the INFLATIONATION
Your Home For Toon Balloons
STORIES
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----------------------------- by Blimp Wolf |
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The walk to work was difficult
this morning, what with the monster of a storm they had had the
previous night. As Jim stepped over pieces of debris or fallen
tree branches, he was glad that no one had been injured. Looking
around at the crews coming out to make repairs, however, it looked
like the town would be quite busy cleaning up. Especially with
the annual town parade tomorrow! Picking up some debris with his tail, and putting it in a recycling can nearby, the young lizard scooted along towards the office. His town always worked hard, and he was determined to give them the parade that they deserved. Jim attached his makeshift ID badge as he took the steps two at a time. The Tire & Balloon Design Co. building had lost some of its shine since he and his friends had bought it a few years ago, but it was theirs. Jim stopped, thinking back to the day when they pooled what little savings they had had to start up this businessà no more taking orders from overpaid bosses. They made the products, they made the decisions, and they ran the business. However, they didn't always make the money. There were two other tire production companies in this town, and they had greater production capabilities. That's why Jim had had his group expand into balloon design, to open up more job opportunities. And this year, they finally had their shot: they were chosen to design and construct all of the balloons for the annual town parade! If they pulled this off, the company could be set for life. Jim pushed open the door to the break room, and sighted two of his co-workers. Rick and Derek were sitting at the table, each getting ready for the day ahead. Jim had met these two in high school, and they had been friends ever since, even when they all went to work for Big Tires. And they all left togetherà or, more appropriately, were fired together. The two now ran the design and production line. Rick, as usual, was gobbling down Happy Hound Dog Food, and looked like he was on his second can. Jim never wanted to tease the dog about the spare tire he had from eating so much, and how his shirt wasn't able to fully contain him any longer (despite the fact that he wore an XXL), so he smiled and waved. Derek, a muscular blue dragon with green stripes, was reading what looked like a rather thick book and seemed deep in thought. As Jim approached, Derek quickly shut the book and looked up at him. "Morning, Jim," Derek quickly said, sipping some coffee. "Heya, Jim," Rick mumbled, dog food all over his mouth. "Good morning, guys. I see that we made it through the storm all right," Jim said, as he put on his lab coat and pouring himself a cup of coffee. Leaning back in his chair, Derek nodded. "So, what's on the agenda today, boss-man?" Jim hated being called that. "We have to make sure that everything is ready for tomorrow. And I'm gonna be stuck in the lab all day." "Why?" Rick inquired, tossing the can into the trash and rubbing his large gut. "Well, the price of rubber for tire production is still going up, so all of the tire companies are searching for ways to combat this. From what I've learned, our competitors are contracting for foreign rubber," he said, pausing to take a sip. "And what are we going to do? We don't exactly have a large supply of capital," Derek said smartly. "That's why I've spent the past week in the lab! I think that I might have found another solution. But, I still need to run some more tests." "What's your solution?" "I think that I might have found a way to revitalize old, dried-out tires! Think about it, if this works, we could use all that old rubber we've got in storage and in our little junkyard to make tons of new tires while the other companies are spending all their cash to import, and then jacking up their prices! With this, we can be number one!" Jim said, leaping atop the table and raising his mug in a hyper-dramatic fashion. Derek exhaled, with a sweat drop on the back of his head. "Is this going to be like the time when you blew up our high school chemistry lab with one of your great ideas?" Derek asked. "N-no, that was justà" "Or like the time you blew up the R & D lab at Big Tires and got yourself fired?" Rick added. "Oh, that wasn't even myà" "And then there was that timeà" Derek began. "IT WON'T BE LIKE THE OTHER TIMES!" Jim shouted in exasperation. Leaving the two with a stunned look on their faces, Jim exited the break room and walked towards his lab. "Hello, Jim!" came a sweet voice from his left. It was Vicky the secretary. Jim blushed, burying his snout into his lab coat, trying to keep the lizard behind the desk from seeing how red he was. "Hivivkygoodmorninggottagolotsaworktodobye!" he mumbled, quickly running down the hallway. Stopping to catch his breath, Jim was mortified. "Real smooth, Jim, now she thinks you're even more of a geek!" he thought. He wanted to ask her out, but he could never get the courage to do it. Lowering his head, he walked on. Turning the corner, he ran into Brett, who was in charge of marketing. "Another strike-out, Jim?" he asked, reading from a file. "Yeah," Jim answered, now seeming to be dragging himself along. Closing the folder, the rabbit started to walk with Jim. "Just ask her, that's all you have to do. But I guess, we've got bigger problems to worry about today," he added, smoothing his long ears down the back of his head. "What do you mean?" Jim asked. "We think that the storm might have damaged our store house." "Not the ones with the parade balloons!" Jim asked, his eyes bugging out. "Well, Amy and I are going to go check it out and see. It's probably nothing, but we're going to make sure that everything is still in order." "Okay, you're right, they're probably fine." "Now, if Amy will just get he-" Brett began. However, he was tackled mid-sentence by a