“Hurry up, Angela!” Riesz called, not a bead of sweat on her body as the Amazon princess marched down the road despite the sunny day and the fact that they’d been walking for several hours at this point.
“Just give me a second!” Angela panted, leaning on her staff for support, the spoiled former princess having walked more in the last few days since her escape from her kingdom than she had in years at the palace. “Not all of us are naturally athletes, you know!”
“Oh come now, we’ve hardly done anything at all.” Riesz said cheerfully, used to long patrols and training sessions that stretched on for hour after hour without exhausting the proud Amazons. She held her spear lightly, placing its base on the road without any need to rest on it. “And we need to reach Wendel before dark, or we’ll be camping out with nothing to have for dinner, since we’re out of provisions!”
“That’s the only thing I hate more than walking!” Angela declared, starting to power-walk as the idea of going uncomfortable and with an empty stomach proved to be a powerful motivator. Riesz quietly giggling to herself at her reaction. The sorceress princess complained a lot, but she had it in her when she counted, and typically only went through half of her energy before starting to give up. If she could just push her a little harder, she was sure she could have her running laps before she knew it.
Unfortunately for the two of them, destined to make slow but steady progress from a powerful fighter and budding enchantress to forces to be reckoned with, there was a hidden enemy perched in a tree, her animal instincts hiding her from sight and detection. You wouldn’t have expected it of the woman with her beautiful rose-coloured hair and tight, fancy dress that didn’t seem like it would allow for such movements, and yet she moved with catlike grace from her perch, observing the two.
Ever since that thief had broken out of her clutches and declared revenge on her, Belladonna, servant of darkness and the one that had bent the Thieves Guild to her will through deceit and liberal application of mind control, had been keeping an eye on the six would-be heroes who might become a threat to her master’s plans. Currently they had formed two groups that hadn’t met each other yet, a group of four including the knight Duran, the thief Hawkeye, the beastman Kevin, and the strange half-elf child Charlotte. The remaining two were Riesz and Angela, and until now Belladonna had focused most of her attention on the larger of the two groups, particularly when they were accompanied by a Faerie that had decided they were her best bet for protecting the Mana Tree.
After finally finding time to personally monitor the lesser of the candidates, Belladonna could hardly see how these two posed a threat to her all-powerful master. An Amazonian princess who’d somehow kept her pride after allowing her kingdom to fall, and a spoiled bratty princess who didn’t even know how to cast a spell until the last few days. The idea of them being able to defeat her and foil her plans was simply laughable! Still, Belladonna was vain and overconfident, but no fool. They’d made it past the massive Fullmetal Hugger crab in the cave that they’d travelled through to reach Wendell, and she doubted that was a complete fluke. A pair of mismatched princesses today could become a menace before she knew it if she underestimated them, and it was best to nip them in the bud now.
Still, that overconfidence and nature meant that she couldn’t simply swoop in and assassinate them before they knew what was going on. For one thing it was likely that the Amazon had good enough instincts to intuit any hostile intent, and Belladonna was loathe to get any unsightly wounds on her beautiful body if she was forced to actually fight them. Plus, her vanity meant that she simply couldn’t stand any competition for the distinction of being the most beautiful woman in the room, and the flirty nature of the leotard-clad Angela and the contrast of purity and lewdness of the Amazon princess in her skimpy dress had an appeal that the intentionally seductive Belladonna found hard to match. It of course came down to individual preference, but Belladonna wanted all parties to be interested solely on her, not distracted by others.
WIth this in mind, Belladonna quickly conceived the most perfect, beautiful plan to deal with the two of them, managing to appeal to her ego and sense of theatrics at the same time. Humiliating them seemed so much more fun than just killing them, and she could watch as they slowly had both their potential and youthful beauty stripped from them without even realising it…
–
Riesz and Angela walked briskly down the road, a spring in Angela’s step as the pink-haired ex-princess motivated herself with thoughts of warm food and a soft bed as the two occasionally batted aside the monsters that stood in their way. Even for somebody mostly inexperienced in combat as her, she could knock aside Rabites with her staff before they could get close enough to use those nasty teeth of theirs, and use her magic to easily dispatch the Chobin Hoods that plagued the roads. She was far more afraid of roughing it tonight if she wasn’t fast enough than any of the monsters before her, that was for sure.
The two finished dispatching the small crowd of monsters assailing them, and were just about to turn and get back on the road when completely out of the blue, a beautiful older woman fell out of the tree in front of them, Riesz instinctively holding up her spear while Angela let out a girly squeak of surprise.
“Oh, thank you, thank you, young ladies!” The rose-haired woman said as soon as she hit the ground, landing lightly on her feet despite the tall drop. “You’ve saved me from those horrible monsters!”
“W-where did you come from!? And don’t just jump out like that, I nearly roasted you!” Angela complained, fire still circling around her staff where her panicked spell had nearly
“Oh, I was just hiding from the monsters up in that tree. They were chasing me and I’d been stuck up there for quite some time. They were so terrifying I couldn’t move!” The woman claimed melodramatically, Riesz impressed that she’d kept such a thin, fancy dress so completely clean after clambering up a tall tree like that. She relaxed the grip on her spear, wondering how both of them hadn’t managed to spot such a brightly dressed woman before, even in such a high place.
“Who the heck is terrified of Rabites?” Angela whispered to Riesz, who nudged her with the end of her spear to be quiet.
“Well, the important thing is that you’re safe.” Riesz said with her usual kindness, not suspecting this strange woman.
“Yeah, although if you’re worried about monsters you should probably avoid travelling alone.” Angela advised her, showing a slightly blunt kindness of her own. “You’re pretty spy for a middle-aged woman, but the roads are pretty dangerous right now, and who knows what would’ve happened if we hadn’t come along, and those monsters hadn’t given up?”
“M-middle aged?” Belladonna nearly popped a vein. If she’d had the slightest hint of feeling bad about what she was about to do to them before, she certainly didn’t now! She forced a smile onto her lips, sweat dripping down her forehead and threatening to ruin her makeup. “T-thank you very much, young lady, I’ll be sure to keep that in mind. By the way, where were you two headed?”
“Wendel.” Riesz kept it brief, seeing no reason to share her reasons why. “And yourself?”
“Why, that’s exactly where I was going too!” The rose-haired woman clapped her hands together. “Perhaps we could travel together? I’d feel much safer with such strong women!”
“If that would make you feel more comfortable.” Riesz smiled.
“Just as long as you can keep up with us.” Angela shrugged. “We’re making it to Wendel by sundown, whether you’re with us or not! If you start slowing down, just think about how much scarier the monsters will be at night!”
The three walked for a few minutes, an unusual sight of three distinctly fashionable, beautiful young women that would have turned heads if there were anybody out here besides the local wildlife to admire them. For the egotistical Belladonna, the idea of her looks not being enough to overshadow the others and turn that number from a three to a one was a galling thought, and one she hoped to not have to worry about in the near future…
“So, what do you plan to do when you get to Wendel?” Belladonna eventually asked the two, her tone light and conversational.
“Take a bath!” Angela cut in before Riesz could respond. “Then go straight to bed. I feel like I could sleep for weeks.”
