THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET

by

Edmund

“It’s through here, her Alison announced, bet you didn’t know there was a sub basement, did you?”

Alexi shook her head, no she didn’t.

Together, the three of them descended downward, after her Edward lifted the carpet, exposing a grate that he easily lifted. One by one they climbed the twelve steps downward, Alexi marveling at what she saw. A computer…or, a series of computers was more like it. Who knew that Edward had all of this stuff? It was like a mini lab or something.

Just two short weeks ago, Alexi had shown up on their doorstep. It was now officially the longest she’d ever been away from home. Her goal was to attend University once the summer was through. In the mean time, she would get a job and pay rent, even though Edward (her Uncle) and Alison (her Aunt) said that she didn’t have to if she didn’t want to. They were fairly nice overall, though sometimes a bit strict for her liking.

Alexi hadn’t spent that much time with them growing up, as her family had lived fairly far away from them, so it was nice to catch up with the both of them. They had given her her own room on the main floor, downstairs from their much more spacious loft. That was fine with her. If she hadn’t thought of asking them, she’d be paying $900.00 a month for anything this close to downtown.

“What is all this?”, Alexi asked, brushing her hair from her eyes.

“This, since you asked earlier, is how we do it…” answered her Uncle Edward, standing close to his wife and putting her arm around her. Both of them were tall, always had been, but since she got here, Alexi couldn’t help wonder if they seemed taller than they were when she’d seen them last.

“This is how you do what?” Alexi asked, not knowing what he meant.

Edward walked towards her and rested a hand on each of her small shoulders.

”This is how we…”

He paused.

Alison stepped forward and looked down at Alexi.

“What he’s trying to say, she said, looking Alexi firmly in the eyes, is this is how we have gotten as tall as we are”

Silence.

Alexi laughed.

“Very funny. Thought about standup comedy?”

Edward looked to his wife, who continued looking at Alexi.

“Honestly, honey, this is the truth. But you can’t tell anyone”

Alexi laughed again; actually, she hadn’t stopped laughing from the first time.

“No. I’ll be sure not to tell anyone that you’re getting taller with that computer there. It’ll be our secret, ‘kay?”

Edward pulled out his driver’s license.

“Look at this”

Alexi did. It said that he was five feet, ten inches.

“Big deal”

Edward calmly walked to stand against a measuring tape that they had fixed to the wall. He pressed his back firmly against it.

“How tall does this make me, Alexi? Come and see”

Alexi did.

“You’re six one. So what? The height on your license is a mistake”

Alison sat down, crossing her long legs and stretching them out before her. Alexi looked at her Aunt with this new information in mind. Alison wasn’t short, that’s for sure.

“We’re telling you this for a reason, honey, she said, we’re telling you this because we would like your help for the next stage”

“You need my help to grow more? What, you two want to be giants?”

Her Aunt and Uncle laughed at this, each looking to the other, knowingly.

“No, not giants, but both of us would like to be well over six feet tall”.

Alison gestured to her husband, “He is, but I’m still five ten”

Alexi laughed, this time less enthusiastically. She herself was only five six, making both of them far taller than she was to begin with.

“You’re serious?”

Her Aunt and Uncle both nodded.

“How can you prove to me that this is real?”

Both Edward and Alison walked towards her again, appearing on either side of her. The sight of both of them looking down at her became a bit intimidating.

“Just trust us, okay?”

* * *

Alexi was a trusting person for the most part. Giving people the benefit of the doubt was just something she did.

This was different though.

This would take too great a leap in faith for her to accept. Still, part of her wanted to humour her Aunt and Uncle, not wanting to hurt their feelings. She wasn’t particularly close to either of them, but had hoped that this trip, her living with them for the summer, would change that. So she decided to help them anyway she could and told them exactly that.

“Fine, Edward said to her, we’ll do it tomorrow evening, how’s that sound?”

With that, life proceeded as normal. Alexi went out, early in the morning to look for employment while Edward and Alison resumed their daily lives. Her Uncle had worked at a biotech firm, had for as long as she could remember. Aunt Alison taught tennis, played occasionally too. She was very good, rumour had it.

Alexi’s day was made better by the anticipation of what lay in store. She laughed about it several times that day, even when she met with little luck looking for a job, the absurdity of her Aunt and Uncle being convinced that they were each still growing brought a smile to her face. What were they doing anyway? What’s behind this joke of theirs? How long until they burst into laughter and say “Got ya!”

Those very questions were what was on her mind as she returned to their home. No luck with the job hunt, but there’s always tomorrow.

“Hi, I’m home. Ready to get taller?”

No answer. Guess they’re not home yet.

Alexi flopped her young, thin body down onto the couch, staring at the ceiling. Her eyes took in the room as her mind traced back to earlier memories of Aunt Alison and Uncle Edward.

Photo album.

There was one practically staring at her amidst the books in the bookshelf. She wanted to look through it, but knew that her Aunt and Uncle valued their privacy. This had been a touchy subject at some moments since she had moved in, Alexi thought, as she thought back to the first time she had seen their house. Her Aunt Alison had been showing her around and had been very firm, very particular about where Alexi could venture in the house and what was strictly off limits. That’s fine, Alexi had thought. It’s their house, right? Still, they had their rules. A lot of them. Take your shoes off at the door and stuff like that. In some ways, they were stricter than her parents were, but, like she kept telling herself…it’s their house and I’m not paying any rent.