hyperactive young raccoon, whom was now hugging the life out of him. "I'm here Brett! Did you miss me?" "I'm missing my lung capacity, Amy!" Brett gasped, starting to turn blue. Amy was an artist who worked with both Brett and Derek, designing the parade balloons and billboards that they planned to build when they got the money. She also wanted Brett. "I'm all ready, Brett-y. Let's go!" Jim stifled a laugh as the rabbit got back up on his large feet, Amy firmly attached to his chest. "We'll be back later," Brett said flatly, turning to walk away. Jim gave his friend a little wave as he walked away, Amy's tail waving all around. The inside of the lab was just as disorganized as it ever was. Piles of papers, chemical equations scrawled all over the boardà and a stack of bills in the corner, now nearly at knee-level. Jim tried to ignore the labels like 'second notice' as he made it over to his workstation. "You'd better work, baby. Or elseà" Jim thought, shaking his head while looking at the flask of green liquid. Looking down at his notes, quadruple-checking the calculations he had spent thirteen hours coming up with, Jim leaned on his elbow. "Everything looks good, this formula should be able to revitalize old rubber tiresà and not melt them like my other formula," Jim thought, remembering cleaning up that mess for days. Looking at the clock, it was already 1:00; he'd better get moving if he was going to get to the junkyard and back before closing time. Still looking at the clock, he reached for the flask, and accidentally tipped it to far. A few green drops leapt out, landing on the counter top. "Geez, way to almost ruin all our work!" Jim thought, wiping up the chemical with a paper towel. Securing the formula in a pouch, he turned to exit the lab. As he walked out the door, he tossed the paper towel over his shoulder into the trashcan, and then shut the door. If the lizard had stayed inside the lab, he would have seen a most peculiar sight. The paper towel did make it into the trashcan, however, it was also bouncing like a basketball in and out of the trashcan. The Salvage, as it was called, was thankfully empty today. Jim didn't want anyone to be around for his experiment, he never liked to have anyone around for themà just in case. Tire and Balloon Design Co. owned the deed to this junkyard, and it was bringing in more capital then any other venture of theirs. Until the parade contract, that is. However, it did provide Jim with 'test-subjects' for his experimentsà though that usually ended with a call to the fire department. He walked past the tire filling air station they kept near the old garage, looking around. "Okay, they were here three days ago," he thought. Jim cautiously walked past the old crusher, which occasionally was used to crush large objects into flat sheets. For some reason, it always made him nervous. Coming to a large pile, Jim smiled, he had found the old tires from previously. "All right, let's see if this stuff works," he said, removing the potion from his satchel. Climbing up onto some of the pile to get at one, particularly old looking tire, which was quite hard to the touch. Jim cautiously poured some of the green liquid onto the tire. "Now, according to my calculations, the revitalization should happen pretty quickly," he thought, and hoped. About a minute later, Jim reached out to touch the tire again. It was different! The tire felt new! "Oh! Please don't let this be an illusion!" Jim thought excitedly, rolling the tire to the filling station. He inflated the tire back up to its recommended PSI, and no air escaped. It even rolled perfectly! "I've done it! With this, our company can finally do well!" Jim said, skipping about, holding the formula above him. He should have been watching the tire he had rolled, which had rebounded off a pile of garbage, and was now rolling back towards him. Unfortunately, he was lost in his joy. "Ack!" the lizard shouted as he tripped over the tire. As this happened, Jim's arm jerked violently, spilling much of the formula down onto him. The green liquid poured down his body, all over his clothes and skin from his head to his feet to his tail. Steadying himself from falling completely, Jim recovered. Shaking his head, and corking the bottle of formula, he looked down at himself with alarm. "Oh, no! A chemical spillà on me!" he said, looking to see if he was all right. Strangely, he was fine. Even his clothes hadn't turned green from the liquid. "Thank goodness! That gave me quite a scare." Jim thought, breathing a sigh of relief. Looking down at the tire that had caused this, Jim scowled. "Stupid tire!" he said, giving it a strong whack with his tail. The tire went shooting away; towards a pile of junk. "Now, I'll get back and share my good news," Jim thought, unaware of what was behind him. The tire had shot to the pile, and run into a solid bumper, which it bounced off of and became airborne. Shooting back, the flying tire smacked Jim in the middle of the back, sending him flying, and sending the satchel to the ground. He landed with a thud on the conveyor belt of the crusher, which left him disoriented and woozy. To complicate matters, the tire, rebounding from its impact on the lizard, landed on the lever that activated the crusher, and pulled it to the 'ON' position. The mighty pile driver started up, and the conveyor belt moved forward. Still recovering, Jim rolled over onto his back, holding his head as he lay flat. "Wha-what's going?" Jim began, as he saw the crusher directly above him. As he opened his mouth to scream, the crusher came down and flattened him. "That was the scariest thing I've ever seen," Jim thought, opening his eyes. "Well, at least it's over, I better get going," he continued, slowly stopping to wonder. "Wait a secà how did I survive that?" Jim wondered, looking down at his body. Surprise stole the scream from his throat as he looked at his body, which was as flat as a sheet. "HOW CAN THIS BE?" he bellowed. Lifting his left