physique, but every failure only made Spike more pumped to beat him.

Perry watched as Jason scampered up the stairs, cut through the Western village, and then clambered across some monkey bars. Perry could feel the force and momentum as Spike jumped, grabbed, and swung the bars as well, his belly quickly shifting left and right and shaking Perry around. But as soon as Spike landed and was about to turn the corner, Perry gasped as a gargantuan, tanned fist seemed to fly out of nowhere. "UUUOOF!" Spike hacked spit from Jason's surprise attack. His powerful fist bent Spike's belly in. Perry was far enough in the naval to avoid being smashed by the godly fist, but he plummeted from the naval with a dizzy sensation. Perry crashed on the wooden floor; the wind resistance seemed to shield his tiny frame from an otherwise fatal drop.

"Owww…man, I—AAAAH!" Perry jumped back to reality when an enormous foot crashed beside him. Above him, Jason and Spike had suddenly engaged in a fist fight.

"You're gonna pay for that one!" Spike yelled with a smirk.

"Make me!" Jason snapped back.

Perry was smack between the two young titans, their bare feet stomping aimlessly in their brawl. "AAAAH! GUYS, STOP IT! STOOOP!" Perry ran about frantically. Watching two mountainous titans in a world-shaking brawl would look amazing from far away, but this was the absolute worst place to be. It was even worse considering Jason had the strength to break walls or, worse yet, the very floor that held them. Perry didn't want to comprehend Jason's full power at a godly scale, but even this much strength alone was shaking the world.

Jason punched some teeth out of Spike, colliding on the floor like dense wide boulders that would cave Perry's skull in. Sweat globs crashed around Perry like giant rain. Then, Spike swung his leg at Jason's, flinging them upward as the Faunus fell. His titanic bottom crashed on the floor with a great BOOM! The shockwave blew Perry across the floor for what felt like miles, rolling and fumbling like a piece of dirt. "You're it, Jason!" Spike yelled, running from the fallen boy, who was up on his feet and chasing after.

Perry growled in frustration: he was glad to be blown out of harm's way, but to think the force of Jason falling on his rear was strong enough to do that. It was more embarrassing than he'd like to admit. "Ooo, look at this place, Kenny!" The booming echo of a cheerful voice drew Perry's attention over. The voice unmistakably belonged to Juki Crystal, ice-blue eyes on her pale-yellow visage. Her black hair was messy with bits of frost, she wore a black jacket over a light-blue shirt with a white tie, and a pair of boney legs hung out of her matching skirt.

"What about it, Juki?" asked Kent Taylor. He wore a yellow Hawaiian shirt with brown shorts, goggles, and brown hair up in a flame do. His skin was tanned red and he wore fuzzy brown socks with red lava crack designs. Both kids were 9 years old and in different sectors, but Perry would always catch them hanging out during get-togethers. Since one was a lavabender and the other was ice, they were two opposites who attracted, apparently.

"It would make a good ice rink, don't ya think?" Juki smiled, her leg outstretched.

"Huh?! NO, GUYS, WAIT!" Perry cried.

"You sure you won't get in trouble for that?"

"Nope!" With that, Juki touched her toes to the floorboards. With a gentle, but vast wave of ice, the entire area froze into a flat, solid floor. Perry had to make a good jump to avoid being frozen against the floor himself. He was safe in one piece, but the light current of cold air chilled him to his feeble bones.

Perry watched as Juki took Kent's hand, the duo smiling and gracefully skating across the rink. Kent would have no mobility on the ice on his own, so Juki was leading. His socks make him glide across the ice with ease, and it was only because Juki was an icebender that her feet didn't stick to it, channeling a thin layer of frost to her soles to make movement possible. It was sort of astounding to Perry that two great titans could move so fluently, but he had to remember his own standing on this playground. Sadly, he couldn't get any good traction on this ice himself, having no starting momentum. He could never get out of the way in time before Kent's colossal sock came sliding. "AAAHH!"

If it were as solid as actual volcanic rock, it might've busted his guts out, but the sock's wool was soft enough to actually carry him along. On the bright side, this was a safer position, but he was going so fast that he could do nothing else but hold tight. "'Round and 'round we goooo!" Juki clung Kent's arms and began to spin, hoisting him up as his legs flew about the air. Kent's and Perry's screams were in sync, and it wasn't long before the tiny went flying off. "Wheeeee!" Juki sent Kent sliding into the nearby tunnel, which she had frozen beforehand. She made a short loop before sliding in after him.

"Owww…" The wind resistance protected Perry once more, but he still felt his organs were rearranged. He hadn't even flown very far, still on the frosted floor. …That is, until the floor majestically dissolved into a dense cloud of steam, clogging Perry's lungs in the few seconds it took to fade away.

"Man, a girl could slip if she's not careful." Christina said to herself, having a sent a heatwave from her foot to achieve the opposite effect Juki created. Christina was tall with short blonde hair, a red ribbon on top, a blue T-shirt, and black shorts. She was one of the toughest girls in the KND with remarkably big hands and feet. Perry froze in fear as Christina unwarily approached him: her feet were like moving twin mountains to the puny boy, and it was terrifying how quickly they moved. Fortunately, he managed to stay between them on her walk… however, Christina seemed to stop directly at him.

"?" The ball of her foot had sunk into a hole in the floorboard. It seemed that a nail was missing. Such an obscurity was enough to draw her attention down, but she would likely resume her walk after a second. …That is, until she spotted something.

Perry gasped: Christina's orange eyes, looming far above him, seemed to fix on him. In her momentary glance down, had she actually noticed him? "CHRISTINA! HEY!" Perry seized the chance and began jumping. Being his older cousin, Christina often liked to beat him up or pick on him. However, it was playful beating rather than violent; she viewed Perry as a little brother and wanted to toughen him up. She only truly got violent with the larger kids. Regardless, Perry knew Christina would help him in this situation, because he couldn't very well toughen up at this puny size.

However, Perry felt a chill as Christina's enormous foot rose and hovered over him. Eclipsed under its shadow, it was clear what her true intention was. "AAAAAH!" Perry hightailed and ran: the foot plummeted, and he had barely survived between the trench of toes. Her foot rose again, and seeing that she missed, Chris readjusted its position for the next stomp. Perry barely had room to dodge to the side, the force of the crash blowing him a short distance, but Christina was still determined to finish the job. "CHRISTINA, STOP! PLEASE!"

It was one thing when trying to get someone's attention while dodging their feet, but it was another when someone was actively trying to kill him. While Christina didn't bully the shorter kids, she loved to step on bugs to assert her strength. Perry jumped into the crevice between floorboards, too narrow for her bulbous feet to fit. "Oh, no you don't." Christina smirked, trying to squeeze her toes into the crevice. Perry got down, the tips of her toes struggling to cram their way down. He could make out every grotesque detail as the skin stretched and strained itself in trying to fit.

"…Wait!" It had just clicked with Perry: he had shrunk with his sword! He wasn't as defenseless as he first thought. "You ain't beating me today, Chrissie!" The boy bravely stabbed up at her big toe.

"YOW!" Christina reflexively hopped back and held it up. The wound was very minuscule, but enough to draw a flow of blood. Perry smirked, proud to have landed such a blow on his powerful cousin, even in this powerless state. "…?!" But what he didn't anticipate was Christina igniting fire on her hand. It loomed over Perry like a sun, and it highlighted the girl's vengeful smirk. "Now you're gonna suffer, bug."

"CHRISTINA! What are you doing?!"

She halted and looked over: a much shorter girl of 3'8" glared reprovingly. Laruta Grayson wore a gray sweater, gym pants, and socks, her sandy-blonde hair in a ponytail with purple square glasses. With a high, nerdy voice and a snooty demeanor, Laruta was always strict with her Sector V teammates. On top of being dwarfed by Christina, Laruta's frame was pudgier and certainly less built. Despite this, she was a dedicated gymnast. "I'm trying to kill a bug, Lar."

"You don't need to burn down the playground to do that! If I see you bending in here again, I'm telling the manager."

"Uck." Christina dispelled the fire and stomped away. "Gonna squish you next…"

"Hmph!" Laruta needed to fold her arms and stand for a moment to let her anger subside. This was a good opportunity for Perry, though. Laruta's shortness would make her easy to climb. He ran as fast as he could until he reached her pudgy sock, clambering up the fabric of her big toe.

…But the very realization of doing that made Perry cringe with embarrassment. This whole situation was more humiliating with every second spent. These were his operatives, the very peers and teammates he was the leader of, and yet he was reduced to the level of a helpless bug, forced to cling onto their smelly feet and pathetically scream for their help. He felt so unequal with them, so powerless. Sadly, unless he could climb to their heads or something, his best chance of being noticed was being on their feet; and it's not like yelling would accomplish much since they couldn't hear him.