She rose from the couch and pulled the photo album out. It was a fat one, exceedingly full of photos, some not even bothered to be pasted in. As Alexi opened it, she knew why. There were dozens, no hundreds more than the actual album was designed to hold. Various unsorted snapshots spilled onto her lap and her hands scrambled to contain them.

In the minutes that ensued, Alexi flipped through photographs from their past. She was even in some of them, much younger of course. They weren’t sorted or assembled from early on in life to present day, but she flipped through most of them anyway, as neither Alison nor Edward were home yet.

Finally, she stopped on one photograph that caused her pause.

She was in the photo. So was her Aunt Alison. They were standing on a beach together, smiling for the camera. Both were in bare feet and both were wearing bikinis. The strange part was, that they appeared to be almost the same height.

That photo was taken less than two summers ago.

Then the door opened. They were home.

* * *

Edward and Alison brought in take out food since they didn’t want to be bothered with cooking a big meal – especially not when Alexi had agreed to help them with their “size change” (which, for the record, she still didn’t fully believe).

After they chomped down their sushi, the three of them once again headed down to the basement. Alexi hovered near the back of the room, watching with a more concentrated effort than the last time. If they are tricking me on this one, she thought, I want to be sure and see how it’s done.

At the same time, Alexi acknowledged that it made sense in sort of a tv movie way…“The rarely seen Uncle and his wife who disappeared for months at a time, only to re-emerge months later now working at a different firm hundreds of miles from the last…”

“You’re probably wondering why we needed your help on this”

Edward looked at her, waiting for an answer. Things had become rather odd since seeing the photos of Aunt Alison mere hours ago – the reality of this had begun to sink in.

“Just tell me what you need from me and I’ll do it, Alexi answered, you paid for dinner after all”

Her Aunt Alison chuckled at this, but then added, “This isn’t a joke, you understand?”

Alexi looked to the two of them, “Yes, I understand, I’m just trying…I’m trying to lighten the mood here. I’m kind of nervous about this, okay?”

Edward stood before her, looking down.

“That’s fine. Nervous is okay. Just remember, what your Aunt said is true. This isn’t a joke”.

Alexi nodded and then watched as both of them stripped down to their underwear.

“Are you sure you want me to witness this?” Alexi asked, getting a bit uncomfortable seeing her Aunt and Uncle in their briefs.

Alison looked to her, “May tear our clothes otherwise. We’re hoping to each grow an inch and a half”

* * *

Edward had explained the machine, which, in it’s own way, looked like a cross between a radio shack experiment and a prop from a cheesy science fiction film. As the two of them stood against the wall, a beam would emit from a small turret on the ceiling, rotate several times as it stopped to focus on each of them. Since the growth was so gradual, nothing would be visible to the naked eye. That’s all they told her.

Alexi watched as Edward set the controls and did whatever it was that he had to do in order for the machine to commence. Her job was to videotape the experiment, which she had no problem with. Still, since she was curious what he was doing, she paid particular attention.

Moments later both her Aunt and Uncle stood against the wall. Alexi looked to the controls, seeing that they had been preset.

Both settings read – 104%

She wanted to ask what happened at different settings, but the serious look on their faces, not to mention that fact that she herself had begun to sweat from nervousness prevented her from doing so.

“Ready on the camera?” her Uncle Edward asked”

Alexi nodded.

“Alexi, Alison asked, step away from the machine, will you?”

How did she even know I was standing beside it, Alexi wondered to herself.

“Okay, she said, pressing the record button on the camera, all set”

* * *

Alexi awoke early the next morning. Another day of hitting the pavement for a summer job. Wasn’t that cheerful a thought, but it had to be done.

Maybe she should try waitressing, she thought. She was certainly good looking enough. Her friends from home had always said she looked like a slightly younger version of Naomi Watts. Alexi didn’t even know who this was, but took it as a compliment just the same.

She emerged from her small room and stretched out her back, which, more often than not, was sore from sleeping on that damn mattress. She would have preferred a real bed, you know, with a box spring, but this is all they offered her at the time and she vowed that she wouldn’t complain. After stretching, she strode into the kitchen, surprised to see that Alison had already awoken. She wore her pajama top and some tight fitting boxer shorts (were they the same ones she had seen her Uncle Edward wearing last week? They’re so tight!)

“Kinda early, isn’t it?”

Her Aunt turned, smiling like she knew a secret.

“Is it?”

Alexi shuffled forward. “Where’s Uncle Edward?”

“He’s gone to the office already”

Her Aunt Alison was making a blender drink. She poured it into a glass and gulped it down quickly.

“So did it work?”, Alexi asked.

“What’s that? Did what work?” her Aunt asked, pretending that she didn’t know what Alexi was talking about.

“You know what I mean”.

Alison set down her cup, wiped her mouth and began to walk towards her. She was in bare feet, Alexi noticed this first off, not wanting to misjudge her alleged gain in height based on her choice of footwear.

Alison stopped just shy of bumping into her.

“You tell me. Have I grown? Am I bigger than I was yesterday?” Alison grinned. She knew that she had grown, but only wanted to hear Alexi confirm this.