arm, it was, indeed, as flat as a pancake. It bent upwards with a curve like a book's page. Slowly standing, he wobbled back and forth. Attempting not to panic, Jim tried to size up his situation. How could this have happened? How can he be doing this? And then, he looked over to wear he had dropped the formula. "The formula! It revitalized the rubber tire, and it must be able to rubberize anything! Even living things!" Jim thought, his mouth open on his flat face. Waving his arms, he realized that he couldn't exactly go back to the office like this, as a paper lizard. "What can I doà my body is rubbery like a tire" Jim began, looking around. Spying the tire filling air tank, Jim continued, "so, maybe I'm just flat and need some air!" Slowly walking over to the air tank, Jim wrapped his papery fingers around the hose. "I can't believe that I'm about to do this," Jim thought, as he put the nozzle into his mouth. Slowly squeezing the handle to begin the airflow, Jim felt the air enter his body. His face slowly began to become 3-D again, and in a few seconds, his body literally 'popped' back to its original shape. Taking the hose out of his mouth. Jim spied himself in a nearby reflective piece of metal lodged in the junkyard ground. "Thank goodness, I'm back toà relative normal," he said. Reaching his right arm across, he grabbed a piece of his left arm and started to pull. The scaly skin stretched out like it was made of rubber, and snapped painlessly back to normal when released. Looking down at his stomach, he grabbed it with his left and right, and pulled. It, too, stretched like it was not flesh. Pondering this, Jim thought, "the formula made my entire body, and even my clothes, stretchy like rubber. I'm glad that that air tank was hereà air tank, hmmm." "I wonder," he began, moving back to the tank. "I was flattened because I'm stretchy like rubber, and I was able to use the air tank to restore my shape like a rubber tire. I wonder if my new body can also hold air in like a rubber balloon." Once more, Jim picked up the air hose, this time wiping it off first, and stuck it in his mouth. Pressing the handle to begin the airflow, Jim felt nothing. His cheeks puffed out, but that was to be expected. "I guess not," Jim thought, as his cheeks continued to expand. Suddenly, Jim heard the sound of rubber stretching, kind of like when you fill a balloon with air. Looking down, he saw his stomach slowly expand outwards. Jim's eyes bugged, he could not believe that his body was inflating. As a firm potbelly was formed, Jim stopped the air, though he did not remove the nozzle from his mouth. Feeling his stomach, Jim could still feel how stretchy his skin was, it had not grown tight, and he felt no pain. Poking it a few times, he nearly laughed as it tickled. Feeling some of the rest of his body, it had barely firmed up from the air, though it was noticeable. Reaching up to remove the air hose, as his theory had been proven correct, Jim paused to think. "I was right, my body can flatten and expand, just like I was made of rubber. And since my body isn't a sheet anymore, I can go back to work, though I don't think I'll share this little side effect with the guys!" "Well, I guess I better deflate and go home" he began to think, until he looked down at his belly again. He rubbed the smooth balloon with his hand, and thought with a smile, "Ah! What's the rush? I always did want to be bigger!" Joyfully, he pressed down the handle once more, and Jim felt the air enter his body and continue to stretch out his frame. As his torso expanded, gaining the width of a barrel, it became more and more difficult to look down. Looking over to the reflective piece of metal nearby, Jim's smile, as well as his waistline, continued to widen. While holding the air hose with his right hand, he kept his left on his stomach as it swelled. Though his belly pushed his hand outwards, Jim never felt his stomach harden. Jim was amazed at just how fat he looked, though he felt lighter then ever. Suddenly, Jim staggered a little bit. Throwing his gaze to the mirror, he saw the reason. The air had finally spread to his legs, and they were slowly filling out and moving apart. Standing barefoot, Jim even felt his feet swell up a bit, giving him a cartoonish appearance. The sides of his midsection, and his back, were now swelling outwards. Jim thought he looked like an overfed sumo lizard, as he patted his growing girth. As he inflated, the sound of rubber stretching continued, and his body even began to squeak with each twist and turn he made. Jim was ecstatic; he hadn't had this much fun in weeks. His cheeks, now the size of small volleyballs, were coming into contact with his midsection, as his neck slowly disappeared from the swelling. Suddenly, Jim's left hand wasn't touching his stomach anymore. Instead, it was lifting off of it, and extending out to his side. Jim quickly surmised, as his arm bloated, that the air had finally reached his arms. Slowly, his left arm ballooned out. Jim could still bend it with ease, and he laughed as he saw creases appear and disappear as he did so. Strangely, the airflow was slowing down. Looking down at his snout, he saw the reason. His right arm was also inflating, and his swelling fingers could no longer depress the handle. Releasing the handle, the happy lizard dropped the air hose and took in his appearance. Joy filled his eyes as he examined his ballooned body. His legs had rounded out some, but he could still walk around (which felt weird with his swollen feet). His stomach stretched out before him, and curved around him. Though, his lab coat had stayed on the entire time, as it had been rubberized. Jim wanted to see his actual stomach. Bending his large arms inwards, eliciting many squeaks, Jim fumbled to undo his buttons. After a few frustrating attempts, he managed to do so. As the coat was unbuttoned, his stomach shot forth, bouncing back and forth slightly, now freed from its confinement. Jim marveled at his