However, as humiliating as it was, they were still Perry's friends, and they would certainly lend their aid if they were aware. Christina would've helped him, and so would Jason and Spike, even if they might get teasing about it. Why, one of those brutes might've beaten the crud out of Mack for his sake; that would certainly be an amazing thing to see from this scale, as he could make out every immense detail of Mack's pain.

Unfortunately, Laruta would never notice Perry once another operative caught her attention: Isabelle Rivera was climbing one of the playground's trees. The Spanish Shandian then clambered across the vines hanging from the ceiling. "ISABELLE! You aren't supposed to climb that!" Kicking power into her impish legs, Laruta bolted after Isabelle at floor level.

"AAAAAHH!" Perry clung to the sock, rapidly flipping to and fro with each half-second step. Laruta may not look fit, but she was certainly fast. Even so, she was still too low to stop Isabelle.

"I know you can hear me! Get down here!" With no other alternative, Laruta bent her inner gases and used a Gas Rocket. …Of all the different bending arts Perry wanted to experience on a huge scale, the Gas Rocket was definitely not one. Laruta angled her legs up to give the "engine" more leeway, but Perry still caught the afterburn of the smell. And that strict expression on Laruta's face while doing it… was such a contrast that Perry couldn't laugh. Especially since he had started to fall again. The overwhelming gas caused the little guy to let go, his mind too muggy to see where he was falling.

He collided with a cluster of thick strands of blue rope. From prior experience, he knew it was hair. The blue strands were between larger areas of black ones, and to either side of the "head," the hair was done up in spiked pigtails.

Looking around, Perry saw he was in the fake jail. Looking down, the head's owner seemed to be staring at a handheld game console, their fingers in motion. She wore a black sweater, blue jeans, and had a rather chubby frame. Her freckled cheeks were pudgy and she had a squished, pig-like nose. She was Silica York, a dedicated gamer girl, and she was hunched over slightly. Her brown eyes were curved in intense focus.

"Perfect!" Perry beamed. Silica was virtually unmovable during these periods, so she was his next best option. She was completely unconcerned with the world around her, but if she saw Perry like this, surely that would be enough to divert her attention, right? Surely, she would understand Perry's situation and take the time to bring him downstairs to the others. Silica acted like she didn't care about anything besides her games, but she certainly wouldn't be careless enough to ignore a friend in danger.

He was in the perfect position to drop down the front of her face and land on her nose… except the angle wasn't quite right. Silica's face was tilted inward slightly, so Perry had no chance of grabbing her squished nose. And yet, there was hope: a nosehair was sticking out! It was just long enough for Perry to grab, bobbing up and down from his tiny weight. "Silica, I would say 'trim your nose,' but I'm sure as heck glad you don't!"

But his tiny weight registered a response: it sent just enough of a tickle up Silica's nostril to irritate her. She didn't want to blow forward or she'd get it on her game. So, the gamer twisted her frame rightward. Perry panicked as Silica brought up a finger to press the other nostril, leaving the one he hung from as the only exposed opening. "NO, SILICA, WAIT!"

Silica blew her nose with such ferocity that Perry collided with the bench beneath her, coated in a sudden storm of snot. His clothes were all but ruined by her simple act.

"OOF!" Laruta and Isabelle plopped into the jail. "That was too reckless, Bella! What if we weren't above the second level?"

"I could've used my bending to save us, get a grip, Lar!"

"Would you two leave?" Silica asked. "You're breaking my mojo."

"Silica? Quit playing your game, playgrounds are meant for playing!" Laruta shouted.

"I am playing, dummy."

"It's not playing if your body's not moving." Laruta stepped forward.

"Don't you dare!"

"HOH!" Laruta bravely snatched the game from her hand and raced off.

"GET BACK HERE!" Silica bolted after the exerciser, Laruta laughing at her own trick. Isabelle laughed as well and decided to chase them.

Sadly, even if Perry wanted to try and climb Silica, it was too late now. He could only lay on the bench where she sat, though he still felt the warmth from her presence here. …This fact only made him cringe in disgust again. Either way, perhaps this was for the best. Silica would attack anyone who disrupted her gameplay, and her inattentive mind would mistake Perry for a simple ant and instinctively smack him off.

Still, perhaps if he stayed at this high position on the bench, someone else would sit down and he could climb them. He really had no other options at this point, so Perry simply waited, with nothing better to do than to shake the snot off himself. Past the entrance of the jail, Perry's operatives were still running about outside, shoeless and carefree. If it weren't for this awful ordeal, Perry would actually think this was quite an amazing experience. The world looked very surreal from this perspective, and the sight of his gigantic friends was as incredible as it was terrifying.

If circumstances were different, Perry could actually have a lot of fun. He wondered how his friends would react to seeing him this way and what they could do. Ralph could put him in one of his remote planes and fly him around. Christina would probably pin him under her finger and make him try to shake free. Isabelle would carry him on a nice walk in the forest and take Perry to explore the massive trees, which would be bigger than buildings. And Silica would probably just play her game and not care.

Perry laughed at himself. Why was he thinking about such things? Where it stood, there was currently no hope of being found and saved. Well, since he had nothing better to do, he might as well think of more positive outcomes. It actually did his heart health to imagine interacting with his friends at this size. It was weird to think they would smile at his situation and have fun, rather than be shocked or afraid for him. In the event he was stuck this way, he could honestly imagine his friends talking and playing with him as if he were still one of their own. And they would keep Mack away from him at all costs.

Maybe this situation was making Perry realize how much he valued his friends. Being small and helpless was one thing, but it aggravated Perry more that his friends couldn't find him. If only they were aware, protecting him, helping him, talking with him, he would feel safe, regardless if he was small.

Perry became alert when someone walked into the jail. It was Erin, a rather nerdy girl with brown hair in a ponytail and blue round glasses. She wore a dark-orange T-shirt, khaki pants, and socks, her buckteeth hanging cutely from her mouth. Perry smiled a bit at seeing her: she was a nice, timid girl, but overall friendly, and Perry enjoyed talking to her, even if it was only small talk. Erin was notable for being non-athletic and struggling in gym, so it felt rather funny to view her as a huge, powerful giant.

Erin bore a somewhat downtrodden expression, her eyes directed down as she approached the bench. "ERIN! HEY, ERIN!" Perry began jumping, thinking she was sure to notice him. He didn't believe Erin was the type to squish bugs on an impulse, so she would at least give him a look-over.

"Erin, why don't you wanna play anything?" another girl asked as she walked in. Perry knew her as Erin's best friend, Nora. Nora had light-brown skin and darker-brown hair in pigtails. She had a white top and blue, open jacket with blue jean-shorts and blue socks. She was notably taller than Erin with a slender, but fit physique.

"I'm sorry, Nora." Erin replied, turning away from the bench to her friend. "My mom yelled at me last night. She just expects too much from me."

"Aww, I'm sorry." Nora got beside her friend as both took a seat on the bench. The light impact of their bottoms generated a quake for little Perry, but nothing too dramatic.

"I keep trying to exercise, but it just isn't working for me. Why does she expect me to be as strong as her?"

"ERIN! NORA! HEEEEEY!" Perry screamed up at the backs of the giants.

"I'm sure she just wants you to be healthy." Nora consoled, a hand on her shorter friend's shoulder. "After all, exercise helps the mind just as well as the body. That's why you're super smart!"

"I'm not that smart. I bet she wishes you were her daughter."

"That is so not true!!"

Perry ran up to Erin's khakis and struggled to climb up them. He felt awkward for eavesdropping and intruding on their personal conversation, but good manners hardly mattered in this situation. He could just imagine their reactions if they noticed him: Erin would probably faint from shock and Nora would scream so loud that the windows would break. The reason he was choosing to climb Erin instead of Nora was that the latter was more energetic, emotional, and impulsive, so he was more likely to be flung off her. Erin, being the softer and careful girl, was a better candidate.

Perry was able to climb up onto Erin's lap, viewing up the front of the giant geek. He could see the underside of her chin and up her nose, plus that giant dorky tooth hanging out. "It doesn't matter if you aren't like your mom, Erin. You're strong and beautiful on the inside!"

"No I'm not…" Erin said sadly.

"STOP BETRAYING YOURSELF!" Nora impulsively smacked Erin's back and pushed her forward as she stumbled.

"AAAAH!" Perry was flung off from the sudden force, crashing on the jail floor.