Alexi looked at her…looked up at her. Oh my gosh. She is taller!

Alison glowered at her for a moment, reveling in her mind trying to accept it.

“Be a dear, will you? Clean up my breakfast dishes?”

* * *

Throughout the day, Alexi had to continue reminding herself that this wasn’t a prank. There’s no way that anything like this could be faked. It was too elaborate. Besides, she had spent a month at their house. She’d know if someone grew over an inch. She would!

And she did. There was no questioning it.

* * *

Alexi returned home to find Edward sitting with his wife. His height had also grown, turning him into a fairly tall man, by anyone’s standards. Edward, however, didn’t bother rubbing her face in it like her Aunt had. No, he was irritated by something else entirely.

“Alexi, can you please keep your things confined to your room? It’s hard enough keeping my work organized without your nail files and your…your newspapers lying around”

Alexi stopped to consider her retort before replying.

“My mistake. Sorry”

She wandered into the kitchen. Her Aunt looked at her, a small wry grin on her face.

“We’re going to take dancing lessons, Alexi. Just the two of us”

“That’s good. Sounds like fun”, was all that Alexi could say, thinking how they’d stand out in a class full of people shorter than them. The fact that they were good looking didn’t hurt either. At their new heights, they were powerhouses. The types that you could see doing pretty much anything.

Alexi didn’t use to think that size mattered. Even wondered why people were fixated on it the way they were, but now…seeing them…it all made sense. She understood why they wanted what they did. They were Amazons for crying out loud! Who wouldn’t want Aunt Alison to teach them tennis? And who wouldn’t hire her Uncle Edward, this tall, handsome, bright man. They seemed capable of anything.

All of this made Alexi feel small. She’d never had any particular feelings about her height, one way or another, but rarely had she felt as short as she did at this particular moment.

Her Aunt rose to her feet. She was still wearing her shoes but looking down to Alexi’s own footwear.

“What did we ask you about wearing shoes in the house, Alexi?”

This time, Alexi couldn’t bite her tongue.

“But you’re wearing yours”

“Yes, but mine are clean. Just like the rest of this house used to be…back before you moved in”

Ouch. That had hurt. What was with the chill in the air here? Why were they being like this?

Uncle Edward stood to his feet too. “Alexi, you’ll need to videotape us tomorrow night”

“What? You’re doing it again?”

Edward looked at her, astounded that she would even question him.

“Yes, we are, not that it’s any of your business. You’re staying here for practically nothing…is it too much to ask for you to point a video camera and tape us?”

With that, he reached above her head and plucked something off the top of the microwave, something that he’d previously been unable to reach, since the microwave rested on the top of the fridge.

“Look, honey”

Alison smiled at this, then reverted her look to Alexi.

“Do you mind cooking for a change? We were thinking about a nice curry”

Alexi looked at her. Oh how her feet ached from walking around down town for so long.

“Yeah, not a problem”

With that, Alexi began dinner. Edward and Alison went upstairs and Alison ran a bath for herself.

“Make sure it’s spicy” came her Uncle’s voice a few minutes later.

Alexi bit her lip.

“Too bad someone couldn’t get them back to their normal size…

She smiled, lingering on this thought. Smiling a moment.

…or smaller still”

To be continued

THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET - 2

That night Alexi had dreams like she’d never had before. Her Aunt and Uncle were even bigger; each of them well over twenty feet high. Neither of them cared that they couldn’t fit into society, only content in continuing to alter their size – bigger then bigger still. The two of them chased Alexi wherever she went, when one failed to catch her the other would appear, picking her up and threatening to rip her apart…

* * *

Alexi took off her shoes upon entering the house. “Anyone home?”

Muffled talking could be heard from the basement. Alexi went into the kitchen and saw that the metal grate was ajar, indicating that the two of them were down in the sub basement.

Alexi lay down on her stomach, her head just slightly descending into the hole in the floor. The space below was about 500 square feet, big enough that she couldn’t see where they were.

But she could hear them just fine…

“I’m just saying that we shouldn’t have shown her anything. She’s too young. Hell, I wouldn’t have trusted myself at that age, would you?”

This was her Aunt’s voice. A second later, her Uncle answered her.

“Well, what’s done is done. Too late for regrets”.

Alexi shot to her feet as she heard the two of them approaching the stairs. She tip toed to the front entrance and purposely slammed the door as if she’d just arrived.

“I’m home,” she shouted, this time louder than before.

Alexi made her way into the kitchen a second time and then stopped as she saw the two of them.

Her Aunt grinned mischievously.

“Go ahead, you can say it. You’re not brain dead, are you?”

“You guys are…you’re…”

Edward smiled at his wife.

“See. Told you she’d notice”

“You’re….you’re bigger…again”

And indeed they were. Both of them had grown at least another two inches. Their heights were no longer something that could be hidden or casually explained.

Aunt Alison looked down at herself; her long arms, her elongated waist line, her lengthy thighs and calves…

“She’s right, you know, we are…humongous”

With that, the two of them burst into laughter, the kind of laughter reserved for a private joke.

”Alexi, dear. Fetch the tape measure and see what we’re up to, hmmm?”

Alexi turned to do so, approaching the two of them but not fully realizing the extent of their height until she stood close. The top of her head now barely reached her Uncle’s chest. He was the tallest, but Aunt Alison…oh my gosh, she was beyond huge too!