gut, as he rubbed it with both arms, as best he could. His midsection looked like an oversized green beach ball. As he turned to get a profile, he nearly burst out laughing. In addition to his swollen midsection, his butt had taken in some air as well. Additionally, his tail had filled out, and stuck outwards from the inflation. "I look amazing! I love being a rubber balloon lizard" Jim thought excitedly. Giving a quizzical look, he decided to perform another test. With a few bounds, he heaved himself into the air. With the air in his body, he floated in an arc down to the ground, just like a balloon would. Unfortunately, his landing wasn't good, and so he bounced on his stomach a few times and rolled along the ground, before he managed to right himself. "This is so much fun!" Jim thought, suddenly realizing just how late it was. Rubbing his belly, and cleaning the dirt off of it, he admitted that he had better get back before someone gets worried. Taking a last, long look at his expanded self; Jim opened his mouth to let the air escape. As his form deflated, he regained his normal body. "Oh, well" he said, pressing his stomach to get out the last of the air. Re-buttoning his coat, Jim started to leave. Picking up the bag with the formula, Jim was quite satisfied with his invention, though he thought he would have to make a few adjustments. As Jim entered the main room of Tire & Balloon Design Co, he saw everyone. That was odd. Everyone looked sullen, and Amy was crying her eyes out. Closing the door, everyone turned to look at him. "What's happ-" Jim began, before he was tackled by Amy. "Oh, Jim! It's awful! All my beautiful balloons! All of them," she sobbed. Picking himself up, and helping Amy to a chair, Jim looked over to Brett, who was nodding ruefully. "The storm last night, it hammered the warehouse, and destroyed all of the specially designed balloons," Brett said, his ears drooping down the back of his head. "So, we're screwed," Derek said, shaking his head. Rick nodded as he consoled himself with a can of Happy Hound Dog Food. Vicky, who was looking over a file, looked up, "If we don't deliver the balloons for the parade, the town will be crushedà not to mention the fact that we'd be ruined." Amy, once more, broke out into sobs. Brett, with a sigh, moved to her and gave her his handkerchief. "Well, it was a nice dream while it lasted," Derek said. Jim's mind raced, searching for a solution. The balloons they had designed were destroyed. Suddenly, a plan formed in his mind, now he just had to convince the others to go along with it. "Brett, how many balloons were there?" Jim asked. "Four large ones that we lost." "And what about the helium? Were the tanks all right?" "Yeah, but why are you asking?" the rabbit asked, as everyone turned to look at Jim. "Here goes something," Jim thought. Holding out his formula in front of them, Jim began to explain. "You can WHAT?!" Derek exclaimed. "Thanks to this formula, my body is like rubber, I can flatten myself or inflate myself." "Jim, I think you've finally lost it" Rick said. "Prove it, balloon boy," Derek said, irritated. Looking around, Jim spied an old bellows. "Bring that over here and you'll see," Jim said to Derek. The blue dragon huffed over, and returned with the bellows. Not believing that he was doing this, he shoved the bellows into Jim's mouth and started to pump. "This is insanity, nothing's happening," Derek said, looking around at everyone, who seemed to be staring at Jim in awe. Looking back at him, Derek saw his friend expanding outward like a balloon. After a few more pumps, to plump him up more, Derek stopped and stepped back. Jim stood there, with his stomach blown up like a small balloon. Everyone then walked over, a few touching Jim, feeling his rubbery skin and the air he now encompassed. Amy poked him a few times, and then squeezed the air out of him, in a tight hug. "Amy, enough!" Jim gasped. "I can't believe it. You can inflate. But what do you want usà toà." Derek began. "I still have more formula, easily enough for three more people. I propose that we become the parade balloons ourselves, so that the sponsors won't sue us, and for the town!" "I don't know" were the words out of most people's mouths. "Come on! It's safe, really fun, and we'll at least have a chance to save our business." Jim pleaded. Brett stepped forward and put a hand on Jim's shoulder. "What the heck. Count me in. Amy worked too hard on those balloons, and I'll gladly become one to make her happy," the rabbit said, shooting a wink over to Amy, finally showing his true feelings for her. "Well, that's two. I need two more." Jim said, looking around at the four remaining furs. "I'm scared of heights," Amy said, as she hugged Brett, who, finally, hugged her back. "We'll do it!" said Rick, shooting his index finger into the air. Derek, looking flabbergasted, responded, "we will?" "Come on, Derek, it'll be fun! Do you want to lose our business?" "Of course Ià" "And what about the town? Think of all the kids who'll be so disappointed when there aren't any balloons in the parade tomorrow." The dog said, doing his best mock-whine voice. "Enough!" snapped the strong dragon, clenching a fist, "I'm not going to get rubberized and blown up like some kind of fat dragon loser! Plus, how are we going to look like the actual balloons?" Vicky stepped forth, opening a file. "Well, the four balloons were of furs. One of them was an ad for Happy Hound Dog Food, which I guess Rick can be." Rick clasped his hands as a single, shiny tear ran down his face. "Ià I get to beà HAPPY HOUND?" he exclaimed. "Why not? You are one of theirà biggest customers" Brett added with a smirk, poking Rick's fat stomach. Rubbing his gut, Rick merely nodded. "Let's see, number two was shaped like a comic book characterà where was the nameà ah! Super Dragon" Derek's jaw dropped. "S-s-super Dragon?" "Yeah," the female lizard said, checking the name again. Derek bit his lip, clenching his fists. "You all