"I know! Let's go bounce on the trampoline!" Nora pointed. "Follow me, I know where it is!" She jogged off eagerly.

"Okay…" Erin followed at a slower pace.

Perry froze under the shadow of Erin's sock. "AAAAAH!" Too late to move, the foot crushed him. And as Erin took the next step, the foot lifted up and took Perry with it.

In that brief instant, Perry knew just how an ant felt, feeling the immense, unparalleled weight of a human's foot. The only difference was he wasn't splattered. Because Erin had a weak, lightweight frame, with socks comforting and gentle on her sensitive feet, Perry could survive. Unfortunately, he became entangled within the complex weaving of the cozy sock. Erin followed Nora across the playground, completely unaware of her cousin stuck under her foot.

Although Perry suffered no grievous injuries, each step was a forceful, agonizing sensation. Erin had just been expressing her self-doubt over her lack of strength and confidence, yet without even trying or knowing, she was asserting absolute power over her tiny peer. And Perry had so much faith in her a moment ago; he truly thought that the cute, gentle, and kind girl would be his savior, but now he was suffering just as much as with the others.

The two arrived at a large trampoline suspended above a part of the playground. There was already someone jumping on it, an African-American girl named Mika. Mika had black hair, a blue shirt, and black skirt with tall, matching socks. She was as tall as Nora and had a camera attached to her. Mika was an aspiring photographer, so she brought her camera wherever she went.

"Hey, guys!" Mika called cheerily. "Here to join me?"

"We sure are! Come on, Erin!" Nora stepped onto the trampoline, pulling Erin with her.

"Whoooa!" Erin lost her balance on the bouncing foothold, having to hold onto Nora to stay upright.

"Haha! Just bounce your troubles away, Erin! It's fun!" Nora held both her friend's hands and directed her in jumping.

"He he he…" Erin laughed sheepishly, trying to spring her legs to keep up.

"AAAH—AAAH—AAAH!" Perry cried as Erin's feet began flying up and down on the bouncy surface.

Nora began trying to dance with Erin around the trampoline, but the constant motion caused her to tumble over. "Waaaahh!" Stuck on her front, Erin was being flung around by the taller girls' jumping. "Stop! Let me get uuuuup!"

Her soles now facing up, Perry was given time to breathe, but the repetitive jumping caused him to fly off the giant sock. "AAAAAAAHH!" Upon landing on the surface of the gargantuan trampoline, he was immediately blown to the sky. He fell down, then was sprung up again. The force of the jumping giants blew him level with their heads, but they were so immersed in their fun that they hardly had time to notice him. "GUYS! STOP! STOOOOOOP!"

Nora unknowingly bounced his direction, her back facing Perry. Upon one of his falls, he grabbed the rim of her back pocket, his body flinging about as he tried to hang on. "WOO!" Nora fell back and bounced on her rear before getting back up, the force knocking Perry off.

"Lemme get a picture of you guys!" Mika beamed, readying her camera.

The aimless bouncing had landed Perry against a solid, glass surface: the lens of Mika's camera. Perry landed on the bottom rim of the lens. "AAH!" The shutter suddenly snapped and reopened. Had Perry been an inch closer, it might have chopped him in half!

"Whoa, look at this shot!" Mika beamed, studying the blurry image of the fast-moving jumpers. "Haha! I gotta show Gabriel this one!"

Perry hung onto the camera's rim as Mika bounced out of the trampoline. He was being taken on a journey across the playground once again, returning to the western town. Mika entered a room with an artificial, horse-drawn carriage. There was a girl trying to "drive" the carriage: her name was Shimmy, with black hair in pigtails, a pink dress with red polka-dots, and white jacket.

"All aboard the horsy choo-choo!" Shimmy cheered, pretending to stomp a gas pedal with her black-socked foot.

"Shimmy, carriages don't work like trains." Gabriel said, sitting back against the carriage's inner side. Gabriel was a brown-skinned boy with puffy black and white hair, a black T-shirt with star decorations, and maroon shorts. He had a small, thin frame for his age and a toneless expression that went with his voice. He had a cute, doll-like face with blushed cheeks.

Mika climbed up into the carriage and found Gabriel drawing on his sketchpad. "Gabriel, check this out!" Mika showed him the image in her camera. "Wanna guess who those are?"

"Aaaaahh!" Perry fell off the lens when Mika angled it down. He landed on the lap of Gabriel's shorts.

"Hmm…their colors look like Nora and Erin." Gabriel guessed.

"Man, you're so good!!" Mika expressed. "What're ya drawin'?"

"Shimmy as a cowgirl."

"Haha, the carriage looks like a train!"

"I'm drawing it to comply with her cognition."

During this conversation, Perry climbed his way up Gabriel's leg, which was angled up. Once atop the dark-skinned knee, Perry turned toward the titans' heads. "HEY! GABRIEL! MIKA! LOOK HERE!"

"Don't you wanna look around with me?" Mika asked. "I saw Isabelle climbing the ceiling earlier! Let's see what everyone's doing and get ideas!"

"I guess so…" Gabriel stretched to full height, causing Perry to fall to the carriage deck, just before Gabriel's little toes. He could only watch in dismay as Gabriel and Mika left the carriage, blissfully unaware of his plight as the others.

Sighing in frustration, now his only hope was Shimmy. The carriage deck was the size of a vast field, but he made the arduous journey to reach the carriage-driving titan. Shimmy was a big fan of trains, but was otherwise a cheerful and airheaded girl. Regardless, Perry enjoyed her company, and he could feel the blissful aura radiating from her giant, make-believe fun.

"Look, horsy, there's a hay factory over there!" Shimmy pointed. "Let's go and stock up, choo-choo!"

Perry laughed at the silly statement. So long as she was engaged in this game, he would have a chance to get to her.

"Hey, Shimmy, have you seen Perry anywhere?" It was then Perry saw the head of his friend, Ralph leaning around the front.

"Nope! Shimmy doesn't know a thing~" she sang.

"Dang… if he's playing hide-and-seek, he's really got us good."

"We'll find him on my train! Come on, sit by me!" Shimmy scooted over.

"Well, I got nothing better to do." Ralph smiled, climbed up, and sat by her right.

Perry was only now making it to the titans. He couldn't believe how far he had to run within such a small space. Even as the giants got closer to where they were ominously looming over him, he was only still 100 yards away, even though he might've been a few inches away in their perspective.

Ralph's rotund frame was very imposing at this close proximity, especially when compared to Shimmy's skinnier frame. Heck, the length of his sitting rear could flatten a whole town. (Of course, if Ralph heard Perry say that out loud, Ralph would no doubt sit on his little friend without mercy.)

"Hey, maybe Perry's in that town over there!" Shimmy pointed. "Let's go see!" She "steered" the carriage as directed, swaying like she were steering a wheel.

"Wait! I see people riding flying horses up there!" Ralph pointed up. "We have to activate Horse Plane Mode!"

"Horse Plane away, Ralphy!" Shimmy kicked forward in glee.

Perry giggled at their little game. Keeping the pace, Perry was now right between the two sitting giants, feeling like he was right at the bottom of a vast canyon. Ralph liked to play with Shimmy sometimes, and Perry always suspected he had a crush on the train-loving girl.

"I don't see Perry on any of the flying horses." Ralph pretended to observe. "But I do see a big hole over there. Let's see if we can fly in. But hang on, because I might swirl the plane around!"

"Wheeeeeeeee!" Shimmy and Ralph were swaying quickly, pretending the plane was spinning. The deck was quaking from their motion as Perry tried to stable himself. He prayed none of them would shift too close and flatten him.

Ralph nearly fell to his side, so he plopped his hand on the deck to stable himself, nearly crushing Perry under his bulbous fingers. Perry survived between the fingers, but Shimmy had plopped her hand down, too, her fingers interlocking with Ralph's. Perry was smack between the tip of Shimmy's finger and the skin between Ralph's fingers. He couldn't fathom how lucky he just was in these silly circumstances.

Ralph glanced down at their touching fingers, then at Shimmy's face, blushing. Shimmy's expression remained vibrant and happy with a big grin of enjoyment. Perry, meanwhile, seized this chance to climb Shimmy's fingertip and got up to her nail. …Looking up, he could see the blush on Ralph's round face, the tiny boy cracking a chuckle. He felt like he was intruding on a cute date between the two. Were he any bigger, he would just start singing "Sittin' in a tree" and totally ruin their date.

"Hehe! Okay, we're entering the tunnel!" Shimmy cheered, raising the hand with Perry on top. "Here we gooooo!" With her other hand, she raised Ralph's shirt.