“We’re to attend to some personal matters, but I suppose accommodations would be in order first.” Riesz said, once again avoiding explaining their plans. She had no reason not to trust this slightly odd woman, but there was no reason to go around telling every person they met that the two were disgraced princesses on a journey to save the world.
“Well, if you’re in Wendel, you must check out the restaurants!” Belladonna said with a wide smile and an almost melodic tone to her words.
“We’ll be sure to check them out before we leave.” Riesz promised, deciding that this sounded like a good opportunity, even if they were in a hurry.
“Oh, it would be such a waste if you didn’t! You should really make it a priority.” Belladonna stressed. “In fact, you should do it first, then worry about whatever it was you were going to do.”
“I don’t know if it’s that important…” Riesz said, but she felt strangely uncertain about her words. Things couldn’t have been so urgent that they couldn’t stop to eat first.
“Oh, but it is! It should be your top priority” Belladonna said with an exaggerated enthusiasm that Riesz found very hard to say no to. “Wendel’s food is so good that if it were me, I’d make sure to eat at every single
“That does sound like a pretty good idea,” Angela said, her stomach suddenly growling at the thought. “But Wendel is a pretty big place, that might take days!”
“You really shouldn’t be in such a rush.” Belladonna assured them. “You should take it easy, and go at your own pace. It doesn’t matter if you take a couple of weeks to eat your way through Wendel, and then relax a while more before you leave.”
“Still, dropping everything just to focus on food sounds…” Riesz felt unconfident in her own words, and was starting to feel unfocused. Her feet were moving, but she was hardly paying attention to her surroundings, focused entirely on the strangely compelling woman. She was so focused that she didn’t notice that Angela was in a similar state, staring directly at Belladonna and barely paying attention to where she was doing.
“What do you mean? You were just telling me that you were looking forward to Wendel’s cuisine.” Belladonna’s words were simple, but her voice was like a siren’s song, and Riesz just couldn’t break eye contact with her even if she tried.
“She’s right, we were.” Angela said, staring deep into Belladonna’s eyes as she recalled a conversation that never happened.
“That’s right, you two are so hungry, all you can think about is how much you want to eat. And you have such big appetites too, you could never be satisfied with just one meal.” Belladonna told them, the two simultaneously reaching a hand to their bellies as they almost doubled over from hunger pangs.
“Yes, that’s right.” The two said in unison, in a partial groan.
“You two are natural gluttons and foodies, and you always have been. So you’re going to make sure you eat at every inn, restaurant, and cafe in Wendel before you leave, aren’t you?”
“Yes, that’s right.” The two said again, their eyelids heavy and their postures slumping.
“And you’re going to do the same at the next village, town, or city you visit, aren’t you? You want to take in all of the sights as well, like good little tourists. You’re in no hurry to leave, and you only move on once you’ve gotten your fill.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Good girls.” Belladonna said as she stopped walking, holding out her hands as the two mindlessly walked into them, bringing them to a halt. She resisted the urge to cackle at how the two looked, nearly drooling as they had been completely entranced by her hypnotic powers. And how well it had gone indeed! She had started light, expecting to implant a few suggestions at best, but it seemed that she had overestimated the two’s willpower!
With just a short conversation they had completely succumbed to her powers, now in a mindless trance where they were receptive to her every word. The moment they got to Wendel the two would likely focus on finding something to eat before looking for somewhere to stay, and when they got up they would prioritise mooching around the city looking for sights to see and places to eat at, until before they knew it they’d burnt days or perhaps even weeks when they’d intended to move on before even two days had passed originally. And with that, any hope they’d had of catching up with the other party was likely completely gone.
Of course, that was just her first wave of intended changes to the girls. Now that they were fully entranced, she could do just about anything she wanted to them, whether it was short or long term. She could tell them to do handstands for her amusement now, or implant a command to perform handstands exactly three weeks from now, where they’d find themselves suddenly dropping everything they were doing and turning themselves upside down. The way her hypnotic suggestions worked, they’d even contrive a perfectly good mental justification for what they were doing, as to not recognise how illogical their own actions were.
She briefly considered turning them into her loyal minions, but that ran the risk of contradicting their do-gooder nature too much, and eventually causing them to snap out of it, and she had plenty of better lackeys and underlings to begin with. No, it was better to have her fun with them, and assure that they would be no threat to her or her master… or her beauty, most importantly of all.
With that in mind, Belladonna began to implant the seeds of the two’s downfall, effects that they might not discover for weeks or months, but of course, by then they wouldn’t even know what had happened to them…
–
Angela nearly tripped, her foot hitting a loose stone in the road. She squealed, stabbing her staff into the ground to regain her balance, her head swinging around wildly. Huh? Where was she? She was still on the road, but she felt like the scenery had suddenly changed without her noticing. Something was off, even if she was as attentive as ever.
“Riesz. Hey, Riesz!” Angela said, tapping her companion on the shoulder. Riesz jolted from her touch, as if she was sleepwalking until she was touched and rudely brought back to reality. Riesz blushed slightly as she swung around, embarrassed that she had been caught daydreaming.
“Y-yes, what is it?” She said, trying to hide how disoriented she was, sure that Angela had been the one keeping an eye on their surroundings for her. How shameful for an Amazon who had devoted so much time to patrolling and keeping the roads of her kingdom safe…
“What happened to that lady who was with us?” Angela asked, having realised what was bothering her about the situation.
“What lady?” Riesz answered, sounding strangely confused.
“You know, the one we saved, remember! She was with us just a second ago, wasn’t she?” Angela said, looking around for any sign of her.
“Oh, her? She ran off back to Astoria as soon as she was done thanking us.” Riesz gave Angela an odd look. “That was at least an hour ago. Are you feeling alright?”
“No, she was…” Angela started, then trailed off. “Hang on, you’re right, she did leave right away. Why did I think that she was with us…?”
“You must be tired. It’s been a long day, after all.” Riesz felt relieved that Angela too was having an off-day. “Maybe it’s because we’re so hungry.”
“That’s right, I’m starving.” Angela’s stomach protested again as she spoke. “How long until Wendel again? I’m gonna go crazy if I can’t get something to eat soon.”
“Just a little longer, it can’t be far.” Riesz said, digging through their possessions for two chocolate bars, handing one to Angela. They were supposed to be healing items for emergencies, but they made a pretty good snack, and the two were hungry now.
The two munched on the candy, thinking exclusively about what they were going to eat when they got there, and precious little about their task at hand…
–
“Um, Angela?” Riesz said, gently massaging her overstuffed stomach. “Do you remember what we came to Wendel for?”
“Umm… let me think.” Riesz was uncharacteristically forgetful for something so important, perhaps because she was currently leaning back in her chair, giving her belly room to breathe. She felt like she couldn’t stand, but was still debating if she could fit in just a bit more before the two moved on.
It had been almost two weeks since they had arrived in the Holy City, and the two found themselves in a familiar position: sitting in a restaurant in the middle of the day with a mountain of empty plates and bowls in front of them, having tried as many dishes on the menu as they could fit in one go. This was their second trip to this restaurant, having been unable to get through more than half of the menu thanks to their generous proportions.