Alexi measured both and then stood back, trying to get saliva into her mouth and throat. She pointed first to her Aunt.

“You’re 6 foot 3…”

Then she pointed to her Uncle.

“You’re 6 foot 6…”

Both of them laughed again as if they too were surprised by the results.

“Don’t worry, short stuff, her Aunt said, patting Alexi’s head and then draping her long arms down over Alexi’s shoulders, we’re going to reverse it tonight, we just wanted to see what it was like to be this...big. Right, dear?”

Edward nodded.

“And now we know how wonderful it is to be huge”

They laughed again.

“How’re you going to reverse it?”

Uncle Edward flashed her a condescending grin that might as well have said, “You’re too young to understand, dear”.

Alison’s arms were still draped over Alexi’s chest, her fingers interlaced and forming a hold on her. Alexi fidgeted, hoping that her arms would release their grip, but they didn’t.

Across from her and now seated at the table (in a chair that looked quite small), Uncle Edward chuckled as Alison withdrew her arms and slid them under Alexi’s arms, hoisting her into the air with only a bit of effort.

“Look, I can lift her like a ten year old”

Edward watched, marveling at the new found strength that his wife’s height now allowed her.

Alexi, try as she might, could not seem to wiggle out of her Aunt’s grasp. In an instant, she recalled what it was like to be a child, unable to stop someone from forcing you into different positions.

“Put me down, please!” Alexi yelled.

Her Aunt let her down and folded her arms, impressed with herself.

There was silence where both of them just stared down at her, Uncle Edward looking more than a little curious.

“I’m sorry, Alexi, but I’ve got to try too”

Edward headed towards her with a determined look in his eyes, as if he were completely entranced with picking her up, knowing that this new found height wouldn’t be there tomorrow.

This isn’t happening, Alexi thought, this is a bad, bad dream.

“Up and at ‘em” he said, his large arms quickly encircling her and hoisting her upward. Indeed, she did appear light, like a child.

This time Alexi didn’t say anything. The humiliation was too great. She remained in the air, telling herself that saving rent money by staying here was no longer worth it. She’d move out as soon as she could. When her Uncle finally lowered her, she’d had enough. Her face was red and her eyes had begun to water.

He lowered her.

“Oh come on, he said, rubbing the top of her head rather roughly, don’t be a baby. We were just joking!”

Instantly, she was pulled to his chest, where he attempted to hold her until she calmed down. Alexi tried as she was able, but the maximum strength of her arms was nothing compared to that of her Uncle’s.

“Let me go!” she shouted and finally she was released. Alexi spun and slammed her fists into his rib cage to little effect.

“No need to get violent, we were just having some fun”, with that, he pushed her backwards, not too forcefully, but enough for her to fall on her bum…hard.

Alexi sat there on the floor, almost sobbing.

“Don’t cry, her Aunt said compassionately. This is something we’ve never experienced. You have to understand that”

Alexi slowly nodded. She was moving out so it didn’t matter. She just needed to gain her senses and then she’d start packing her things.

Her Uncle’s voice sounded from above. “Didn’t hurt you, did I?”

Alexi shook her head. She wouldn’t let herself admit it in front of them. She stood to her feet and headed to her small room. Small room for a small girl she thought to herself.

“Don’t forget. Tonight you need to help us again” her Aunt’s voice called after her.

* * *

The evening came and Alexi still hadn’t told them that she planned to move out, thinking they’d be more hurt if she left without telling them. That’s what she wanted to do – to hurt them – to hurt them for making her feel the way she did…small.

She did what they asked her, performing her task with the machine while the two of them stood against the wall like they had before. When it was over, the pair of them seemed saddened at the thought that when they woke up, their heights would be back to normal.

* * *

It was morning and Alexi had packed her room while her Aunt and Uncle had slept. She wanted them to leave for work before she herself would depart.

“There she is, her Uncle’s voice bellowed, just ask her!”

Alexi closed the door to her room, not wanting either of them to see her packed up belongings. She turned innocently, looking at them and wondering what she had done this time.

“What’s the matter?” she asked.

Her Uncle Edward suddenly was marching towards her with great speed. He stopped, mere inches from her face, looking down at her.

“This, he said, this is the matter!” he said, pointing to the cuffs of his dress shirt.

“Your shirt is a little long, so what?”

“So what?, he said, looking like he was going to smack her, so what? Well, let’s just say that prior to the weekend, that it fit perfectly, that’s so what!”

Alexi looked downward. Surely she was going to get the blame for this.

With that, he stormed from the room, leaving Alison alone with Alexi.

“How is this my fault?” Alexi asked, looking like a lost puppy dog.

Alison approached her, “It’s not, dear, you didn’t do anything wrong. It’s just a minor fluctuation. He knows that too. He’s just a little stressed. It was quite an exciting weekend for us you know. He didn’t want it to end”

Alexi looked up to her Aunt. “And you’re fine? You’re okay?”

“No problems here. I’m back to my regular height and happy about it”

With that, her Aunt Alison kissed her on the top of her head and squeezed her shoulders firmly, “You have a good day, okay?”

Alexi smiled a bit and nodded. Maybe she wouldn’t move out just yet. Maybe things were about to get better.