"Shimmy!" Perry cried. "Wait wait WAAAIIIT!" Her finger flew forward and poked the inside of Ralph's bellybutton, wedging the tiny boy within the crater.

"Hahahaha!" Ralph laughed. "Stop it, Shimmy, I'm ticklish!" Ralph smacked her arm off and pulled his shirt down. "Let's see how you like it!"

"Nah-uh!" Shimmy got up and ran away.

"Hey, get back here!" Ralph hopped off the carriage and gave chase.

Perry could barely see through the gap in Ralph's shirt, but he remained stuck within the naval of his chubby friend. The way it bobbed from Ralph's running made Perry sick, but at least he wasn't as fast as Spike, especially with how easily Shimmy outran him.

Shimmy ran into the room with large rubber crates and fake sacks of flour. The crates were lined in a circle with one opening and all the flour sacks were within it. Shimmy jumped over the crates to the other side while Ralph chose to run around the circle. "Hahaha!" Unfortunately, Shimmy swiftly escaped him and ran out the room.

"Huff…huff…girl's too dang fast." Out of breath, Ralph collapsed on his back against the bed of flour. "Huff…huff…"

Perry could feel the belly puffing up and down. He climbed out of the naval and up through the rim of the buttoned shirt. His friend was now lying down like a blue, rounded plain. Perry chuckled, knowing how easily Ralph tired from exercise, and it was silly to see his panting, gaping mouth from this distance.

Perry had been friends with Ralph since kindergarten. They always played together, and though Ralph enjoyed teasing him from time to time, Perry could always count on him for support and they would share a good laugh. When they first met four years ago, Perry never thought he would be shrunk down and riding in Ralph's bellybutton. Even though Ralph was totally unaware, Perry felt closer to his buddy. It felt weird to say, but seeing Ralph as a giant and standing on his belly like this really tickled Perry's heartstrings. Maybe he was imagining Ralph's reaction to his size and how Ralph would play with him the same as every day.

Perhaps Perry could make the journey across his big-bellied buddy and climb onto his face before he pushed himself up. Perry tried to remember how long Ralph took to get up after getting tired like this, and how long it could take to cross his body.

"What're you doing here, tubby?"

But before Perry had a chance, a socked foot crashed down and STOMPED Ralph's belly. The foot was smaller than Christina's, but it was still forceful enough to press the squishy field down. "WAAAH!" Perry fell over the side from the impact and crashed on a flour sack just beside Ralph's laying belly.

"Ow! What the heck, Joto?!" Ralph asked.

Joto was a Japanese girl with red hair in pigtails, white T-shirt, blue shorts, and red-toed socks. Her frame was rather scrawny, but she was a strong and rebellious girl with a scowling face and a knack for baseball. "This is our hangout, move it." Joto's two friends were behind her.

"Fine, geez!" Ralph pushed himself up and trudged off the sacks.

Perry braced himself as Joto and her friends stepped onto the bed of sacks, which dramatically shifted and shook under their steps. One of her friends was Mazu, a blonde boy with a white button-up shirt with 'Chef' written in gold and diagonally, black sparkly shorts, and gold-toed socks. Then there was Koda, a boy with spiky, messy black hair, kabuki makeup under his eyes, and a blue robe with fireworks designs.

The Japanese kids sat knee-style around the flour, leaving Perry in the relative center. "I saw Aria's gang in the field the other day." Joto began. "Looks like she's practicing a new throw."

"Her fastballs never get past you though." Koda remarked.

"Nope, I already have a counter in mind~"

"Just hope Karma doesn't catch you watchin' them." Mazu said. "He'll break your skull open!"

"I'll kick him right where it hurts, let him try." Joto boasted.

This group was rather famous for their skill in sports, always forming rivalries with other kids. They had a strong, supportive dynamic and Perry would always see them hanging out and having a blast. They usually didn't let others intrude on their hangouts, so Perry felt super awkward. Joto would definitely get mad and punch him, but they still liked Perry just the same, so they would certainly help.

Perry contemplated his next move as the kids were amidst in conversation. He hoped one of them would glance down so he could try and jump for their attention, but they completely ignored him. Since Mazu was closest, Perry decided to run for the giant and climb up his knee. "Hehe, by the way, I snuck this up here." Mazu pulled a plastic box from behind him, opening it to reveal a sandwich.

"Hah, you just couldn't wait for lunch, could ya?" Koda snickered.

"It's a new recipe I'm trying out. Guys want a bite?"

Joto and Koda shrugged, leaning forward to bite into the sandwich. By this time, Perry made it to Mazu's knee, struggling to climb the solid wall of skin. There were tiny crevices that Perry could put his hands to climb. "Hey, this ain't bad!" Joto beamed.

"I'll bet!" Mazu grinned. "But tonight, I'll show you guys something cooler!" Opening his big mouth, he ate a huge chunk of the sandwich.

Just as Perry climbed onto the slanted part of the leg, a glob of white sauce dropped and crushed him. "AAAAGH!" Perry rose from the sauce as it blotted his vision, the boy struggling to fight through it. "Are you kidding me?! Ugh, I hate you, Mazu!" he shouted in frustration. Of course, this wasn't really true; Mazu was known by his peers as a great trainee cook, and he often shared his food with others at lunch. Perry tried some of his meals and he loved the taste, but this was a huge inconvenience all the same.

"Whoops, ya missed a drop." Joto pointed.

"Well, we can't let sauce go to waste." Mazu smiled as he casually scooped the drop on his finger. "Since it didn't hit the floor, it's still good to me!"

Clearing his eyes, Perry froze in terror as he was moving right toward Mazu's big mouth. "NO, MAZU, STOP, DON'T EAT ME, DON'T EAT ME, NOOOO!" Perry cried louder than ever and shook more frantically than ever. He couldn't die, not like this! He had been so lucky and come so far! He can't die like this, not like this!

"Mazu, stop for a second!" Just before Mazu's mouth closed around the sauce, he opened his eyes to Joto. Fixing her eyes on his finger, she said, "There's a bug in that sauce!"

"A bug?" Mazu brought it up to his eyes to see.

"Ew, you were about to eat a bug!" Koda laughed.

"Want me to pinch it?" Joto asked, the casual question jumping Perry's heart.

"No, don't hurt it." Mazu said. "The little guy was probably hungry. Hehe, were you just on my leg, little guy?" He sported a wide, friendly grin.

"MAZU, I'M NOT A BUG! IT'S ME, PERRY, PLEASE!"

"It's… making a weird sound." Mazu said. "I wonder if it's a-"

"Are you three eating in here?!"

The trio jumped, finding Laruta's short frame mounted on a crate. "Whaddo you want, shorty?" Joto asked.

"Ralph said you were hogging this place to yourself. Also, you aren't allowed to eat in here."

"Ralph?! Oh, I'm gonna pound that snitch! …Or better yet…" Joto focused again at the "bug" on Mazu's finger. "I wonder if Ralph likes bugs?"

She carefully, but quickly scooped Perry and his sauce on her fingernail. With a devious smirk, she began to hurry across the playground. She saw that Ralph had climbed down to the lower floor and ran to the stairs.

"W-Wait, what're you doing?! JOTO, STOP! I'M NOT A BUG! JOTOOOO!"

Returning to the shoe rack, he saw Mack nearby. He approached and asked, "Hey, Mack, have you seen Perry anywhere?"

"Huh? No, not really." Mack replied, feigning innocence. "Wasn't he with you?"

"He was, but he ditched us in the cave. His shoes are still there, so—AAAH—HEY!" Ralph cringed when Joto suddenly shoved her pinky into his left ear, having snuck up from behind.

"Snitch!" Joto snorted before running away.

"HEY!" Ralph shoved his own finger in his ear, trying to twist the goop out. "Man, I hate her! Agh, what did she put in me?! Is this sauce?! UCK!"

"Man, what'd you do to her?" Mack asked.

"I was laying on some flour or something, and she was-"

"Ralph! Ralph, help! It's me, Perry!"

"Eh?" Ralph looked around.

"Hmmm…" Mack formed a light smirk as he looked in Joto's direction. He was wondering if Ralph would like to shrink Joto and get the same revenge… then again, he would find out what happened to Perry if he was let in on the secret, so perhaps Mack would keep it to himself.

There were actually plenty more people he would like to shrink. Spike and Christina always liked to beat him up or shove him when he wasn't looking. Mack would just love to see them tiny at his feet, bowing to him for mercy. Then there was Laruta: the snotty, rule-abiding gymnast would always tattle on him while he was trying to pull a prank or do something naughty. He hated the sound of her whiny, loud voice and her peppy personality. He was excited to shrink her down and show her who was really in charge.