The owner had been more than happy to indulge two pretty women with deep pockets, although he wondered if they made as attractive of a sight when you looked at them after eating. The blonde’s tight dress and the pink-haired girl’s skin-tight leotard made somewhat less of a flattering sight when the two had stuffed themselves until their stomachs visibly distended, sticking out like an alcoholic’s beer belly as a visible sign of their indulgence.
And after two weeks of over-indulging, those bellies wouldn’t spring back to quite the usual tautness they were accustomed to. Ingesting tens of thousands of calories per day had stripped the two of their perfect figures, their thighs looking a little chunky while their bellies had a distinct jiggle to them, pushed out a few inches by a healthy layer of flab. Angela, the less fit of the two, had been particularly affected, her leotard visibly stuffed and her hips noticeably wider than when she had arrived in Wendel, not to mention that her chest had gone up at least a cup size or two in the meantime.
Riesz had weathered the storm marginally better, but the once slender but muscular girl was not quite the former and very hard to tell the latter. Her thin but powerful arms had a layer of fat over them, blanketing their strength and giving them a slight droop that would have made a casual onlooker assume she was as weak as the visibly pampered Angela, and her plush belly wasn’t doing her any favours. The two were still beauties, but anybody could see that they were starting to let themselves go.
“Well, what was it? I can’t remember.” Angela admitted somewhat shamelessly, foisting the burden onto Riesz. All she’d thought about for the last two weeks was enjoying the city, touring jewellery stores before being bitterly reminded that she didn’t have the unlimited funding for indulgences that she’d enjoyed as a princess, and then finding other, cheaper ways to amuse herself, such as brunch, lunch, mid-afternoon snacks, supper, and then dinner. Wendel was a big city with a large population, and she was determined to eat her way through it by the time it was they did… whatever it was they were supposed to be doing.
“Um… it was to… it was to…” The usually responsible Riesz mumbled, desperately trying to remember if they had a goal besides stuffing their faces. The more she tried to reach out for it, the more it escaped her grasp, until she was more confused than when she started. “I can’t remember.”
Riesz admitted it shamefully, expecting to be chewed out by Angela. Instead, the pink-haired former princess just shrugged.
“Well, it couldn’t have been that important if neither of us can remember it.” Angela immediately brushed it aside. With two weeks to settle in, Belladonna’s hypnosis had truly taken hold, and what had turned into a momentary distraction had become the two food-touring the way around the city until their original objective of meeting with a Priest of LIght was completely gone. “More importantly, where are we going next?”
“If I recall correctly,” Riesz said, relieved at this something she could remember, “we were planning on going to Meia next. “We’ll have to travel through Cascade Cavern though, which could be quite dangerous, but I’m more than up to the task.”
“We’ll leave tomorrow then.” Angela decided. “There’s no way we’re going anywhere like this, I can barely move. Plus, I found out we missed a place that’s crammed into some alleyway, I want to hit that up first.”
“Of course. Obviously, we can’t leave until we’ve tried every place to eat in Wendel.” Riesz said, already finding more space in her stomach for it. The idea of leaving with a stone unturned was unthinkable, after all…
–
While the two had ended up a bit chubby by the end of their stay in Wendel, a little extra padding didn’t end up reducing their performance too much, several weeks of overeating not being enough to undo a lifetime of training for Riesz. Her movements were a little less graceful than usual, but they made it through the cave unscathed, and landed in the free city of Meia without incident.
With the city being a port town and nexus of trade, the two were delighted to find that it had a rich food culture, a tapestry of culinary traditions from around the world all competing for the bustling city’s attention. Luckily, Angela and Riesz didn’t have to worry about it competing for their attention, as they were determined to eat each and every recipe the city had to offer. The first day was spent mostly touring, the two marking down every eatery and food stall they could find and charting a course through every one of them. The only dilemma for the two was what to eat first, and how many they thought they could get through in a single day.
Neither of the girls, of course, questioned their appetites. Their gluttony came naturally to them, the idea of not stuffing themselves to their limits being unimaginable thanks to Belladonna’s influence. Overeating was not something to be reflected on, only celebrated as Angela bragged that she’d managed to sample more than Riesz as they competed to stretch their stomachs.
With a culture that prioritised quantity as much as quality, the two’s progress was slower than in Wendel, able to fit in less overall each day, sometimes having to come back a second or even third day depending on where they were eating. Each time they did they expanded the capacity of their stomachs, powering up their abilities to consume while their martial abilities were slowly chipped away by lack of practice or exercise. Riesz, who usually did daily spear training drills, let her spear gather dust in the corner of her room, liable only to make herself feel sick if she tried moving about so much with her belly perpetually stuffed and with always something to digest. Angela had never built up any good study habits to begin with, and her burgeoning talent for spellcasting was starting to become just as quickly snuffed out by being given no opportunities to learn on the job. As the two inflated outwards, their abilities as adventurers diminished proportionally, poor fits for the job in every regard.
Still, even after spending an entire month in Meia, it wasn’t too late for the two. Even with all of the weight they had gained, they could have gotten back on the road and started to slowly burn it off through good old fashioned cardio, and shake off the rust by fighting their way through the hordes of monsters. That was, if they had followed their original trajectory, instead of their current plan, which was to head for Beiser via boat and enjoy a similar experience to the one they’d had in Meia. Adventure, as it were, was the furthest thing from their minds.
However, before they could leave, there was one consequence of their actions that couldn’t be ignored…
–
“All ready to leave, Riesz?” Angela asked, the two packing up their meagre belongings in their inn. “The boat leaves in a few hours, so you’d better be, because I’m not waiting for you! If we miss this one, we’d have to wait another two weeks for another ship to Beiser!”
“Almost.” Riesz thought as she put the last of their “rations”, a small pile of candy, into a bag to take with them. “There’s something we need to do before we leave. Something very important indeed.”
“What, did we miss a spot?” Angela asked, referring to the map they had made of the city. “If we did, it’ll have to be quick. I hate to leave a city unfinished, but I really want to make it to Beiser’s night market!”
“Not that. We were quite thorough as we planned.” Riesz said. “It’s a matter of, um, wardrobe. I hope you don’t mind me saying this, but I don’t believe that our outfits will survive the boat ride at the rate we’re going.”
“Now that you mention it…” Angela said, glancing down at her well and truly overstuffed leotard. She could see mostly her own cleavage, engorged to thrice the size it had once been from the hundred or more pounds she’d put on since their arrival in Meia. She could see her belly past it, and with that, she could see how the seams on her skimpy leotard were finally starting to give up the ghost. The threads were splitting from how much belly meat there was to contain, and pockets of pink flesh were starting to bulge out from where the silky fabric was giving way. The cups were just barely concealing her nipples, and the once loose tops of her boots were now pressed flesh against her thick calf meat, as were her conical gloves. Her once perfectly slender arms were coated with a cumbersome layer of fat that doubled their width and breadth, and the pockets of fat underneath her armpits bulged over the sides of her leotard, her body visibly pinched in and somewhat shaped by the tight article of clothing giving her belly a rather rounded look to it. Her uncovered hips and thighs jiggled freely, her waist only thin by comparison to how broad her hips and ass had become, pushed inwards like a corset by her leotard that could handle no more than an extra handful of pounds before it was destined to burst.