* * *

Alexi spent the day (yet again) looking for a job. She was actually offered one too, but turned it down. Not paying rent meant that she could be choosey if she so desired.

Arriving home, Aunt Alison was curled up on the couch, relaxing with a magazine. She didn’t appear too concerned about anything at all.

“Have you talked to Uncle Edward?”

“About what?” she asked.

“Well…about last night…his height?”

Aunt Alison chuckled.

“I’m not too concerned. If something had happened, he’d have called me”.

Alexi thought this strange. If her husband had lost half a foot in height, she’d want to know what was going on.

In the background the garage door could be heard.

“There he is now. Wait a second and you can see for yourself”

Alexi sat down on the couch next to her Aunt and together they waited.

After a few moments when Edward still hadn’t still hadn’t shown his face, Alison sighed and stood to her feet.

“Aren’t you concerned?” Alexi asked.

“No, not really. Whatever happens, fluxuation is normal for 24 hours or so. He told me that himself”.

She turned to face Alexi.

“And besides, she said, no matter what happens…I’m still way taller than you are”. With that, she laughed to herself. It occurred to Alexi that this, in an odd way, was her Aunt trying to connect with her.

“I’ll go see what’s keeping him”

With that, Alison headed down the stairs and into the garage.

Since she didn’t return automatically, Alexi busied herself by straightening up the living room – pillows, magazines, etc. Didn’t want to give him any reason to yell at her again.

Then, without warning, she heard her Aunt Alison below with laughter.

A few moments later, she emerged, climbing the stairs with a smirk on her face: an expression that was not without a trace of concern.

“Wait to you get a load of this!”

She turned behind her and a few moments later, Uncle Edward also ascended the stairs.

He was smaller.

Presently, both his pant cuffs and his arm cuffs were rolled up to hide their otherwise conspicuous bagginess. He glared at Alexi, as if somehow this had been her fault.

The three of them stared in silence for the longest time.

Alexi averted her eyes, long enough not to notice her Aunt approach and pull her upwards off from the couch, leading towards her Uncle. Alexi resisted at first, but knew that it was no good. The scene itself resembled the type of resistance you’d imagine a child putting up when being pulled to get their hair cut.

Finally, she relented and allowed herself to be nudged closer in his direction. Surprisingly, he didn’t move, or react at all for that matter. From behind her, Alexi heard her Aunt’s voice.

“Go closer, honey. I want to see if he’s still taller than you!”

For such a serious situation, her Aunt was certainly not taking this too seriously.

Reluctantly, Alexi took the two steps forward in order that she stand directly in front of her once domineering Uncle Edward. They looked at each other for a long moment.

They were the same height.

Alexi looked downward. Maybe it was her footwear…maybe he’s not actually my height.

Wrong. He was. She was only wearing socks.

A wave of awkwardness swept over Alexi as she realized this isn’t how it’s supposed to be.

Uncle Edward was the first to avert his eyes and as he did so, Aunt Alison’s joyous laughter continued, spurting like a fountain as she clapped her hands. Apparently it was the funniest thing she’d ever seen.

“Edward, you two are the same size!”

Edward flashed his wife a glance, as if to say, “I noticed” and then calmly as he could, climbed the staircase to his bedroom.

* * *

Another day of job searching came and went. The past night had gone uneventfully. She didn’t see her Uncle again for the rest of the night. She did, however, detect a slightly more concerned Aunt Alison, who would descend the stairs now and again after talking with her husband. Whatever they were talking about had increased her already worried face. But still, she continued to do her best to hide that fact.

“I’m home” Alexi bellowed and then instantly regretted how loud she had announced herself. Before she got more than two steps in, her Aunt Alison walked from the kitchen to the living room, directly for her.

Her face could no longer hide her outright concern.

“Is he okay?” Alexi blurted out.

Her Aunt approached closer, lowering her voice.

“He shrunk another inch or so, but I think…both of us think…that it’ll be okay tomorrow”

“How much smaller? Should we be worried?”

Her Aunt shook her head unconvincingly.

“It’ll be fine”

Uncle Edward was nowhere to be found, since he’d taken refuge in the basement, apparently looking over things with the machine. Meanwhile, Alexi retreated to her room and spent the rest of the night there. Alone.

* * *

The next morning, Alison opened Alexi’s door without knocking, catching her, however briefly, in her underwear. In a house of so many rules, Alexi grabbed her jeans and quickly put them on. She was not without an attractive and shapely body, that much was certain.

“Don’t worry about that, dear, she said, listen, when are you leaving?”

Alexi looked at her, noting that it appeared that her Aunt had slept very little.

“In half an hour or so”

“Well, let me know before you do. Your Uncle doesn’t want you to see him, okay? Not until he’s normal again”

Alexi nodded, understanding.

When the time came, she left through the back door, though part of her actually wanted to see her Uncle. Not in a mean spirited way, but merely as a curiousity. What was he like? How small had he become? How would it feel to actually be taller than him? At this point, the thought made her uncomfortable.

* * *

Heading home, she noticed that the front door was ajar. Considering all the rules that her Aunt and Uncle had, this must be a sign that something’s wrong.

Alexi’s head peeked into the living room, after taking care to leave her shoes at the door. Inside, deeper into the house, she could see her Aunt sitting at the kitchen table. She was alone and was staring at the floor, despondently.