Just about all these kids were jealous of his intellect, always trying to make him feel small, beating him up and laughing at him. He felt small enough at home, helpless to his mother's experiments. The only ones he liked were Erin and Nora. Erin was the only one he could open up to, considering she also had problems with her mother, and Nora was always there for support. But one by one, Mack would make them all feel small. Ralph, Max, Mika, and even Joto's group, he wanted to just shrink them all.

"Ralph! Help me! Ralph, can you hear me?!"

"P…Perry?" Ralph looked around in confusion.

"Huh?" Mack gasped. "Did you say… Perry?"

"I…I feel like I can hear Perry's voice, but…"

"Ralph, did you ever find Perry?" Max came and asked. "I looked everywhere, I couldn't find him. I'm starting to think he was abducted by ghosts!"

"No, but I hear his voice coming from somewhere. But I don't know where…"

"Let me help! HEY, EVERYONE, BE QUIET!!!"

All the nearby operatives ceased chattering and activity. Even the kids on the upper floor and across the playground were curious enough to look and see. "What's YOUR problem, Weirdo?!" Christina asked.

"I'll tell you my problem! Perry is missing!"

"M-Missing?" Erin asked, feeling slightly worried.

"Is he playing Hide-and-Seek?" Nora asked.

"We thought he was, but Ralph is receiving a telepathic transmission from him." Max explained. "We need to be quiet so he can hear it!"

"Okay, I don't recall Perry being a psychicbender." Mika scratched her head. "But his great-aunt was one, so maybe something awoke inside him."

"Ralph, can you hear me? I've been shrunk! I'm small!"

"Yeah…dude, I can hear you." Ralph whispered, putting his hand to that ear. "W…Where are you? What do you mean you shrunk?"

"Perry… shrunk?" Isabelle repeated confusedly.

"Shrunk?!" Mika exclaimed, looking around the floor. Isabelle was already checking her feet, as were Christina, Nora, and Erin, as if they believed this weird claim.

"Ralph, I'm in your ear! Tell everyone to look at your ear!"

"O…kay? Um, Perry wants you guys to look at my ear. …I think the left one."

"Okay, this has to be a prank." Mack chortled. "I bet Perry's in the bathroom. I'll go look, be right back." The boy ran off in a hurry, cutting past a confused Jason, Spike, Kent, and Juki.

Max studied the indicated ear closely. Erin decided to join with a grossed expression, accompanied by Nora and Isabelle, while others weirdly watched from behind them. (Silica, who had gotten her game back, was focusing on the handheld device and showing no interest.) "Okay, everyone's looking at my ear." Ralph said awkwardly.

"Okay! I'm climbing out!"

Perry trudged his way through the tunnel of sauce and earwax, following the light at the end of it, the light that would lead him to the outside world. "…" Now at the edge of his friend's ear, Perry found numerous, gigantic eyes gazing at him.

Max's mouth fell open in awe. Isabelle's grew wide, too, Erin's eyes grew in speechlessness, and Nora felt the urge to scream. At first, they thought a weird ant had crawled from the ear… but with a thorough observation, there was no doubt.

Max held his finger by the ear, and Perry gladly jumped on. Max held the finger for everyone to stare at, with Ralph turning as well. Perry felt rather intimidated and a case of stage-fright, having garnered the full attention of his operatives. But boy, did he feel relieved and happy. He felt so warm and delighted under the fully aware stares of his peers.

"…Duuuuude!…" Ralph drawled out with a dimwitted expression. For some reason, seeing his own best friend so tiny made him really excited. There were already a lot of ideas swimming through his head, a lot of fun games and jokes at Perry's expense, but he kept his ideas to himself for now.

"What… the… frick…" Christina breathed. …She remembered the ant she tried to squish earlier… could that have been…

"He's… so tiny…" Nora said. Internally, she thought Perry looked so cute and she wanted to snatch him up, but she resisted.

"But… why?" Laruta asked. To most of the operatives, such a phenomenon wasn't weird. Some of them even had size-changing abilities… but it had never happened with Perry. The idea of seeing their courageous Supreme Leader so small was unique in ways they couldn't describe.

"Whoa…" Erin whispered. After she had been remising over her weakness and poor physique, it was a real reality check to see an actual, tiny, powerless human. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to be that small… and she hoped that wouldn't happen to her.

"Jolene, I think that really WAS Perry!" Robi said.

"Really? Then do ya think he got shrunk by a Minish Portal?"

"…?" Isabelle looked to Silica, who was still focused on her game. "Silica, are you seeing this?!"

"No."

"Silica, Perry is tiny! He's shrunk! You have to see this!"

"Yeah yeah, gimme a minute…"

"Hey, what's everyone looking at?" Joto asked, her group approaching the crowd. "…Um…what is that?"

"Perry's tiny! Perry's tiny!" Juki bounced.

"W…What? How?" Joto's Tiny Devil suit allowed her to shrink, but last she checked, Perry didn't have such a thing.

"Yeah! How the heck did he get so tiny?!" Shimmy shouted. Mika had zoomed in her camera to take pictures of the subject.

"Yeah, dude, how did this happen?" Ralph asked.

"It was Mack! Mack did it! He has a shrink ray!" Perry shouted.

"I can't hear you."

"Hang on, I have better hearing." Isabelle said, coming closer and leaning her ear by Perry. "Perry, say that again?"

"MACK shrunk me! It was MACK!"

"It was… Mack?"

"M-Mack shrunk you?" Erin asked, surprised by the accusation.

"That shrimp was going to the bathroom!" Christina stated. "I'll get 'im!" She ran off.

"Chris, wait!" Laruta jogged after.

"Yeah, you can't go in the boys' room!" Jason yelled, swiftly outpacing her. "I'll get him!"

In the bathroom, Mack was struggling to pry open a window. "OI! MACK!" He whipped around, heart beginning to race when Jason kicked open the door. "Where do ya think you're go-"

Jason stomped toward him calmly, but every step closer sent Mack spiraling into a panic. With no real time to think, Mack pulled the shrink ray and shot him. "AAAAHH!" Jason splashed into some kind of huge puddle. "?!" It was only a small puddle on the bathroom floor. The tan-skinned islander was in a panic as he took in his surroundings, particularly the gigantic Mack in the distance.

Mack's heart began to subside. He had just shrunk Jason, one of the toughest kids around! He was only a couple inches tall as opposed to Perry, since Mack only briefly pulled the trigger. Still, the fact that he so easily defeated such a strong boy sent a rush of excitement. But he had no time to savor Jason's vulnerable form. "Jason, did you get him?" Ralph jogged in next, the chubby boy blissfully unaware. Giving him no time to react, Mack pulled the trigger on him next. "WHAT THE-?!" The sudden change in perspective threw Ralph into a frenzy.

To Mack's eyes, Ralph looked like a little walking blueberry, and the thought of squishing him into a pulp was all too tempting. "Hey, don't leave me out of the fun!" When Christina stomped in next, Mack knew he had no time to waste.

"HEY, WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOIN', YA BIG-" Christina's monstrously big feet threatened Ralph's existence. Fortunately, Mack pulled the trigger before the step could land, and the bully plopped right into Ralph's frame, knocking him over.

"WHOA! W-What the heck?! Ralph, what's going on?!"

"You nearly squished me, that's what!"

Mack's fantasy of seeing all the strongest kids shrunk was coming true sooner than he expected. If he could just keep up this pace, he could have them all and get away from here unscathed. "I wanna play, too!" Juki cheered, skiing inside—Mack fired and shrunk Juki to a size to match.

"What was that sound?" Robi asked, fluttering into the room on his Nimbi wings. Mack had more time to react to the slow-witted boy, zapping him to the size of a floating butterfly.

"Just how many people can fit in-" Mika cluelessly walked in next, but Mack caught the photographer off guard. "…Oh. That's how."

He saw Isabelle peep into the room, but just as Mack aimed the gun, she retreated. "Mack just shrunk them!" Isabelle reported. "I saw them on the floor!"

"I can't believe this!" Laruta stated. "If he's that desperate, we need to be careful!"

"I think I can do this. Leave it to me!" And with fleet footwork, Isabelle rushed into the bathroom. Mack shot, but the Spanish swiftly dodged backward. He shot again, but Isabelle leapt away and closer to Mack. Left, right, left, right, Isabelle's movement was too quick for Mack to keep track. She also took care not to step on her little friends, whom were awed by the nimble motion of the giant.