Riesz was not much better, her fancy miniskirt not even close to enough to concealing what lurked underneath, pushed up by her fat and showing off the bottom of her leotard underneath. Her uneven fat allocation meant that the frills no longer formed a neat ring, resting atop her big butt rather than covering it while the ones at the front were pushed out much further than the others after being propped up with her barrel of a gut. Her chest was in a similar state to Angela’s, each nearly as big as her head and visibly heaving at the neckline of her dress.
Completing their transformation into a couple of fatties was how bloated their faces had become, having gained second chins shortly after their arrival in Meia and only growing them since. The two’s sharp, conventionally attractive features were smothered by blubber, huge, rounded cheeks that wobbled gently as the two crammed more and more food into their mouths. One could see that the two would have been quite beautiful if they’d been thinner and indeed it was easy to see that they were quite pretty still, but their audience was rapidly narrowing to the most enthusiastic of chubby chasers, just as Belladonna wanted. The enchantress would have been delighted to be in the same room as them, able to emphasise her slim figure by putting herself near two whales like them. Even more unbelievable would have been the idea that the two were princesses who had once lived up to the fairy-tale standards of the beauty expected of them, the only remnants being their fancy outfits that were an ill fit for such portly women.
“I could have sworn this fit perfectly just the other day. It’s not like we got that much bigger.” Angela said, and to the surprise of anybody who might have heard it, Angela had no sign of lying on her face, nor an expression that told onlookers that she was coping with her ballooning body. Angela and Riesz from the bottom of their heart were convinced that they couldn’t have put on more than a handful of pounds since they arrived, and it wasn’t because they were delusional enough to think they were still thin. The two simply believed that they were already overweight, and that this was merely par for the course.
Belladonna had made sure that the two would be largely oblivious to how big they were getting, and as far as the two were concerned, they had been plus-sized women from the moment they set foot in the city. It was part of the reason why they ate with so little restraint: as far as they were concerned, they’d hardly put on any weight, and so eating a little more couldn’t hurt. Of course, the bigger they got, the more strained this excuse got, as even if they hadn’t put on too much weight now, they had gone overboard in the past and probably shouldn’t make things any worse. Of course, Belladonna had thought that far ahead, and the most insidious part of her plan would take care of that little contradiction…
On their way to the nearest clothing store, the two made a truly ridiculous sight, by this point notorious around Meia for their appearances. Two scantily clad women dressed for a third of their weight were going around cleaning out every eatery they could find, their engorged figures spilling out of their clothes as the other patrons wondered if they would simply burst out of their outfits before the night was done. They were well and truly overdue for some replacements, and it was a testament to how effective Belladonna’s conditioning had been that the two overlooked this until the last possible moment where they were forced to face reality.
“So, what do you think?.” Angela asked as the two stepped out twenty minutes later, having needed the help of the woman who owned the store to find them outfits that actually fit.
“I must say, I wasn’t expecting you to wear something so… modest.” Riesz said, eyeing Angela’s new dress. And a dress it was, not a leotard or glorified swimsuit as she might have preferred to wear, covering her down to her ankles with a high collar and long, loose sleeves that helped obscure her thick limbs a little, although there was nothing loose enough that it wouldn’t have made her look as chunky as she was underneath. It was made of a soft fabric that prioritised comfort over fashion, with none of the silky shininess that was characteristic of her leotard and boots, and was now a dull velvet colour.
“This was all they had in my size!” Angela seemed embarrassed by how plain her outfit was. It didn’t fit her flashy sensibilities at all, but she didn’t have time to hunt through the city for a place that catered to the fashionable plus-sized woman. “I’ll find something better in Beiser, I swear! And like you’re one to speak.”
Riesz was wearing a similarly ordinary dress, having similarly chosen to prioritise comfort for their cruise over something that was fit for battle. It wasn’t quite as covering as Angela’s, but was a cool green and white dress with short sleeves and a knee-length skirt, and a lot more chest shown off, as Riesz preferred giving her girls some room to breathe. She’d decided to remove her feathered Amazonian headpiece, feeling that her outfit was intended to be a full piece, and it looked odd and out of place. She’d replaced it with a simple green headband, Angela also ditching her hat under similar logic.
“I too shall find something better in Beiser.” She agreed. “Let’s look forward to doing some shopping once we’re off the boat, shall we?”
“Seconded.” Angela said, tugging at her skirt. “First order of business once we arrive is getting something to eat, then I’m touring the Night Market until I find something that screams me instead of this frumpy thing. Having my legs covered like this is so uncomfortable!
Angela flapped her skirt, feeling almost embarrassed by how much skin she was covering
“I don’t mind how it looks, but I must admit that it’ll be quite hard to fight in this.” Riesz grabbed her own long skirt. “I don’t know if this’ll hold up to the rigours of combat.”
“You really think we’re in any state to run off and fight?” Angela had a sudden moment of self-awareness, gesturing at Riesz’s girth then herself. “I don’t think you’ve swung that spear once since we arrived. Plus, we’re, you know…”
“We haven’t put on that much weight since we arrived.” Riesz pouted, still maintaining some of her Amazon pride despite her obesity and remaining ignorant of just how incredibly wrong her words were. “We fought our way here like this, didn’t we?”
The two did remember making their way through the cave and defeating the massive crab that blocked their path, although the details were a little fuzzy as to exactly how they’d done it. Angela shrugged, figuring that her magic would be more than enough to carry the two of them if it came down to it. They’d both been fat when they met each other and had gotten this far, a little more weight wouldn’t hurt.
The two left the store feeling relieved, now that they were no longer stuffed into ill-fitting clothes. They’d sold their original clothes, having little reason to keep them, and the store owner had been more than happy to pay them for the privilege of having such valuable clothes, even if they were so overstretched that they’d likely be taken apart and repurposed for entirely new outfits. Angela and Riesz were used to comfort enough that they took for granted that they would one day return to such expensive, tailored clothes, and that their humble outfits were a mere compromise until they did, but not delusional enough to think that they would be losing weight any time soon.
The two women who walked out that store were, in a way that they hadn’t quite realised themselves, far less distinctive than when they had walked in. The two had unique outfits with flashy appearances, and now they just looked like two ordinary fat women, wearing modest clothes that anybody earning an honest wage could have afforded. When they arrived in Beiser they would cause far less of a stir, as they were just another couple of fat women eating their way around the town, as opposed to two rather distinct women whose overweight bodies contrasted their chosen appearances. Just another way that the two looked increasingly less like adventurers, even if they continued to carry around a spear and staff with them. Even those seemed hardly necessary, with how as far as the two were concerned, they may as well have been on a vacation.