right, Derek?" Jim asked. "I'm fine" Derek said, lowering his arms, and dropping his large book. As it hit the ground, a comic book spilled out from the middle, a Super Dragon comic book. Derek nearly went from blue to red as he blushed, his secret now outà he read comics. "I knew it! I knew you weren't really reading 'Great Russian Tragedies' for the past four years!" Rick said, poking his finger into Derek's chest. "All right! Yes, I read comic books! Super Dragon is the best! I'll take his place," Derek said, mock defeat in his tone. "Okay, that's two. The third was to represent the agriculture industry." "Oooh, Brett can be that one! He's a vegetarian anyway, so who better?" Amy said, squeezing Brett tight. Vicky nodded, looking over to Jim. "That just leaves me," he said, trying not to stutter in front of her. "Well, then, I guess that you get to take the place of fourth and final balloon, Jim. You get to represent town spirit." Jim smiled, he had lived here all his life. He loved his town. How better to show his appreciation? "Sounds good." "Now, we have to make the costumes. Amy?" Jim said, Amy peering up at him. "I'll need all your measurements. But it should be no prob." Derek mumbled something. Rick looked over at him. "What did you say?" "I said I don't need a costumeà I have one at homeà" Derek said, looking down. Everyone exchanged looks of disbelief, and the sound of people blinking was nearly audible. "We're gonna have a long talk when this is through," Rick said to him. "Rick and Derek, help Amy make up some props for you guys to hold in the parade. Brett, you and Vicky notify the balloon crews that we've had aà slight change of design. Then, help out Amy. I'll get the formula ready." Jim said, surprised at how confident he sounded. Everyone nodded and went off to work. As Jim walked to the lab, Vicky couldn't take her eyes off of him. There was more to him then she'd thought. As morning broke, the entire group piled into two cars and headed to the storage warehouse. Quickly, they moved the props and costumes inside. Amy and Vicky moved the helium tanks out while the guys got changed. Rick was the first to emerge. He walked out proudly wearing only a light blue Happy Hound Dog Food t-shirt, and a nice dog collar. He had even fixed his hair to look like Happy Hound, they were the same breed after all. Rick walked to the mirror, smoothing the t-shirt along the large curve of his belly. "How do I look?" he asked. "Like you just stepped out of a commercial," Vicky said, the lizard smiling. Amy remained strangely restrained, not running over and hugging the overweight dog. Derek strode out from his dressing room next, with a red cape drawn about him. Taking a few steps towards the mirror, he flung his cape back, and extended his short, stubby wings as far as they would go, striking a dramatic comic book-esque pose. The costume was of blue spandex (almost matching his skin), with bright yellow gloves (with a claw sticking out of each finger), and foot hugging boots, with each toe, and claw exposed, and matching belt. Across his eyes was a yellow cloth mask. Rick and Vicky then doubled over laughing. "Hmph. I think I look great," Derek said. Once more, the young raccoon remained silent, though showing signs of her approval. Jim stepped out next, wearing a simple white t-shirt, across which was emblazoned the town seal. Additionally, Amy had given him a body cream to wear, that made his scaly skin sparkle. If he was going to represent town spirit, he had better look the part. "Pretty nice, Jim." Rick said. Vicky looked down, hiding how much she was blushing. Amy smiled and nodded. Finally, Brett stepped out, wearing denim overalls, and a red shirt, and no boots over his large feet. The rich red complemented his light gold fur perfectly. Everyone smiled, and Amy lunged at him. "Oh, Brett-y! You look so kyoot! I love so much for doing this!" Amy said, squeezing the rabbit tightly. "Hey, for you babe, anything" Brett said between gasps for air. "Well, we'd better get you boys blown up, the crews will get here soon," Vicky said, checking her watch. Jim walked over to a table and brought back a case. Opening it, four large flasks of green liquid stood there. "Let's get started," Jim said, with a nod from the three volunteers. One by one, the three poured the mysterious chemical all over their bodies. Even Jim gave himself a new dose, as he had started to lose his rubber like qualities over the hours. As before, their costumes, and their bodies, absorbed the chemical. After they had all dried, Rick reached over to Derek, and pulled a piece of his arm out, seeing it stretch. He released it when the dragon glared at him. "Hey, use your own body, fat boy" Derek responded, grabbing a handful of Rick's stomach and pulling. "Guys!" Brett said, breaking them up. "We don't have time for this." "Exactly," Jim said, noting that his skin seemed stretchier then before. He guessed that giving himself a second dose might have had a cumulative effect on his elasticity. Shaking his head, he moved over to the tanks. "I'll go last, so as to make sure that you guys inflate correctly." Jim said, removing the hose. Brett stepped up to Jim. "Well, then I guess that I'll go first. Heh heh, blow me up, Scotty" the rabbit added, displaying his usual calmness in odd situations. Amy and Vicky walked over to him, carrying long ropes. Tying one around each ankle and wrist, they then treated the ropes with the chemical, so as to allow them to stretch with Brett. This would allow the ropes to hold him, without cutting off his circulation, inhibiting the air distribution, or hurting him at all. Exchanging a wink with Amy, which sent her into conniptions, Brett nodded to Jim. Inserting the hose into Brett's mouth, Jim reminded him, as well as Rick and Derek. "Remember, after you're inflated, you can't open your mouth, or else you'll deflate." "No prob for me. Let's get going." He said out of the corner of his mouth. With that, Jim turned the dial, slowly