"AGH!" And in a split second more, Isabelle swiped the gun away, wrapped legs around Mack's neck, and pinned him to the floor. "YAHOOOOO!" Jason's tiny cheers reached her ears. "WAY TO GO, BELLA!"

"Hehe! I'm pleased to amaze, Jason!"

Other operatives walked into the room. "Whoa, Ralph!" Shimmy bent down and lightly pinched the grape-sized boy in her fingers. "Hehe! You look like a grape! Pinch, pinch!"

"Ulp!" His waist contorted in and out in her little fingers. "S-Stop it, Shimmy! I'm not a…" Yet, in that small moment, the idea that the cute girl was holding him, her enormous smile eclipsing his vision… it were as though Shimmy were pumping warm, infatuated feelings with each squeeze.

"Wow, Ralph, you just lost a zillion pounds!" Joto sneered, sticking her contorted, taunting expression right over him.

"HEY, PISS OFF, JO!" Ralph's happy feelings were swamped with hatred in the presence of his bully. His threats and insults were utterly trivial in his helpless state, and every second Joto saw him like this made his anger grow.

Jason would wind up in a similar situation as a bulky hand suddenly snatched him off the floor. "Man! Jason, you're so puny!" Jason fell into despair as Spike's smirking face loomed directly over him, his voice reverberating with cockiness.

"AAAAH! HELP! SOMEONE HELP!" Jason helplessly squirmed. It was hard enough to process being shrunken, but the sudden realization that Spike utterly dwarfed him by a hundred feet filled Jason with humiliation.

"Spike, let go of him!" A smaller, gentler pair of fingers ripped Jason from his rival's grasp. He was treated to the welcoming, warm sight of Isabelle's smile. "Hehe! Jason, you're so cute!"

"Hehehehehe…" All Jason could do was blush, a maelstrom of good feelings inside him. The idea that Isabelle, his sweetest and closest mate, was fondling him like a small toy, made him happy in ways he never imagined.

"Look at me, Kenny! I'm tiny!" The tiny Juki was skiing figure eights around Kent's socks, shaping an ice trail. "Whee-hooooo!" His heart pumping from her pure joy, Kent put his hand down for Juki to jump on it. "Ouchie! Kenny, your hand is melting me!"

"Ah! I'm sorry!"

"Just kidding! Hahahaha!" Juki rolled around his palm. She emitted chi to chill his hand, but his own heated chi caused it to release a cloud of steam. Both of their hearts were growing warmer either way.

"Check it out, Gabriel!" Mika flew outside and circled around the short boy's head. "Now, I'M the dolly!"

"You sure are." Gabriel lightly reached up and took her. He began to bend Mika's limbs and pet her hair. "You'd be perfect for my collection."

"Hehehehehe!"

Robi was also fluttering before Jolene's face. He saw her eyes dilate in trying to focus on him. "Are you seeing two of me, Jolene?"

"Robiiiii… stop moviiiiiing…" Jolene lazily waved her hands to grab him, but they couldn't find their mark.

Robi landed directly on Jolene's nose, her eyes drawing to the center. "Huhuhu! You're silly, Jolene!"

"Uuuuuhh…" Jolene brought up a finger, intending to touch him… but by instinct, her finger only found its way to her nose. Robi could only giggle at her innocent habit.

"Will one of you dolts pick me up?!" Christina shouted. Being so proud of her strength, every second spent being so puny around their feet was killing her inside.

But her pride would only falter further when a pair of socks approached her. None other than Laruta, the snobby sector gymnast and the shortest kid, brought her hand down for Christina's sake. "I hope this'll teach you not to be reckless."

"SHUT UP, shrimp! Can someone ELSE pick me up please?!"

Spike went to restrain Mack's arms. The kids all piled back outside with their friends in hand. "Alright, brat," Joto stated, "you better unshrink them or ELSE!"

"OW!" She whacked Mack in the stomach with her baseball bat. "Okay, okay! You see that dial thingy on the back? Just turn it the other way, it'll change them back!"

The operatives each set their friends down. The tinies took this time to get one last view of their giant-sized partners, whom all smiled down at them with giggles. Then, the shrunken band looked down at Perry, even smaller than them. It brought a smile to his ant-sized face to view such a weird, multi-sized perspective.

The teammates moved away as Laruta aimed the ray gun. The beam fired, and all the kids blew up back to normal. "Perry, you're back!" Isabelle cheered.

"Wow, that was so crazy!" Nora exclaimed. "Are you okay?!"

"That was seriously nuts!" Spike yelled.

"It was really cool though!" Jason exclaimed.

"Alright, both of you need to start explaining." Laruta stated. "How did this all happen?!"

Perry recounted everything from when he entered the cave. He explained how he tried to get everyone's attention and all the ordeals he endured. "Whoa…" Christina tried to comprehend the exciting story. "That… is… crazy… I can't even laugh at the Fart Rocket bit."

"Hooooh!" Laruta creased up in humility. "This doesn't even make sense! Our earpieces are supposed to pick up tiny voices in case something like this happened!"

The group sparked in remembrance. Now that they checked, their earpieces seemed to be absent. "Uh…okay, I admit it!" Mack gulped. "I used my metalbending to pull out everyone's pieces when we all got here!"

"WHAT?! You were THAT desperate to punish Perry?! Mack, I can't believe you put him through all that over something so childish!"

"Let's see how HE likes it!" Joto swiped the ray gun and flipped the switch back.

"No no NOOO!!" Mack cried in agony, but the beam fired. When Mack came to, he found himself amidst a complex field, and several mountains of giant feet surrounded him. The puny boy wet his pants and cowered, seeing everyone's eyes glaring at him despicably. Unlike Perry, they were all fully aware of his presence, but they weren't nearly as worried or caring.

Isabelle stepped closer, squatting her legs at a wide angle as she looked over Mack with the observant eyes of a hunter. "Well, Mack, now you feel like one with the forest!"

"Hehehe!" Shimmy giggled. "He's so teeny!"

"Let's see how you like it, shrimp!" Christina lifted her big toe over him.

"AAAH!" Mack cried and ran, feeling the earth shake as the mountainous foot crashed behind him.

"Hehe, my turn!" Spike brought his foot above him. Viewing the expansive sole of the brutish bully repulsed Mack to no end, and he rushed to escape before he could meet such a pathetic end to a boy he hated. The earth rumbled from the impact behind Mack, but just as he escaped, he was greeted by several sets of fingers.

Robi and Jolene had crouched down, their eclipsing, dopey faces gazing in awe. "He's even smaller than Lily, Jolene."

"Yah… I wonder if I tapped him, the impact of my finger would pulverize him like a meteor?"

Mack knew his intelligence was leagues above that of these slow thinkers. Heck, part of the reason he didn't join the Earth Children was that these two just couldn't follow his basic science! They were so frustrating to deal with, and the fact they were now studying him like a silly bug for their small attention span was so sickeningly infuriating!

It only felt worse when Juki and Kent crouched down to see him. "Watch this, you guys!" Juki inhaled and blew a gentle gust over Mack. The small cloud of frost completely froze himself and the space around him.

"Watch out! Heatwave!" Kent breathed on him next, melting the ice. It didn't do Mack any favors to have both their residual scents clouding over him.

The children crawled back to let a titanic black wall crash down beside Mack. He gazed up at Ralph's imposing, rotund form, a wry smirk on his face. "Look, Macky, I don't mind a good prank at Perry's expense, but that was going too far. Hope ya like eating dirt~" Ralph raised his massive dress-shoe, and Mack screamed as it came down.

Luckily, Mack survived between the raised heel and the sloped sole, but the frightened little boy couldn't bring himself to move. He felt tremors and turned left, watching as Max crouched down to see him. "There he is! I'll get him with my Super Breath power! Huuuu-"

Max inhaled and began to blow on Mack. The force of his breath was as powerful as a hurricane, for Mack went flying against control. At this force, Mack feared he would be lost in the wind forever, but he fortunately crashed against a grayish surface.

"Sniff, sniff…" The surface he was on felt a bit damp and smelled awful. It was composed of millions of thick ropes, all knitted together to form an enormous sock. Looking up, he saw the underside of a handheld game, along with Silica's rotund, black sweater. "Ewwww!" The smell of Silica's sock practically ruined his nostrils. He wondered how often she washed them.

"Silica, Mack is on your sock!" Isabelle pointed.

"So, get him off." The gamer replied uncaringly.

"Can't you put that down for a second?!"

Mack scrambled toward the edge of the toes and leapt off the sock. "AH!" He screamed when an enormous train suddenly crashed on the floor.