It was, perhaps ironically, the fact that they were wearing such expensive outfits that had allowed them to ignore this dilemma for so long. The outfits that an Amazonian princess and the spoiled daughter of the sorceress queen could afford to wear were able to withstand the figures of women they could have never dreamed of being worn by, whereas regular materials would have been reduced to sheets weeks ago. Whatever they got to replace them would not last nearly as long, both in terms of how much fat they could pile onto their bodies before the threads gave out, and how much of the rigours of travel and battle it could withstand. For better or worse however, the two would be doing precious little fighting from now on, and would only have to worry about the former…
–
“Ugh, I really overslept…” Riesz groaned, realising that the late morning sun was streaming through the window in their inn in Beiser. Angela had already left some time ago it seemed, her appetite waiting for no woman while Riesz snored away. Riesz was lying flat on her back, her belly so big that it had blocked most of the light from the window from hitting her eyes, but eventually the sun had become too high in the sky to be blocked by even a gut as fat and long as hers, forcing the fat princess out of bed.
Riesz was almost as wide as her mattress to begin with, sleeping naked after outgrowing her nightgown. Angela was even wider, her hips sometimes spilling over the sides of her mattress a little, but Riesz came off as even more obese thanks to growing out forwards rather than sideways, narrower hips but with a bigger ass and a belly separated into two pillowy folds that stretched out until she could barely reach her own belly button. Riesz yawned as she washed her face and combed her hair, each footstep causing a heavy thud as she lumbered around the room to perform her morning routine.
She slipped into her dress, her neckline forced low by her head-sized boobs and her skirt hiked up to her thighs with how much belly and ass meat she’d piled onto her body in the month or so since they’d arrived in Beiser. The dress had once been comfortable and loose-fitting, but was now pulled tight by her incessant over-indulgence and seemingly bottomless stomach, her and Angela’s gorging sprees typically cut short by having only so much time in the day more than running out of space in their stomachs. Long gone were the days where you could see their bellies bulge as they hit their limits, as there was far too much fat for them to express that they were stuffed beyond even more groaning and complaining as they shuffled off out of the restaurant, their kitchens nearly depleted by the two massive women.
Riesz’s face was totally unrecognisable thanks to just how fat she was, her most loyal subjects being unable to tell that this pile of lard was their graceful, powerful princess. Even if they had been able to tell it was her past the blubber. But when she looked in the mirror it was the only face she had ever known, convinced that she’d put on no more than a handful of pounds since she’d pulled into port. When she thought of her companion the image of Angela’s beautiful, narrow features were scrubbed from her memory, knowing her only as a princess who was spoiled into obesity and who relied on magic to make up for her utter lack of athleticism.
With her clothes on and her hair made presentable, Riesz looked around to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything. There was of course her coin purse, quite a bit lighter as the two had mostly exhausted their funds, as wealthy as the princesses had been when they left. Riesz was a little worried at how little it jingled when she shook it, considering their plans for the next place they visited. This would last them until they cleaned out Beiser with how close they were getting, but after that was a little worrying…
Riesz was ready to leave, but couldn’t shake the feeling that she’d forgotten something. She looked around the room, seeing nothing at all that was of importance. She couldn’t even see… her spear! Her spear was nowhere to be seen!
She waddled around the room, anybody in the room directly underneath feeling the roof shake as she huffed and got down on her knees, her fat chest and gut squashing flat as she laid down on her front trying to get as close to floor level as possible in order to check under the beds, but there was nothing there too. But where could it have gone? She’d had no reason to use it in Beiser, and hadn’t taken it anywhere. Was it thieves? The room service?
Taking almost a full minute to manoeuvre herself back to her feet, almost gasping from the effort required to lift her own body, Riesz was just about to go downstairs and ask the inn’s owner if they had moved it while they were cleaning when Angela returned, announcing her presence well in advance with her thumping footsteps. While she was a while off from getting stuck in doorframes she was well on her way, hips rocking and wobbling like jelly in a way that was visible even through her dress. Her dress was on its last legs too, the skirt that had once nearly touched the floor pushed up to show her knees, something that Angela had been strangely bashful about when Riesz had mentioned it and their need for new clothes. Of course, they hadn’t done it yet, being too distracted by their appetites.
“Oh, Angela! Perfect timing!” Riesz said before Angela had a chance to get a word in. “You wouldn’t have happened to know where my spear went, would you? I seem to have misplaced it, or perhaps somebody’s taken it.”
“Oh, that was me.” Angela said casually. “I took it. I was going to ask, but you were seriously not waking up this morning..”
“And? Where is it?” Riesz asked, noticing a distinct lack of spear in her hands, Angela holding only a small bag instead.
“Oh, I sold it.” Angela said like it was no big deal. “That thing was seriously worth a pretty penny, you wouldn’t believe how much they pay for Amazon steel. It was worth even more than the gem in my staff! We shouldn’t have to worry about money for the rest of our trip after that! Oh, and I sold that big green gem on that feathery thing you haven’t worn in a while, too. You don’t mind, right?”
“Angela! I can’t believe you would go and do such a thing without even asking me!” Riesz exclaimed. “That spear was very important! It was specifically made for me as head of the royal guard! As was that headpiece!”
“Well you should have said something before, because it’s too late now!” Angela said defensively. “You can just get another one when you go home, right? It’s not like you were using it anyway.”
“Not right now, certainly.” Riesz admitted.
She was more indignant over the fact that Angela had done it without asking her than anything else, as it was true that she hadn’t so much as swung the thing in several months by this point. But indignant she was, and such that she didn’t stop to think about Angela’s insensitive suggestion of just going home and replacing it, when her kingdom was conquered in the first place. Thanks to Belladonna’s magic she hadn’t thought about that even once since they’d arrived in Beiser, and she was too distracted to linger on it long enough to realise it.
“Then what’s the big deal?” Angela went on the offensive. “We’ve got money issues now, there’s no point in being sentimental. If you want to blame anybody, blame your appetite, not me.”
“But what am I supposed to fight with now?” Riesz said, deciding to not point out that Angela ate just as much as her. “And you too! We’ll be defenceless on the road.”
“Okay well first of all, I don’t need my staff to use magic.” Angela pointed out. “But more importantly, why would we be fighting?”
Riesz paused. She’d said it like it was natural, but when she thought about it, she couldn’t actually think of a scenario where she’d be using her spear, at least not if she had a choice in the matter.
“We’re on a tour to try everything you can eat in all of the towns and cities in Fa’Diel, not go exterminating monsters.” Angela pointed out. “Unless you seriously think we’re just going to walk off into the wilderness for fun, because you can leave me out of that. You know I’m afraid of monsters!”
“No, that’s not what I meant, I meant that…” Riesz started, but trailed off.
“To begin with, I’ve never even seen you use that thing in the first place.” Angela stated authoritatively. “I thought it was, like, a ceremonial thing. Don’t tell me you actually knew how to use it!”
It was impossible to picture Riesz waving a spear around with those bloated arms as anything, at least not without laughing. Could she even thrust it without it smooshing against her breasts, smothering the force and causing her to nearly tumble forwards as it sent her off gravity? The idea of this whale of a woman rushing about the battlefield defeating monsters was comedy at best. Even Riesz herself couldn’t picture it. If she’d been wearing the same dress as Angela, her arms surely would have bulged enough to split the seams of her longer sleeves, they were so fat and useless for anything more intensive than housework. Angela herself had ended up more bottom-heavy, but her own flab was starting to make those sleeves skin-tight, another reminder that they needed replacing sooner rather than later.