beginning the flow of helium into his longtime friend. As the hissing of gas was heard, Brett's cheeks slowly puffed out. Poking one with his finger, he smiled. "Try to keep your body loose, that'll make it easier to inflate, and you'll have proper distribution of the helium," Jim said. Brett nodded, putting his arms down at his sides. Slowly, the overalls over his stomach started to push outwards. Within a few seconds, Brett had gone from a trim rabbit, to an overweight one. As his midsection grew, his arms were pushed upwards. As before, the clothes were stretching along with his body perfectly. His stomach picked up speed as Jim increased the flow of helium. Within a minute, Brett's stomach had become a large, blue, over inflated beach ball. As his torso continued to grow, the rest of his body caught up. His arms straightened outwards, filling with gas. His hands, for the most part, became cartoonish in their size, with each finger starting to become thicke. His thighs had been keeping pace with his stomach, as they were slowly pushed apart by his expanding girth. As his legs became bloated, his large rabbit feet also inflated. Much like his hands, each toe became thicker then a tin can. Then, Brett's head felt weird. Slowly, each of his ears, which he always kept down, started to point upwards. Thanks to the helium, each of them 'popped' up and started to swell up quite round. With a slight wobble, he began to leave the ground. The helium in his gut had finally made him lighter then air. Amy and Vicky tied him down so that he would only float fifteen or so feet above the floor when he had fully inflated. Face down in the air, Brett's body continued to inflate, and he seemed to be enjoying it. After another couple of minutes, Jim stopped the air flow and yanked out the hose. Brett floated above the group, a giant, fat rabbit blimp. His fingers were now larger then soda cans, and his stomach was a large orb. Amy shimmied up one of the ropes, feeling Brett's ballooned body to make sure that he wasn't in pain. Squeezing his flesh a little, Brett shot her a look. Amy nearly burst out laughing from his face, with ridiculously inflated cheeks, rounded ears, and no neck staring at her. Back on the ground, Jim called up. "You look great, are you okay?" Brett seemed to wiggle, squeaking like crazy. Jim took that to mean, yes. Amy returned to the ground, and set about inflating the balloon basket of vegetables and carrot that her enlarged love would hold. "Well, while she does that, who's next?" Jim asked, moving to a new tank of helium. Rick jumped forward, as Derek seemed to be sweating. "My turn, Jim!" Rick said, opening his mouth for the hose. Jim inserted the hose, as Vicky secured the ropes. "Here we go!" Jim said, turning the dial. Rick had to keep himself from jumping up and down with excitement as he felt the air enter his body. He had always enjoyed being large, so this was a great new step in that direction. Given his girth, it took a little longer then it did with Brett for his stomach to start swelling outwards. Though, his stomach did compensate for the wait. Quickly, the already large dog expanded. His midsection inflated rapidly into a light blue, and light gray (his fur color) sphere. As he swelled, his stomach seemed to be doing the majority of the inflating. Jim guessed that it was due to Rick's gut being unusually large to start with. His legs and arms, now smaller stubs then Brett's, ballooned out now. A wide smile developed on his face as his cheeks puffed to the size of beach balls. As he, too, left the ground, Rick couldn't have looked any happier. After another few minutes, Jim had stopped the flow of helium and removed the air hose. The dog had swollen to be fatter then Brett, though with much shorter, and bloated appendages. His paws had become nearly spheres with short, stubby digits extending outwards from them. Once again, Amy went up to check on Rick. Patting his large stomach, Amy shot a thumbs up down to the group, starting to blow up the can of Happy Hound Dog Food and spoon for Rick to hold. While Rick had been ballooned, Amy had moved the props up to Brett, securing them with stretchy ropes. He now floated there, holding a large basket of veggies in his left arm and a carrot in his right. "Well, Derek. It's time for Super Dragon to get blown up!" Jim said, with a smirk. Slowly walking over to him, the dragon raised his hand in protest. "I'm only doing this for the town. And, shouldn't I wear some sort of harness to only inflate my muscles, and not my stomach like those two fatsos up there?" Derek said, as Brett and Rick squeaked in protest. "There's no way to guarantee that a harness would do that, and I think we should stick with a theme. And besides, Derekà" Jim began, twisting the nozzle. "What?" Derek said, leaning closer to him, as Vicky tied him up. "Just shut up," Jim said, jamming the hose into his friend's snout before he could retort. With a glare, Derek started to inflate. His long snout puffed out, along with his cheeks. Within a few seconds, the sound of rubber stretching was heard, as Derek's blue spandex-clad stomach leapt outwards with helium. He quickly went from a well-muscled dragon, to a drastically overweight scaly. As his stomach inflated, complete with his yellow belt stretching around his ballooning form, his legs and tail filled out (even the little arrow shaped point on his tail inflated). Like Jim had earlier, Derek stumbled slightly when his feet inflated, making him look like a cartoon dragon. His arms extended outwards next, rounding like tubular balloons. As his hands and feet swelled, his fingers and toes popped outwards (quite thick in fact), with stubby claws still visible. Remarkably, his stubby wings were also inflating. As his back rounded, and his waistline passed the ten-foot mark, Super Dragon started to fly. Jim decided to give him a little extra helium, to fit his inflated ego. So, after a few more minutes, Jim turned off the third tank