"Hee hee!" Shimmy loomed above him, her gargantuan grin bright and insane. "Here comes the Giganto Train! Choo-choo!"

"WAAAAH!" Mack cried as the train nearly ran directly over him, surviving between its wheels. Shimmy rapidly rolled the toy train back-and-forth, its miniature wheels rattling the ground in an uncomfortable manner. Shimmy moved away when Jason approached.

"Oi, this is kind of fun!" Jason laughed, getting into a squat position. "Here I GO!" And he leapt five feet into the air!

Mack was astonished that such a titan could leap such a distance, but cried as the two tanned feet came falling like meteors. They crashed away from him, but the force sprung Mack into the air and landed him on one of Jason's toes. "Oi, he's on me!"

"I'll get him, Jason!" Isabelle raised her foot, much smaller than Jason's, and stepped on his, but Mack jumped down and between the toes.

"Ow! You did that on purpose!"

"Hehe, I couldn't help it!" Isabelle giggled.

"Oh, yeah?!" Jason stomped on Isabelle's foot. She laughed and stepped on his, and he stepped on hers, and as they kept going back and forth, Mack had to keep dodging between the toes each time.

Perry laughed at their squabble. He always thought Jason and Isabelle had a thing for each other, and these silly moments were common. But as he glanced down, he saw that Mack was getting away from them. "Look, there he is!"

"Not on my watch!" Koda declared, lighting a small bombshell and flicking it to the floor.

"AAAAH!" Mack bolted the opposite direction. The bomb's radius was small, but it sounded like a deadly explosion as small pieces of paper flew past him. Koda flicked more firecrackers down, fairly close, but just far enough away to scare Mack without hurting him.

"This is how you squish a bug!" Joto raised her silver baseball bat and began bashing the ground around Mack. Each quick impact rattled the world, stunning him motionless.

"Um, maybe that's enough." Erin said sheepishly. "We don't wanna scare him too much…"

Joto stopped when Gabriel approached him next. Mack looked up hopefully, Gabriel's legs getting into a squat as he lay a hand beside Mack. "Would you like me to help you up?" he asked simply, still showing little emotion on his doll-like face.

"Y-yes! Thank you!" Mack gladly climbed onto the welcoming hand. Gabriel raised up and discarded Mack onto his sketchpad. "W-wait, what're you doing?!"

Darkness brewed in Gabriel's round eyes as he narrowed his pencil down at Mack. "Your humility is very inspiring."

"AAAAH!" Mack ran around the giant paper as the pointed pencil followed him. Gabriel traced Mack's direction and slowly drew an aimless, abstract image. "Hehe, now that's getting creative!" Mika laughed.

"Wait, it's my turn!" Mazu beamed. The blonde chef reached over and seized Mack in a pair of chopsticks. As Mack recollected his senses and wondered what was happening, he found himself being dropped into a bowl of rice.

Every grain of rice was nearly as big as he was, yet the mountain was difficult to move in. He stared up in utmost horror as Mazu's grinning face loomed over him. As his big mouth uttered the words, "Time to eat~" the chopsticks closed in on Mack.

"NOOOO!" Mack scrambled to run across the rice as the enormous sticks punctured the surface. He watched as a large mound of rice rose from the mountain and into Mazu's gaping mouth. He closed his mouth around the rice and chewed with delight. But Mazu targeted Mack again, the boy screaming and climbing hastily before the next mound could be collected.

The others merely watched as Mazu enjoyed his food, laughing at Mack's silly attempts to escape. It was like they had no remorse for him after what he put Perry through. Perry still remembered the horror he felt when Mazu's mouth threatened him, so he wanted nothing more than for Mack to experience that fear.

But Erin felt like she couldn't take it anymore. Hearing everyone laugh at Mack's utter humility and helplessness was triggering. Mika was giggling and taking pictures of it. Gabriel was drawing a picture of Mack pleading before the titans in the form of an ant.

Eventually, Mazu seized the mound of rice that Mack was on. With an even bigger smile, Mazu brought the rice over to satisfy his appetite. "NOOOOOOOO!"

"STOP IT!"

Mazu ceased and frowned, glancing to Erin. The scrawny nerd gently grabbed the mound of rice in her fingers, letting the rice dissolve as Mack settled on the tip of her finger. His face still pale from the experience, he looked up into Erin's bespectacled eyes, tears flooding behind the glasses. "I…I know what he did, but… does he really deserve to be treated like this?"

Mack was able to catch his breath, feeling safe on Erin's finger. She was one of the few people that liked and understood him, a warm friend that he could trust. Nora also shared her concern as a fellow friend, though she would usually be strict with him when need be. "Aww, you have such a kind heart, Erin!" Nora cooed. "You're so forgiving and perfect!"

"I wasn't really gonna eat him." Mazu said. "I just wanted to scare him."

"Yeah, me too." Koda replied.

"Why do you like him, anyway?" Christina asked. "He's a jerk. He thinks he's better than all of us."

"You don't understand what his home life is like!"

"His home life?" Laruta asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"I…I shouldn't say."

With a raised brow, Laruta looked at Mack. Though she couldn't see, she could feel his expression was pitiful and apologetic. There were clearly reasons behind his arrogance. "…Well, I would like to hear him out." Laruta said. "But that doesn't change what he did to Perry. Erin, could you place him back on the floor?"

"W-Why?"

"Just put him down. Don't worry, we're not gonna do anything."

With a gulp, Erin looked down at little Mack. He clearly didn't want to leave the comfort of his friend's finger. Just seeing her big blue eyes, magnified by her glasses, crying for him, made him feel so much better. "Oh…I'm sorry, Mack."

With hesitation, Erin lowered Mack back to the floor. Afterwards, nearly all the ops amassed in a circle around the boy, their feet interconnecting to form an inescapable barrier. Mack merely froze on the spot and cowered. He had literally just shrunk some of these kids, but now the shoe was on the other foot. And why would they feel pity? It was true: he thought himself smarter than all of them, and he hated Laruta's snotty, scolding voice, he hated Chris, Spike, and Jason's brutish demeanors, he hated when Joto mocked him during sports, and he hated playing online against Silica and listening to her cocky retorts. And worst of all, he hated how positive and popular Perry was. Perry had famous and noble lineage, their kindness spread to him, and that kindness attracted all of their loyalty. Just as well, it compelled them to hate anyone who was against Perry. But he didn't understand… none of them did. Mack doesn't deserve to be beneath them. The way they all looked down at him like a bug… it was so infuriating.

Shimmy stood next to Ralph and held his hand, the boy forming a blush, and Jason and Isabelle were still lightly trying to stub each other. It was like the whole KND were united against him, a group activity they all shared delight in. Just seeing them act all silly and enjoy his misery made him feel sick.

It was then that Laruta finally spoke. "Listen, Mack: in the Kids Next Door, we're taught to support and help each other. We don't have to 'like' each other, but putting each other in danger is crossing the line. If you were mad at Perry, you should've talked to him about it. If something else is bothering you, then you should talk to us. We promise we'll try to understand. But now that you understand how Perry felt, you need to talk to him. Maybe he'll be willing to listen."

Mack gulped, turning to Perry. His giant eyes were narrowed, but his smile was wry. With humiliation, he walked up to Perry's socks. He felt as powerless as Perry did when he was shrunk before Mack's socks. The boy in question bent down and offered a finger. Mack meekly climbed on. He was raised to Perry's eye level, shirking as the other kids narrowed their gazes on him. It was bad enough having to apologize to someone, but worse when everyone else made a show of it, and worse than that when he was as small and pathetic as a bug whom they could give little thought for.

"Perry, I'm sorry!" He wasn't sure if his words could reach, especially when he couldn't bring them to a full shout. "That was really immature of me and I'll never do it again! Just please change me back! I learned my lesson!"

Isabelle helped transfer the message. "Well, before we do," Perry said, "I want you to know something. When I was shrunk, it felt so humiliating trying to shout up at everyone, and it was so frustrating. But I never once doubted these guys. That's why I knew they would help me, because they're my friends. You're our friend, too, Mack. You're part of the KND just like we are."

"And by the way, we weren't trying to step on you." Isabelle smiled. "We were moving just slow enough so you could dodge."

"Yeah, I wouldn't squish ya for real." Christina smirked. "Then I couldn't beat you up, anymore. But I want you to remember that I could've. You better remember this day and thank me for holding back."

"Yeah, man." Spike smirked. "I don't like your guts, but not enough to kill ya. Haha, you're one of my favorite guys to beat up!"

"I won't stay mad at you, Mack." Erin smiled.