Alexi entered cautiously.

“Aunt Alison? What’s the matter?”

Her Aunt looked at her and then slowly got up from her chair.

Alexi didn’t need to stand face to face with her to know that her Aunt had also begun to diminish in size.

“Where’s Uncle Edward?” she asked.

“He’s sleeping upstairs”

“Did he…is he smaller?”

Her Aunt nodded, looking more shocked than anything, as if seeing another person, someone that hadn’t been affected and was retaining their normal size was a little off-putting. Alison was sizing Alexi up, looking her up and down and it was making her very nervous.

Alexi looked at her Aunt and in her mind, imagined what her Uncle must be going through. Such a proud man. For all of the awkwardness surrounding these feelings she was having, even seeing her Aunt stand before her, Alexi felt slightly flushed, as if (preposterously) the dread of seeing them diminish in size brought with it, a small bit of satisfaction…a bit of pleasure.

Things may get more interesting in the coming days, she thought to herself. I can’t wait to see how small Uncle Edward is, she thought guiltily.

To be continued

THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET - 3

The following morning with her Uncle Edward still hiding from sight, Alexi decided to stay home from her fruitless job search. She made her Aunt breakfast, who in turn, took some upstairs to her husband.

Occasionally, when her Aunt and Uncle weren’t home, Alexi would parade around in her bra and boxer shorts. If she heard them come in, she would change before they saw her, fearing their disapproval, which seemed to manifest in so many ways.

Presently, since she wasn’t going out, she was in blue jeans, t-shirt and bare feet.

Soon her Aunt returned, looking exhausted, to sit at the kitchen table once more. She barely ate any of her breakfast and once her plate was taken away, she slumped over the table looking more like a depressed teenager than a grown adult.

“Want to go for a walk later?” Alexi asked.

Her Aunt looked at her.

“It might do you some good, she continued, you could ask Edward if he’d like to join us…”

Slam. Aunt Alison pounded her fist down onto the table and marched towards her. She wasn’t about to let her height stop her…“No, I don’t think that a walk is such a good idea right now!”

Alexi looked down at her Aunt and then leaned back onto the cupboard, hoping to make her newfound height advantage a little less imposing. Problem was, even then, even leaning back so that she wasn’t standing straight, her Aunt still appeared shorter. This fact caught Alison by surprise. She looked at Alexi, casting her eyes over her, from her bare feet up to her pretty face. That brat is an inch taller than me, she though, and she’s not even wearing shoes!

And then she started to cry. Not hard, but the tears couldn’t be held back. Alexi opened up her arms and her Aunt Alison fell into them. Alexi tried to soothe her, gently rubbing her Aunt’s back.

“I’ll do whatever it takes. I can run errands. I can cook. Whatever. I’ll do it all until Uncle Edward figures out how to stop this, okay?”

Her Aunt nodded again, appearing to be reassured by this. Alexi continued to rub her back, noting how strange this sensation was becoming, like she was comforting a bruised child.

* * *

It wasn’t until later in the evening that Alexi first came across Edward. Perhaps he didn’t think she’d be home, or thought she’d be in her bedroom, but in any case, his head emerged from the basement staircase and his eyes immediately fell on Alexi, who was making some tea.

Alexi’s first instinct was to back away, to retreat to a corner and busy herself some other way, thereby allowing her Uncle time to climb the stairs and disappear up to his bedroom. But seeing the scorn on his face, the disapproval, she decided to stand exactly where she was. She knew he had shrunk even more than his wife and he knew that Alexi knew. It was a stand off.

“How’s it going down there?” she asked, instantly biting her lip at the strange play on words.

Edward hesitated and then slowly made his way up the rest of the stairs, knowing full well that in doing so, he’d be forced to compare his height to Alexi’s, since they’d both be standing opposite one another.

“It’s going fine, he grumbled, couldn’t be better”

With that, he stood level with Alexi, daring to raise his head, daring to look her in the eyes. And that’s when it hit him just how small he’d become. He figured that if Alexi approached closer, that she could have comfortably rested her chin on the top of his head.

Alexi, feeling the awkwardness with every fiber of her being, swallowed.

“Is there anything I can help you with?”

Edward motioned to the tea Alexi had in her hands.

“Yeah, you can make me a cup of tea”

Alexi nodded. “Here you can have my cup”

Edward turned and walked away, heading to the couch in the living room.

“Bring it in here”

Alexi stood still for a moment, considering. She didn’t know whether to laugh at how funny his height made him look, be angry at his request or to be happy that he was at least talking to her again. So she followed him into the living room, tea in hand.

“Aunt Alison, she called, there’s tea down here for you!”

A moment later, Alison entered the room, “Fine, I’ll take two sugars” she said, not even looking at Alexi, who stared at her as she sat next to her husband. Her stunned expression must have been noticeable, as Alison looked up to her and said…

“Maybe we could drink it while it’s still hot?”

Alexi snapped back to reality, set the tea down and immediately turned to get the sugar.

And so it began…Alexi’s transformation into full-time maid was a gradual one. So gradual, that she didn’t notice at first.