of helium. He then yanked the hose out of the fat dragon in blue, floating above them. Though he didn't show it externally, Derek was secretly in rapture. Not only was he getting to be Super Dragon, but he really liked being a fat dragon balloon. As Amy went to check on Derek, Vicky moved over to Jim, who was securing his ropes. "Looks like it's your turn," said the female lizard. "Yep," he managed to say. Taking the air hose from him, Vicky smiled at him. "You know, this is a really cool thing that you're doing for the town, and for all of us." Vicky said, slightly blushing. "Y-you think s-so?" Jim said, losing all suaveness. "Yeahà andà Ià wasà wonderingà" she began. "Yeah?" "Would you go out with me after this is all done?" she blurted out quickly. "B-butà you want to go out with me?" "Well, yesà but I've never had the guts to ask you," she said, shying her face away. Grasping her hands with his, Jim smiled. "That makes two of us," he said, gazing into her eyes. Slowly, he leaned towards her, puckering his lips. Her lips met his briefly, giving him a peck. As he pulled away, his eyes still closed and his lips still puckered, Vicky stuck the hose into his mouth and turned the dial to on. As the helium entered and began to stretch his body, Jim's eyes opened, and she shot him a wink. With a smile, he awaited his inflation. Like earlier, his cheeks first puffed out, and then his belly. He had almost forgotten the joy he had felt as his scaly skin stretched and as he rounded out. He seemed to be growing faster and wider then he had earlier. He guessed that it was due to the double dose of formula he had given himself, while the others had only had one. His stomach grew before him, the white t-shirt perfectly hugging his growing body. Jim loved how big he was becoming this time. He wasn't going to be a sumo-balloon like earlier, he was going to be a overgrown blimp! His arms, legs, and tail started to fill out, though his stomach showed no signs of slowing down its expansion. As his cheeks surpassed volleyball size, his feet left the ground. Rising into the air, he had reached the size of the others, and Vicky reached over to turn off the flow of helium. Seeing this, Jim wiggled vigorously, motioning for her to keep the helium coming. With a surprised smile, Vicky turned the dial up as high as it would go. Jim was relishing the squeaking that his body was making as it continued to gulp down the helium and inflate. His midsection was now completely round, from his gargantuan stomach, curving all the way around his back. His arms had also drastically bloated as well. They had started to be consumed by his torso, and looked like an over inflated beach ball attached to a blimp, and on top of that a smaller beach ball. His hand was almost little more then a sphere, though his fingers had also puffed out to be thicker then cans. His thighs were the size of small cars, and the remainder of his legs were not much smaller. His feet had filled out to cartoonish proportions, with fat toes. His tail was a few feet in diameter as well. He could feel his enormous cheeks rubbing against his swollen midsection when he moved his head. Feeling the helium within him, and the sensation of being inflated, and floating, Jim counted his blessings for discovering the formula. Looking over at the enormous lizard, the other three blimps thought that Jim looked great, and they noted how he had surpassed their girth (even Rick's). Down on the ground, Amy and Vicky could only stare at the massive lizard. The body cream that Amy had given him caused his green skin to shine like a balloon, and the town's emblem shone proudly on his shirt. Vicky also noted how good his green skin looked stretched, from the lighter green of his underbelly, to the deeper green of the restà he looked good huge. The tank ran out of helium, and the hose fell from Jim's swollen mouth. The overfilled blimp of a lizard floating joyously above everyone else. Looking down at her watch, Vicky exclaimed, "Phew, that was close. The crews should be here anyà" With that, the door flew open, and the balloon crews entered. Walking over to the women, the heads of the crews could only stare up at the parade balloons. "Wow, Amy! They look great! I love the new design. I like the fat, overstuffed, sort of sumo look they all have." Said a horse. "Yeah! They look amazing! How'd you guys make such realisticà and enormous balloons?" asked a cheetah in a backwards cap. "Wellà uhmà" Amy began. "It's thanks to a new process and formula we developed. We're very pleased with the results," Vicky said, coming to Amy's rescue, as well as shooting a wink up to Jim. "Well, whatever you guys did, the town'll love these big guys. Well, come on people. The parade's gonna start soon!" said the horse. With that, the large doors were opened, and Jim and his fat friends were moved out to the parade. It was such a beautiful day in the town, so much so that one would never be able to tell that a vicious storm had passed through little less then two days ago. The townspeople had rallied together to get ready for this parade, it was the fiftieth annual town parade after all. Children ran to the front as the sounds of the high school marching band were heard. With great cheers meeting them, the band marched forth, followed by a few floats. And then, a shadow passed over the crowd. Nearly everyone looked up in awe, as the largest, fattest, dog-shaped balloon was passed over them. He was wearing a Happy Hound shirt, and from the size of his balloon belly, he appeared to be a long time customer. Shouts of amazement came from the children as the fat dog hovered past. Rick had loved Happy Hound for years, and owed his stomach to them. He felt glad to be able to honor them like thisà plus, he really enjoyed being this huge. Next came a bright blue and yellow dragon-shaped blimp, which was met by even more cheers. It was the town's favorite superhero, Super Dragon! "Wow! It's Super Dragon!" called some little kids. Low