"You're very lucky to have a friend like Erin." Nora said with the frown of a scolding mother, her eyes in a glare. "You better treat her like a princess from now on!"

"O-Okay, I will." Mack stuttered.

"Hehe, he's so cute!" Shimmy grinned. "Can we keep him tiny?"

"Yeah, just make him the class pet." Ralph suggested. "Who knows, he might like living in a cage."

"The choice belongs to Perry." Laruta said. "So, what do you say? Do you forgive him?"

Perry stared down at him. The boy who shrunk him, the boy who could've got him killed and let no one know. It was sickly satisfying to see Mack small, powerless, and pleading. "I can't forgive him. But I would like to know what his deal is. Mack, if we change you back, would you tell us what your home life is like?"

"Hey, that's not fair!" Erin argued. "You shouldn't force him to do that!"

"Okay, I will!" Mack answered; Isabelle spoke for him.

"But, Mack-"

"It's okay, Erin, really. Just, please change me back."

"We will." Laruta said. "Perry, put him down. Joto, give me that."

As Joto handed her the shrink ray, Perry placed Mack on the floor, reminding him of his helplessness one last time before the united titans. But as he gazed up at the shining ray gun, Mack would find the tips of his toes reaching theirs: he stood equal level with his peers once more.

"Alright, so what's the deal?" Christina asked assertively. "Did you make that thing or your mom?"

"It's my mom's. She doesn't really know I borrowed it. And… she likes to use it on me."

"She what?!"

"It's true. That wasn't the only time I was shrunken. It's actually her way of 'training' me. She shrunk me to a bunch of different sizes, tested my adaptability to cold, heat, and other things, tested what foods I could eat, my athletic ability…"

"I…I can't believe that." Mika said. "That sounds horrible."

"It is. And she never listens when I try to argue or tell her 'No.'"

"But, why…" Perry felt angry just imagining that kind of life. His own parents could get tough with him in his own training, but it was never as bad as… "Why would any parent treat their child that way?!"

"She says it'll make me the 'toughest' kid around. But it never felt that way. She always just sort of… smiles, and has that look in her eyes like a scientist playing around. She never seems to care how I feel about it."

"Why haven't you told anyone else? Heck, why wouldn't you tell the police?!"

"Because then all you guys would've found out, and you all would make fun of me!"

"What?!" Laruta shouted. "Why would we make fun of THAT?!"

"Because none of you like me!"

"Only because you…" Perry was about to argue, but stopped himself. So, the reason Mack acted like a jerk was because, at home, he was treated like a guinea pig. By the time he would've wanted to open up, most of these kids probably already disliked him. Mack wouldn't want them to see him as a helpless subject on his mother's table. The operatives bore solemn expressions. They were all putting it together in their heads, sharing Perry's thoughts. (Silica still wasn't paying attention.)

"Perry, I…I'm sorry I shrank you." Mack sighed. "But when you pulled that prank, and got everyone to laugh at me… it really ticked me off. None of you would understand. So, I had to make you understand."

Perry sighed. "You should've just talked about it. I would've understood."

"I know…"

Perry approached him. He opened his arms and gave Mack a hug. The sight of the gesture drew "awes" out of them. "If you promise to never do that again, then I'll help you."

"Perry…"

"Yeah, that isn't cool at all, what your mom's doing." Christina said, cracking her knuckles. "I don't like your guts, but I wanna help you."

"Yeah, me too." Isabelle put a hand to Mack's shoulder.

"We got your back." Ralph smiled.

"B-but… what're you guys gonna do?" Mack asked.

"I think we should confront your mother as a group." Laruta suggested. "It would be best if we gather the support of our parents, too."

"Would you guys really do that for me?"

"I will." Perry nodded. "What about you guys? You think your parents would be willing to help?"

One by one, the operatives offered their consent and approval. Mack's heart was steadily lifting and warming. To think that these kids who despised him and tortured him would be so supportive. For once, he felt that he was part of them. He hated their demeanors and their voices, but for once, he was feeling the love and support that the KND was all about.

"But now that I think about it," Laruta began once more, "now that Mack has apologized, you all owe him some apologies, too. You guys contributed to Perry's suffering."

"Aw, come on!" Ralph whined.

"You're right…" Christina began awkwardly. "I'm sorry for what I did. I just… thought you were an ordinary bug, so I…I wasn't thinking…"

"Ugh…I guess I'm sorry, too." Spike said. "For jumping on Robi and… stuff."

"I tried to get him help," Jolene said, "but then Spike made me think it was just in my head, so I forgot."

"Hey, don't throw all the blame on me!"

"Yeh… me, too." Jason followed. "We almost hurt ya, didn't we?"

"I'm sorry I didn't notice you, Perry." Laruta said. "If I wasn't distracted by Isabelle, I could've helped."

"ME, TOO?!" the Shandian panicked.

"I'm really sorry I stepped on you." Erin whimpered. "I…I feel so awful…sniffle."

"Hey, don't cry." Perry consoled, feeling genuine guilt from the girl. "Thank you for wearing socks. They really saved me."

"Sniff…" Erin sported a smile from this silly compliment.

"Erin just has the coziest little socks around~!" Nora cheered, huggling her best friend. "If I could shrink down, I would just curl up and take a nap in those socks!"

"What a weirdo." Shimmy said. "Perry, I'm sorry for stickin' you in Ralph's smelly belly. I can smell it on my finger, so I know it must be uck!"

"'kay, you're rubbing it in." Ralph said.

"Perry, how do you like this picture?" Gabriel showed him a drawing of Perry standing on his mountain-sized knee, with Gabriel's face in the distance.

"You're an amazing artist!" Perry smiled.

"Thanks. This story gave me a lot of inspiration. Do you think you could tell it to me tomorrow? I could make a good picture book out of it."

"Haha, that sounds fun!"

"I'm sorry I almost ate you, Perry." Mazu said. "If you want, you can have all my lunch for a week."

"I'm sorry I stuck you in Ralph's ear." Joto followed.

"Actually, Joto, I'm glad you did that." Perry said. "Thanks to you, I was able to get Ralph's attention. Hehe, you really helped, Joto! I owe you one!"

"Heh…in that case, I regret nothing." Joto smirked. "Keep your ears open, Ralphy~"

"Screw off." Ralph said.

"I'm glad you're both okay." Robi smiled, taking Mack's hand. "I hope I didn't scare you. I like tiny things!"

"Me, too." Jolene smiled, holding his other hand. "If your mom ever shrinks you, I'll come save you and make you a nice, warm house out of clay."

It was a relief to see these kids shorter than him again, their eyes looking up with consolation instead of down with passive observation. The notion of being kept by them as a pet wasn't comforting, but their kind intentions warmed him all the same.

"But listen," Perry began, "before we do all that, why don't we enjoy the rest of this trip first? It's about time for lunch and I'm hungry!"

"I suppose that's acceptable." Laruta nodded.

"Darn right!" Christina locked him in a headlock. "Heh, my training seriously paid off on that one, Puny!"

"Haha! I bet you would've had an easier time!"

"You bet I would! Oh, and Mack?"

"OW!" Mack yelped when Christina stomped his foot.

"Sorry, I couldn't hold it in!"

"Yeah, well it's your turn!" Mack tried to stomp her, but Christina had already bolted.

"Gotta catch me first, shorty!"

"Let's get her, Mack!" Perry cheered.

"Yeah!" The boys ran after her, with the horde of teammates stampeding behind them. …Isabelle had to backtrack, grab Silica's collar, and pull her.

Their spirits brightened, the kids gathered outside at the picnic tables, recounting the story to all the outside operatives. In fact, after seeing Sector GT and the other giants, they dreaded to think how THEY would've looked from the view of an ant!

That lunch time felt very rewarding as Perry's friends offered some of their meals, asked for his wellbeing, and showered him with praise and compliments. He felt so happy to be equal level with them again, felt so happy to be the center of attention. They were still pretty peeved at Mack, so he wound up being a punching bag or a target for their next activities. But although he felt humiliated, even Mack felt closer to his teammates. Although they laughed at him, Mack could feel good feelings behind their laughter instead of spite.

It was such an experience to view their friends from such a huge perspective, even to the ops that were only briefly shrunk. Though Mack had grown ashamed for what he did, the incident had put all the sectormates closer together, made them think of their closest friends more fondly. They knew they could count on each other, even the ops who disliked each other knew they could be trusted in tough times. Perry, as Supreme Leader, learned that even if he was at his lowest and weakest, had the strong loyalty of his faithful operatives. Their friends were all such fun, reliable people, and they were happy to be a part of them.