Mark's eyes, parallel to rows of seated nerds' feet, shot up when he heard Thea whimpering gently. It took him off-guard. The quivering through her body was so strong that, even an inch or two away, he could feel it through the floor tiles. Kat moved from shoulders to hair, trying to return colour to her face without making a scene.

The bespectacled young woman was fine holding him in her gauntlet. So why was she so scared now, hyperventilating and shaking her head? Was it the surprise of the situation? Something sensitive about contact with her tan skin... or her bared foot, in particular? She suddenly turned her thin neck down to his floor-bound body. When their eyes met, she grimaced and turned her head into Kat's shoulder.

"I gotcha." The pink-haired hipster purred, managing a sympathetic smile. "I gotcha."

No matter what they planned to do with him, the tiny teen felt like he'd be a jerk to flee then. For sure, he still had the portal device to retrieve - but even at full-size, he couldn't just bail there.

A little bit more chatter filled the room's warmly-coloured walls, as the panel continued. Some eyes pointed to the the Great Fairy and /co/lette cosplayers, but none of them made a move. The shrunken Link caught some words from the presenter up front: "...Obviously, this character is a fetishization of the homosexual lifestyle. Not the kind of person we want representing us."

At that, one girl seated near them stood up in a huff. He recognized the costume as one of the military guys in that manga Thea gave him. A red jumpsuit, flowing cape, silver mask, and grey boots. Boots that stomped forward to him. The crossplayer stormed to the door in outrage, and the shock waves knocked Mark off his feet.

She didn't even bother looking down! Mark yelled out, trying to roll aside, out of the thick sole's shadow. Dirt sediments from the carpet floor rained down. He shut his eyes...

...But that pressure that surrounded him wasn't a hard army boot. No, this was soft. It dragged him back across the floor. Mark could feel the smooth sole rubbing against him. Bare skin. The sound of a resounding stomp landed only an inch away.

"Thea..."

The foot's soft grip left the little Link's body. He gulped, eyes snapping open again. Just as he said - the gigantic /co/lette pulled him out of danger with her foot, and was now pulling her leg back, shaking more than ever. She leaned over, hands clutched together.
"Are you - Mark - is stuff okay? Did I - my foot - did it hurt you?" The titan of a girl whispered.

He panted, dusting himself off. "Thea... I should be asking you that! You look like you saw a ghost." He got back up, coughing from the dust that clung to his body.

Meanwhile, the Great Fairy's painted face pointed towards the slamming door. Her eyebrows furrowed, and her tongue clicked. "Rude! That jerkass interrupts the whole panel, and just walks away without looking! Those steps could've killed you! And worst of all, they got angry at a valid argument! Like, wow." Giving her quivering comrade one last headpat, she brushed her hair back, pulled up imaginary sleeves, and headed for the door. "Hold my necklace, captain, I must ready the cannons."

Her exit caused more of a scene than the last one. It left the room silent for a terrifying few seconds, with Mark and Thea feeling like they had a giant searchlight on them. Neither dared to speak until the presentation resumed: "On the other end of the spectrum, if we look into Deadpool's long history with Cable..."

"Seriously, though." The little green man rubbed his arm, trying to keep a safe distance. "Thanks. I could've been cosplaying Flatman there. You're a lifesaver."

She shook her head, running a hand right beneath her hair streak. Her other hand descended to the floor. "Y-yeah, right. You forgot I dropped you down there to begin with."

Mark crossed his arms, tilting his head coyly. "...While trying to grab the portal gun! And keep me from getting glomped again!" He climbed into her fingers, steadying himself by grabbing the pinky. Her face remained distant, unmoving. He added: "You meant well."

She looked up, moving her glasses slowly until the ceiling lights hid her pupils. "It's not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me." Her arm ascended gently, white uniform accenting its muscle definition.

Mark chuckled, looking to the front of the room. "Just keep telling yourself that, Batman."

"Hah, Kat never got that one!"

Thea's sudden volume made him jump. He was closer to her plump mouth than he thought - and those lips were turned up a hint more than they'd been a second ago.

"Really, she... She's cool. She's always helped me out." When she blinked, her eyelashes looked thick as ropes. "Sure, she cheers me up, like what you just saw. But she also helps me polish my art and give me ideas."

"You draw?" Mark asked.

She twisted a cheek to him. "Webcomic. Not really good at all. She... she cheers me on with it, though. But really, that's your first question?" Her bare shoulders rested back in the seat. Her voice was still a whisper, and still clearer than the panel. "Aren't you angry that my rescue attempt was so half-assed?"

He had to think for a moment before answering. "From what I've seen of Kat, you're right to be careful. I don't think I'd like to get her angry, even if she wasn't carrying that device."

"Th-the portal device..." Just as suddenly as Thea drew close, she stretched away, back bowing into the plastic chair. She kept her nose turned to the door.

When Mark looked, he saw the Great Fairy trotting in, having made her return. The cosplayer that nearly stomped him came with her - held tightly in-hand, pale, arms hanging limp over the side of her shrinker's thumb. As others turned their heads, she barely hid the shrunken woman behind her back, walking with the same pep and vigour of a cheerleader.

The blogger tucked the modified gizmo back in its place, and, coming to her friend, dropped the unwilling tagalong into her bag with the other. Her bare arms stretched up as she plopped back into her seat. "Theeeere we go, everything's better!"

Thea kept eyeing the bag. "No. Seriously, did you just-" She sputtered silently, halfway drowned out by the noise of people standing up and grabbing their bags. "Shrink her?"

"Sight unseen." She hummed. "Now this one, this one's got a pretty cute body. Really has that healthy look to her face that our current little accessory lacks." He couldn't do much but stare as - like many times before - she put the necklace back on, giving him a nuzzle with her chest. "Better work hard, Marky, or she could end up replacing you!"

He snickered. "Maybe we should work shifts." It was really all he could say; seeing someone who'd been that close to murdering him turned his size just hammered in the lingering danger. As long as she had that portal device, he couldn't really be safe, no matter how upbeat she was about the situation.

Thea lifted a finger, before squeezing in against her friend's shoulder - the force jostling Mark slightly. "You know that... That's illegal, right? Like, seriously, I'm saying this as a friend: you could get into jail for this." She peered down cautiously to the boy held in the Great Fairy's bosom, taking a step back. "Someone who invaded your room, that's one thing. But this woman didn't MEAN any harm. You don't know anything about her."

Kat put a hand on her hip, eyelids lowering until they formed a flat, unimpressed horizontal line across the pupil. "It's not who they are underneath, but what they do that defines them. Didn't a smart girl say that once? I've gotta teach her a lesson somehow." She stepped forward, into the crowd. For the dark-skinned girl to communicate, she'd have to raise her voice; and reveal her friend's actions to the whole convention. That couldn't happen. So, she just followed.

The moving attendees exited the room, pulling Link, The Great Fairy, and /Co/lette with them. With a glimpse at the schedule, they found themselves moving towards...