enough to hear them, Derek felt proud to be a part of this parade. "Only, I didn't think that Super Dragon was that fat!" called one of them. Derek heard that too, and felt embarrassed. "Who cares? He looks cool that big!" admonished the others. The mental smile returned, and Derek floated onwards, relishing how big and fat he was. Coming around the corner next was Brett. Carrying his basket and carrot, with nearly spherical ears, large inflated feet, and his enormous stomach. A group of farmers applauded as he floated by. Some even joked that his girth resembled a few farmers they knew. Brett felt pride in what he was doing. But, most of all, he was glad that he was able to make Amy happy. Plus, he liked being this large. It was fun to be a blimp! After Brett had passed sufficiently, the final balloon was brought along the route. And when the town saw him, gasps of awe followed. It was the biggest balloon any of them had ever seen. It looked like a lizard who had sucked the air out of a few hot air balloons. As he entered Main St, his enormous waist bounced him between a few buildings, nearly wedging his blimped self between them. Despite this, his scaly skin shone with the sun. The kids watched with open mouths, this balloon was even cooler, and bigger, then Super Dragon! It was the fattest lizard anyone had ever seen, and it looked great! Jim could feel the town's adoration, and he beamed of town pride as he floated down the parade route, his gigantic belly occasionally bouncing him off of buildings occasionally. After the parade, the crews had returned the balloons to the storehouse, and left to enjoy the rest of the festivities. Shutting the door tight, Vicky gave the guys the all-clear signal. Slowly, each of them opened their mouths slightly, allowing the helium to escape from their blimped bodies. This created a mighty breeze through the storehouse, sending papers flying. Derek was the first to fully deflate. Upon reaching the ground, he gave a long stretch. "I can't believe it. I actually had fun." He said, taking off his mask. "Of course you did, you big windbag," Rick said, touching down. Shooting him a look and thumping his fat gut, Derek added, "Looks like you've still got too much helium in you, fat boy." Once more, the two started to argue. As Brett touched ground, still looking like an over inflated sumo rabbit, Amy rushed over and covered his mouth. "Just a little longer, please Brett?" the raccoon asked. With a smile, and a soundless chuckle, Brett nodded and sort of bounced up and down. Amy smiled, and gave him a kiss on his fat cheek. Vicky walked over to meet Jim as he deflated back to his normal size. "Everything went according to plan, I see," she said, as Jim removed his ropes. "Yes, everyone loved us." "I'll say, we've had nothing but phone calls since the parade," the lady lizard said, holding up a thick stack of messages. "About what?" Jim asked. "Everyone wants to hire us, to make balloons for them, and to buy our tires. This is the best thing that could have happened to us! We're a hit!" Vicky said, unable to bottle up her enthusiasm any longer. Shouts of joy went up from all. "Oh, and Rick. Happy Hound loved our balloon so much that they sent over a little thank you present." "Oh?" Rick asked. Vicky stepped out of the way, revealing a year's supply of Happy Hound Dog Food. Rick felt tears well up, unable to control himself, he ran over and started into the first cans he could grab. "Looks like they might still have an advertising blimp with Rick over there," Derek said, noting how Rick's skin was still rubbery, and was now stretching to encompass the food he was stuffing into himself. Everyone burst out laughing. Following, Amy and Brett exchanged a look. "Well, we're going to go celebrate, see y'all later" Amy said. With that, the two started to walk away, until Brett tripped, bouncing and rolling like a beach ball into a wall. With a laugh, Amy walked over, and proceeded to roll her rabbit boyfriend out of the building. "Well, I guess that leaves us," Jim said, looking at Vicky. "About that dateà uhmà"she began. Jim felt his heart start to sink, she was going to reject him. "Oh, well. Y'know, if you don't want toà" Vicky shot him a strange look, and then leaned over and gave him a full kiss, sending his tail shooting backwards. "Gotcha," she said, tweaking his nose. With a laugh, Jim wrapped his arm around her, and the two made their way to the exit. Things were finally going his way, and the future only looked better and better with each step they took. Watching the two walk away, Derek folded his arms. For all his big talk, he loved a good romance, and he was genuinely happy to see all his friends happy. Looking over, he saw Rick moving into the second month's supply of dog food, and how his stomach had swelled out from the food he was shoveling down his throat. Derek could see that his fat was starting to push him off the ground, and soon he resembled a beached whale of a dog. As he finished the third, and began the fourth month's supply, Rick, and his fat gut, showed no signs of slowing down. He looked like he was trying to regain his blimp form, all right, though through weight gain this time. Looking over at the mirror, Derek flexed. Super Dragon had done well today. Behind him, in the mirror, he spied one of the helium tanks that hadn't been used. Turning around, he wondered. Looking over at his expanding friend, Derek gave a laugh and a shrug. Once more, Super Dragon donned his mask. Striding over to the helium tank, he grabbed the hose and inserted it into his mouth. "Why not? If you can't beat 'emà" Derek thought, beginning the flow of gas. And, once more, his body started to inflate like a balloon. Rick took a brake long enough from stuffing himself to see Derek blimp up, and with an exchanged laugh and thumbs up, went back to fattening himself up. "We should do this every week!" Rick thought, starting on the fifth month's supply, patting his enormous, rubbery gut. |