“I received basic training just like any other Amazon.” Riesz pouted, able to put together a logical explanation in her head. “Certainly, I may not have gotten into any real fights since then, as that was what my royal guard was for, but I’m sure that if it came down to it I could fend off a Rabite or two.”
“I’ll take your word for it, princess.” Angela said with a raised eyebrow. She was pretty sure that Riesz’s combat experience was the same as her own: zero.
“In any case, ask me first next time!” Riesz reasserted, unwilling to argue that she seriously needed it with how overweight she was. Angela would probably just tease her about it, and Riesz knew her limits even if she didn’t want to admit them. She’d never been any good at using that spear, and the thought of having to fight off some proper monsters with it had her going weak in the knees. “I told you the other day that we weren’t going to worry about money just yet! I bet you just wanted to buy that new outfit the clerk recommended you in that store the other day..”
“T-that thing? I wouldn’t be seen dead in something that s-s-salacious.” Angela stammered, blushing heavily. Despite her weight, the clerk in the clothes store they’d browsed had insisted that Angela would look great in a leotard of all things, turning her bright red just at the mental image. “You know I don’t like to show too much skin! It’s embarrassing!”
“Well, we have the money now and it’s not like we can just go and ask for it back, so let’s find something to replace these at the very least.” Riesz sighed, giving up. “But before that, let’s get lunch.”
The two hungry women lumbered out of their room, Riesz’s annoyance softened by the fact that she couldn’t eat and stay angry at the same time. Belladonna’s hypnosis had held strong, but the incongruities behind the two’s status as princesses and the fact that they had completely abandoned their adventure to eat their way around the globe ran the risk of eventually catching up with them. Luckily for Belladonna she had predicted this in advance, and included something designed specifically to stop it from happening, Riesz and Angela about to experience perhaps the most insidious and humiliating part of her plan, not that they would ever realise it…
–
“Nice day, isn’t it?” The moustachioed carriage driver said, his spear-wielding guard nodding as he walked alongside the carriage that held goods intended for the holy city of Wendel. The sun was high in the sky, the wind was a gentle breeze not too hot and not too cold, and the road was peaceful for once. They’d been a little worried about being attacked by monsters on their usual route, but thankfully the monsters around here were enough that the muscular guard could easily deal with them on his own. Still, he relaxed his grip on his spear, figuring that he probably wouldn’t get a chance to show off, until his ears perked up.
“Do you hear something?” He asked, looking to his employer as he brought the cart to a stop. The two paused, leaning forward. He could have sworn he heard a female voice yelling something in the distance.
“You’re right.” The driver agreed as two panicked squeals came into earshot.
“They’re catching up! Run faster!”
“I’m running as fast as I can! You’re the slow one!” The other voice yelled back.
“Huh? I’m slow? Look in the mirror, fatty! Oh, I knew I shouldn’t have agreed to walk!”
“Stop complaining and use your magic already! You were bragging about it the whole time!”
“I’m trying, I can’t cast with you yelling at me! It’s hard to run and cast at the same time, okay!?”
The two heard a fireball shoot out, a common enough spell that the driver once had seen one of the sorceresses of Altena use as one of their most basic spells. However, immediately afterwards they heard more cries of dismay.
“You missed! Don’t you have anything else!?”
“I told you I flunked out of my magic classes, that’s all I’ve got! I think it slowed them down, now run faster!”
The loud, panicking women finally made their faces known as they came around the corner, the guard and the driver being amazed to see two tremendously obese women with their faces soaked in sweat huffing and puffing as they ran towards them at an incredibly slow speed that was nonetheless faster than anybody could have expected out of them. The two were truly huge, the fattest women either of them had ever seen, but otherwise seemed unremarkable, wearing plain dresses that were more suitable for wearing around the house than travelling the often dangerous roads.
“Hey, you there…! Save us!” The pink-haired one yelled as she slowly stumbled to the side of the cart, clinging to the edge of the cart to stop herself from collapsing entirely.
“Calm down, missus.” The driver reassured her, her blonde companion also looking like she was about to fall over, completely red in the face. “Beset by beasts, are you? Have no fear, we’ll sort them right out for you. That’s what my fellow here is for.”
“My… my deepest… gratitude…!” The blonde one wheezed appreciatively, the guard not sure if he should strike a pose to show off to such portly women. Although now that he got a closer look at them, the one with purple hair was rather attractive despite her weight. No, perhaps because of it, he thought as a new sensation was awakened within him. The driver, although ten years older than them and unmarried, couldn’t help but find the frightened woman rather cute, and was quite a bit more acquainted with his own preferences.
“A-are you sure just one of you will be enough?” The purple-haired woman asked, tugging at the chest of her dress to try to let more air in as she moved towards the guard for safety. Her dress was rather conservative, nearly reaching her feet on top of being high-necked and long-sleeved, and seemed to be a poor fit for somebody walking the roads on top of its less than rugged appearance. “They were terribly frightening, you know! Snarling beasts with huge teeth! Oh, I think I’m going to faint, hold me…”
“Get it together, miss.” The guard said in response to her melodramatic reaction, grunting as she leaned on him for support. “Whatever it is, it can’t be that bad. I’ve taken out dozens of monsters in my career, you know. Let me at ‘em!”
“J-just be ready to run away too!” The purple-haired, easily frightened woman said, cowering behind the carriage while her slightly bolder blonde friend stood near the driver. The naturally cautious guard raised his spear, waiting for the monsters to come around the corner as well. He and the driver held their breaths, only to glance at each other with a chuckle once they saw what had the two ladies so spooked.
“It’s just a couple of Rabites, ma’am.” The guard laughed. “They can be persistent, but give ‘em a good kick and they’ll go running home.”
“Just a couple?” The purple-haired woman exclaimed. “I’ve never seen such a terrifying beast in my life!”
“How many have you seen, ma’am?” He asked.
The woman went red from embarrassment, giving him a good idea that the only Rabites she’d seen before in person were stuffed animals for children.
“Don’t worry, the two of you were mighty brave for a couple of ladies such as yourselves.” The driver reassured them as the guard drove the two monsters off with a quick rap on the head with the butt of his spear, seeing no reason to kill them if they were smart enough to cut their losses.
The two women were quite flustered, but after resting for a few minutes and taking some offered water, they seemed to regain their composure.
“I was so scared, you know!” The purple-haired woman who seemed nearly as wide as she was tall said, clinging to the guard defensively. “I’ll never walk the roads without at least hiring a bodyguard first! Actually, no, I’ll never walk them again! Once was more than enough for me! It was her idea, you know.”
“You were the one who said you wanted to make it to Wendel by nightfall!” The blonde complained back. “You said you were happy to walk after we missed the carriage! Said that you needed the exercise!”
“I let you talk me into it! You said there wouldn’t be any monsters!”
“You said you’d take them out in one spell if we saw any!”
“Alright, that’s enough, you ladies hug and make up already.” The driver broke them up, the two pouting at each other, refusing to take responsibility. “We’ll be happy to have you along, as long as you’re headin’ to Wendel.”
“Oh, how fortunate!” The blonde said, clapping her chubby hands together. “We shall take you up on your generous offer.”