They had her cooking, they had her cleaning and they had her grocery shopping. None of this really bothered her, since Edward continued to busy himself in the basement, trying numerous tests to reverse what was making them smaller, while Aunt Alison, when not helping him, spent her time looking more and more worried at her husband’s lack of success.

Their anger towards her – towards life in general – grew in those short days (no pun intended). Alexi was keenly aware of this and began to walk on tiptoes, fearing they would find fault in every action she took.

But what would happen if they found out what she had done? Alexi pushed this thought to the back of her head. Not the time to deal with that.

* * *

The following morning, Alexi rose from her very cramped room to hear a cry of astonishment from above her. It was Edward. “He must have shrunk again,” she thought. Alexi rose to her feet and stretched out her back, which once again had a kink in it from sleeping on that terrible mattress. She then ran to the main foyer, unsure whether she was scared that they were smaller or excited. Sure enough, both of them had shrunk in size. It was comical, really. Two full adults, people Alexi had looked up to her entire life were now getting shorter every time she woke up.

Some things had returned to normal at least as Alison was now shorter than her husband. They stood together, perhaps a sign of solidarity against Alexi.

“What are you staring at?” Edward spat.

“Nothing, Alexi said, still in her pajamas and bare feet, you two shrunk again…didn’t you?”

“Tell us something we don’t know”, said Alison, the first to stomp towards her and into the kitchen. Instinctively, Alexi mouth flickered a very brief smile as her Aunt passed her by. It was the type of reflex smile reserved for the zoo or for small babies…she couldn’t help it. Edward was the first to pick up on it.

“You think we’re funny?”

The smile instantly disappeared and she cursed herself for having let herself do so. “No, not a bit. I’m just trying—“

“You’re mocking us”, he continued, approaching her.

“I am not mocking you”, Alexi said, feeling herself getting defensive, but also, a little afraid of what her Uncle was going to do to her.

“Didn’t think it was so funny when we were over six feet tall, did you?” he shouted, now almost “face to face” with her.

“Not too long and you’ll be back to your full size, I’m sure”, Alexi flinched, prepared for anything. Her Uncle had stopped in front of her and had once again miscalculated her size when compare to his own. His face now stared directly at the buttons of her pajama top, less than an inch from where her breasts jutted out towards him. Alexi had to lower her chin to continue holding eye contact, suddenly aware that if this continued, he would be eye level with her breasts. What would that be like, she wondered? She couldn’t help but continue to stare at him as if hypnotized. Seeing someone typically over six feet tall, now so short that you actually have to look down to catch their eye was truly remarkable. Though the moment itself lasted mere seconds, Alexi felt that feeling again – the fear…or to be more accurate…the absence of fear. It was disappearing. Who was this man? He wasn’t a man. He was a boy. He was - -

That’s when Edward punched her squarely in the stomach.

Alexi doubled over, winded and completely surprised.

“We’re not here for your amusement!”, he spat and then walked into the kitchen to join his worried looking wife. Alexi remained in the living room, trying to catch her breath. She had wanted to yell, to curse, to throw things around the kitchen at them, but she didn’t, instead, after she collected herself, she ventured out onto the front patio, squinting into the bright sun. She paced back and forth, thinking about what to do.

Did they suspect? Could that explain their anger? Or was it just a growing frustration over their diminishing size? That must be it…

Alexi ventured back into the house and grabbed a light jacket. Not that it was cold, but she thought it’d help disguise the fact that she was still in her pajamas. She walked for more than an hour in total, trying to make up her mind about what to do.

It was past lunch when she returned. Silence from inside the house. They couldn’t have gone out, she thought, but where were they? Alexi ventured in further and found the kitchen an absolute mess, like they’d gone on a rampage. Smashed plates, cutlery all over the floor, crumpled newspapers…

Alexi took it in, sighing heavily as she stooped to begin cleaning, doing so nervously. After all, what on earth could explain this mess?

That’s when an object, thrown from behind, struck her on the back of her head.

Seeing stars is something that you read about in comic books and that’s exactly what was happening to Alexi right now. Still in her pajamas, Alexi’s hands shot out in front of her to stop her forward fall caused by the force of the object. She wanted to spin around to see what it had been, but her body wouldn’t respond fast enough. The room spinned as she began to feel heavier and heavier, as if she were going to pass out.

Then…another blow. Whatever hit her this time fell to the ground and shattered. Alexi managed to pivot on her knees and then fall back onto the floor, landing on her bum. She looked down where she noticed the remnants of a broken plate.

Someone was throwing dishes at her head.

Thunk!

Another direct hit. One more she thought and I’m out like a light. The room continued to spin as she felt her right eye begin to water. It felt red hot as if being held close to a burner. Alexi visualized what she’d look like in a few hours and grimaced to herself.

A smaller, sharper pain was felt in her back. It was a fork. They were throwing cutlery now. Whoever they were. Was the house being robbed?

No, she thought, they’ve discovered what I’ve done…

Alexi felt herself about to collapse, the weight of her head suddenly became too much. Blackness swept around her. This is what falling unconscious feels like she thought. And then she saw them:

It was Edward and Alison. The two of them had been hiding in the corner – one at the opposite end from the other. Each had additional projectiles ready to go and Alexi certainly didn’t relish the thought of a coffee mug being hurled at her face, so she raised her arms in defense.

“Please. Please don’t”, she whispered.