“I don’t think I could walk if I wanted to.” Her friend groaned somewhat less politely, the two nearly causing the cart to buckle as they planted their gigantic asses down on the back of it.
“Why don’t you tell us what you two are doing out here? I don’t recognise you, and by now I know most of the faces from here to Jadd.” The guard asked.
“Give us your names while you’re at it.” The driver added.
The blonde took a deep breath, fixing her hair.
“I’m Risa.” The blonde said. “And this is Angelica. We were just at the end of quite the journey, as it turns out.”
“We’ve been everywhere from Meia to Sihrtan!” Angelica said proudly. “We wanted to have one more big trip before we settled down, perhaps start a family. Wendel seemed like a nice place to live, so we were just on our way there now.”
“I see, sounds like fun! Reminds me of my youth.” The driver laughed.
“You’re not that old yet, sir.” The guard said. “You’re only thirty-three!”
“Thirty-two!” the driver said defensively. “Do you know how old that is for an unmarried man! You should really start thinking about finding yourself a wife and settling down too, you know.”
“You don’t say…” Angelica said, looking hopefully towards the big, strong guard who had saved her. He didn’t seem to mind looking at her, either…
There was no hesitation as the two women talked, no slight giveaway that they were giving a false identity or a false story. And why would there be? The two believed in what they were saying wholeheartedly, the tale of two unremarkable women who’d decided to get a little excitement in their lives before they settled for ordinariness. Riesz and Angela, now Risa and Angelica, had no interesting backstory, no hidden status as princesses. They were just two women above average only in weight, the perfect roles for the well and truly useless pair. And with their identities forgotten, there was nothing to threaten Belladonna’s spell. Riesz couldn’t remember that her kingdom was in need of saving, as she didn’t remember she was a princess in the first place. Angela didn’t need to worry about fleeing the clutches of her mother’s attempts to sacrifice her, as she couldn’t be recognised by herself, let alone her pursuers. As far as she was concerned, she was just somebody who couldn't cut it as a proper sorceress and had left Altena and eventually met Risa, who bonded with her after also leaving her home kingdom after being too fat and clumsy to become an Amazon guard.
This was Belladonna’s coup de grace of her hypnosis: she could turn Riesz and Angela into a bunch of fatties eating themselves around the world, but then what? Eventually theyd’ run out of new places to try, or more likely their purses would run dry first, and then they’d be forced to acknowledge that they had lives outside of stuffing themselves. Riesz would eventually remember that she had a kingdom to save, and Angela would remember just why she’d left home in the first place. But by stripping the two of their identities, they could be given new goals, with much lower ambitions in life and no reason to question how they’d ended up and what to do next. And to make things even better for Belladonna’s grand plan, they’d be happy with it.
The two were destined for quiet, ordinary, unremarkable lives, and thanks to Belladonna’s hypnosis, were utterly content with it…
–
It was a clear, sunny day in Wendel, a perfect day for drying clothes, and that was exactly what Angelica was doing. She hummed happily as she went about her menial work as a housewife, although the morbidly obese woman had to pause every now and then to rest, and not just because of her immense weight. Almost as wide as her blankets, she finished hanging up one of her dresses which was indistinguishable in size and parted the hanging washing to see the smiling face of Risa, her neighbour and fellow housewife.
“Goodness, don’t surprise me like that!” Angelica said, taking a deep breath to calm her fragile nerves, stumbling back a few steps in surprise even though Risa had by now done this close to a dozen times. “You know I don’t like excitement, particularly when I’m so far along!”
Risa’s favourite trick only worked thanks to Angelica’s sheer wideness resulting in clothes big enough that even Risa could hide behind them, as the two were similar in weight and distinguished primarily by their body shapes. The two had beachball-sized breasts and guts that sagged down past their waists, but Riesz could barely reach past her own waterfall of a gut that hung down so far she had to wear long dresses to avoid her own belly meat poking out from underneath. The two largely avoided directly addressing their weights, although Angelica occasionally bragged that her husband was strong and muscular enough that he could lift her up and turn her over, the one time she lost her sense of modesty thanks to her lack of self-awareness over the fact that there were precious few times where he could actually perform that act besides in bed.
“Sorry, I just couldn’t resist.” Risa giggled, waddling around to her side and patting her on the back. “I’ve made tea, if that’ll make it up to you.”
“Only if you baked those little cupcakes I like.” Angelica said with a cute pout as the two lumbered towards Risa’s nearby house. The two took up nearly the entire street by themselves, well known around the neighbourhood for being two obese peas in a pod “How’s the baby treating you?”
“Kicking up a storm as usual.” Risa said, placing a hand over her belly. If you looked closely you could occasionally see her belly jiggle through her dress, her child determined to make its presence known even with Risa’s belly meat completely obscuring her pregnancy beneath its mass. “And yours?”
“Perfectly behaved, as always.” Angelica said smugly, rubbing her own stomach. She also wasn’t quite showing yet despite her comparatively flatter stomach. Part of it was because of her conservative dress, wearing loose clothing that left barely a patch of skin exposed save for her hands and face, even her beautiful purple hair partially obscured by a mob cap that Angelica liked to wear. She was a modest woman to the point of shyness, her weight leaving her to believe that she had no reason to show herself off, save for towards her husband. Her one point of pride was her long hair, the one point of beauty that she had inherited from her mother that she hadn’t spoiled by smothering it in lard. But Angelica didn’t mind leaving it like that, as she felt it was unbecoming for somebody to show off and flaunt their body, even if they weren’t a walking tub of blubber.
Despite her modesty, the fact that she was only a couple of months behind was something that Risa could hardly believe, that Angelica had taken longer to get knocked up than her, given how much she and her husband enjoyed each other's company. When she’d raised the issue, Angelica first got embarrassed that it was pointed out, then shot back that she was surprised it had taken this long for Risa herself, with how handsy her husband was with her.
The two had gotten married shortly after completing their trip by returning to Wendel, Angelica quickly falling for the guard who had “saved” her, while Risa was soon afterwards charmed by the older gentleman who’d shown quite an interest in her body and was interested in a calm, devoted wife who was somebody to return to after a long journey, who just so happened to have a body shape that he quite enjoyed. Their husbands being friends and business partners complimented their wives’ friendships well, and both made good couples, perhaps not the most romantic or exciting of couples, but humble, stable relationships perfect for starting a family, where neither had much in the way of complaints with each other, save for that their jobs forced them apart more often than they’d hope.
Although they showed a hint of their former beauty below the layers of fat, their broad, cherubic cheeks gave them a homely vibe that meshed well with their unexciting, plain lifestyles, spending nearly every day doing housework while attending to their husbands, or keeping the house clean while they waited for them to return from their business trips as merchant and bodyguard. The two had been urging them to settle down, but for the time being their jobs forced them to leave their lovely wives to their own devices. Sometimes the two travelled with them, but after becoming pregnant the two were forced to avoid the rigours of travel.
The two reached Risa’s house and enjoyed some tea at the table set up in her yard, enjoying another year of happy, humble, stable life exactly how they wanted it. It would have been a perfect time for Belladonna to show up, to see how far the two had unknowingly fallen… but that was never to be. While Belladonna’s plan had played out perfectly, she’d never get the chance to execute the final stage: to show herself before them, break the hypnosis, and then laugh at the two of them as they realised that they’d gone from beautiful princesses to fat, happy housewives.
Unfortunately for Belladonna, she’d hardly had time to inspect her handiwork, as the other four heroes had eventually defeated her and her master, saving the kingdom of Laurent and banishing the mind control that Angela’s mother had been under. In fact, Belladonna had been so preoccupied with dealing with them prior to her defeat that she’d never even gotten the chance to inspect her handiwork, an irony that Angela and Riesz’s defeat had resulted in no tangible improvements in her master’s plans, nor had she been able to enjoy it on a personal level. Perhaps she might have been happy with that too, knowing that the two had been thoroughly ruined for no reason other than because Belladonna’s vanity had been momentarily slighted by them daring to be beautiful in her presence.
It was to be another ordinary day like any other with nothing interesting happening, just how they liked it, when they were suddenly stopped on their way to their favourite cafe for lunch.
“You there, the blonde one! Might I ask for a moment of your time?”
The two slowly turned around, having to turn in opposite directions to avoid bumping their bellies together when they were side by side. It took a good deal of time with how much they had to shift around, eventually turning to find themselves staring at a beautiful Amazon in full traditional armour, which was to say a skimpy leotard with a few plates thrown on more for decoration than proper protection, and a large, feathery headpiece that Angelica had long forgotten selling a similar version of.
“C-can I help you, ma’am?” Risa said, suddenly looking quite nervous despite usually being the calmer of the two.
“I knew it.” The woman declared, running a hand through her long orange hair. “You’re an Amazon, aren’t you? It’s a bit hard to tell with your… figure, but I’d recognise features like that anywhere.”
“I-indeed I am.” Risa said. “Although I’ve not been home to Laurent in quite a while, not since the whole ordeal that befell it recently…”
“That’s no matter, it’s just good to see a familiar face around here.” The Amazon said happily, although Risa seriously doubted that. Familiar? This woman acted so friendly, but she’d never met her before in her life, and there’s no way that an Amazon would find such a fat face to be familiar. Her weight was one of the big reasons why she left in the first place, she didn’t fit in at all with that warrior woman society.
“I’m Liza, of the Laurent guard.” The woman introduced herself. “And you?”
“Risa. I’m, the, um, wife of my household.” She stammered out awkwardly. “I’m pleased to meet another Amazon, of course, although we might not have much in common beyond that…”
Risa cringed at herself. To be honest, another Amazon was the last thing she’d wanted to see. This woman seemed like the shining ideal of an Amazon guard, whereas Risa remembered being teased for her lack of coordination and eating habits. This woman might have even been one of them, and forgotten all about her years and close to five hundred pounds later.
“I knew it, that’s quite a common name for an Amazon.” Liza said happily, oblivious to Risa’s artificially created insecurities. “Anyway, I’m sorry to bother you ladies, but I was hoping that you could help me with something.”
“I’m not sure there’s much we can do to assist you.” Angelica stepped in, noting that Risa seemed to be uncomfortable talking to this woman.
“It’s not much at all. We were just wondering if you could help us find somebody.” Liza assured them, producing a piece of paper with a drawing on it of a beautiful Amazon woman. “You see, it’s been almost a year since the re-taking of Laurent, but our princess Riesz hasn’t returned. We suspect that she’s still in hiding for some reason, but our princess was known for her beauty, so I doubt that anybody who’s seen her could forget her.”
Risa and Angelica stared at the drawing of the woman for a few seconds.
“Doesn’t ring a bell, I’m afraid.” Angelica admitted.
“I think I only ever saw the princess from a distance.” Risa said. “I’m certain I’d never forget her if I’d ever gotten face to face with her, and I’m sorry to say that I would certainly remember somebody as pretty as this.”
“I see…” Liza looked despondent. “Well, I suppose there’s no reason why she’d be hiding out in Wendel of all places… But I was hoping that we might at least catch news of her passing through.”
“Captain!” Another Amazon called, Liza turning to address her. “We haven’t found any leads either. I assume you didn’t get anything useful out of these fa-, I mean, fine ladies.”
Angelica’s expression soured slightly as she attempted to maintain politeness, Risa looking quite glum as bad memories resurfaced, completely unaware of the irony of the situation.
“I’m afraid not.” Liza sighed. “I haven’t found anything about Queen Valda’s daughter either. Our sorceress companions will be as disappointed to hear from us as we are from them, I suspect. No matter, if we spread the news, perhaps the princess will reveal herself.”
“My apologies for not being able to assist.” Risa felt it was important to at least remain polite, bowing her head.
“It’s no problem at all, the odds were low to begin with. If you ever do see her though, please, try to contact us any way you can.” Liza tried to avoid showing the frustration of months of being completely unable to find hide nor hair of the princess, although she was certain that she hadn’t perished either.
She stared at Risa’s face for a moment, something about the obese woman’s flabby face catching her attention. Perhaps it was because she’d been searching so hard, or maybe because she hadn’t seen her in so long, but this fat woman strangely reminded her of the princess. If you cropped out all of the weight, then perhaps… No, it was too much of a stretch, LIza decided. For one thing, the princess would never let herself become even a little bit overweight, let alone bigger and rounder than a Giant Rabite, she was far too proud for that. And even if she did, what reason would she have to hide herself? She brushed aside her momentary conspiracy theory. Perhaps it was just her companion’s uncommon purple hair that had reminded her, since the sorceress queen’s daughter was missing too. Perhaps the sorceress queen’s daughter would have a reason to avoid trusting that she could return safely,but what possible justification could be used for Riesz to join in with her? She almost laughed at the idea of the two being in disguise together, hiding themselves as obese housewives. What would be the point in that?
Liza bid farewell to the two women, hurrying off to return to her ill-fated search party. Risa exhaled harder than Angelica had ever heard before.
“My goodness, that was frightening… I have too many bad memories of my time spent with women like her.”
“She was rather rude, wasn’t she? Just coming up to us like that.” Angelica said defensively, seeing her friend be made so uncomfortable putting her in a bad mood. “She just seemed so full of herself.”
“Of course she is, she’s one of the top soldiers in the kingdom. Girls like her were always mean.” Risa said, trying to justify her insecurities.
“And she’s so shameless, too! Dressing like that.” Angelica huffed. “I could never be an Amazon, I’d die of embarrassment!”
“You could have been a sorceress.” Risa pointed out, trying to make things a bit more light-hearted. “Hard to picture you in a mini-skirt, though.”
“Perish the thought.” Angelica shuddered. “Besides, I had no talent for magic whatsoever, I could barely cast the easiest spells. Neither of us were cut out for our countries, that was for sure.”
“I don’t think that’s a bad thing.” Risa looked on the bright side. “We never would have met our wonderful husbands if we hadn’t left! Oh, I do hope he’s taking care of himself, he never eats properly when I’m not with him…”
“He’ll be fine! After all, my husband is with him.” Angelica said proudly, puffing out her chest a bit. “Now, let’s go calm down and get something to eat. I’m starving, and I suspect the baby is too.”
The housewives waddled off, oblivious as ever…