“And why not, her Edward spat, you fixed the machine to do this to us!”

Alexi’s entire face felt on fire and she could feel a trickle of blood running down the back of her neck.

“Answer him, her Aunt shot out, still standing her ground, admit what you’ve done”

Slowly…and with great effort…Alexi began to nod.

She HAD fixed the machine. She HAD altered the settings.

Her Uncle stomped his feet, “I knew it, he said to his wife, I told you, didn’t I?”

Alison nodded, then looked back to Alexi.

“But why? Why did you do this?”

“Wanted to feel how it’d be to be bigger than you two for once…so you’d know how it feels to be belittled”

Alexi’s throat had become dry and her eyelids felt heavier than ever. She felt a new trickle of blood. This one from her forehead. It ran down the distance of her face and soon found it’s way into the crevice of her mouth. She tasted it. Despite being in the most pain she’d ever been in, Alexi managed to smile.

Uncle Edward suddenly held up a butter knife, gesturing towards her with it, but still keeping his distance.

Why aren’t they coming any closer? Alexi wondered. Surely they could knock me out if they wanted to.

“How small will we get!?!” Edward snarled.

Alexi pulled out her knees from under her and pain shot through her back making her vision somewhat cloudy.

She swallowed again, trying to moisten her mouth with saliva.

“Within two weeks…she paused, still managing to muster up a bit of a smile…you’ll be so small that you’ll be sleeping in my tennis shoes…”

Edward and Alison’s mouths hung open like miniature caves.

Alexi struggled to her feet. Not an easy task considering that she still felt close to collapsing. The instant she straightened her legs and was fully erect, she knew why they hadn’t approached any closer than they had.

They’d shrunk again.

Edward, in all his glory, was now no taller than her breasts! Alison – even smaller!

A fork flew in her direction, thrown by Alison. Alexi blocked the fork with her arm, but it still managed to break skin before it fell to the floor with a clang. A coffee mug was next. Under normal circumstances, Alexi could have easily blocked it, but due to her current state, it hit her in the collarbone, wracking her with additional pain. Alexi fixed her stare at the two of them and expressions of fear rose on both their faces.

She charged forward towards her Uncle, veering her body towards the kitchen entranceway, hoping to block the pair of them from running towards the front door.

Neither must escape she told herself. She’d be in way too much trouble. How could she possibly explain what she did – what she intended to continue to let happen?

Alexi connected with her Uncle, arms forward, hitting his chest area and completely winding him. The surprised look on his face suggested that he hadn’t counted on her being as powerful as she was. Alexi was surprised too – half expecting him to have knocked her aside with the side of his hand, instead, he was truly taken aback by the force of her blow.

Small slapping hands pummeled Alexi’s backside, stinging her, but providing no real harm. It was her Aunt Alison. Soon she had a hold of Alexi’s pajamas and pulled at them while continuing to slap at her – anything to try and get away.

Alexi turned from her Uncle who was now on his knees, gasping for air, in order to face Alison, who had managed to pull Alexi’s pajama bottoms down far enough so that when she motioned to step forward, she fell forward onto the kitchen floor.

Thud.

A blow from behind hit the back of Alexi’s head, causing agonizing pain to ripple through her body. Edward had hit her from behind, his blow hurting far more than his wife’s. Alexi struggled to pull up her pajamas and then hoisted herself to her feet. She motioned to strike at Edward, but caught sight of Alison making a break for the door. Alexi turned and ran towards her.

At first glance, she thought there was no way that she’d catch her. But after a few hurried strides, she became aware of another advantage to her size – her legs could move her far faster than theirs could. In four big steps, Alexi had caught up to Alison and pulled her back, placing herself between them and the closest way out of the house.

All three of them stood still for a moment, each of them panting heavily from exertion. Alexi considered what to do before casting a quick glance at her own body. Her pajamas were ripped in two sections; buttons missing from the top exposed the cleavage leading to her breasts. Her leg ached, but not as much as the back of her head did. Blood had pooled in numerous crevices of her body and she would be very bruised in a few hours.

Slowly, but with purpose, Alexi began to walk towards the two of them, one step at a time. Edward and Alison, too exhausted to try anything else, stood their ground, though she moved behind him.

Alexi had been curious exactly how small they were at this point and now she was going to find out. Two more steps and she stood directly before Edward, him flinching, but determined not to show any fear. Alexi stood intentionally close to him in order to maximize the difference in their heights. Her breasts poked his face from beneath her torn pajamas as she moved closer still. Alexi continued to breathe heavily, still reeling from the attack.

That’s how big I am, she thought. This little guy is only as tall as my breasts!

Alexi relished every second of this moment. She’d withstood their attack – the greatest threat that they were likely to provide. She had proven who was dominant and had come out victorious.

Slowly and deliberately Alexi moved her hands onto her hips, glaring down into the eyes of Edward, nudging his face ever so slightly with her breasts.

“Let’s talk about some of the new rules of the house”

TO BE CONTINUED

THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET – 4

It was now Monday night. Edward and Alison had fallen asleep far earlier than expected. I guess shrinking more than a foot in height takes its toll, Alexi reasoned, still not believing what she was about to do.

Under the assumption that neither would stop shrinking for another few days, Alexi reasoned that she no longer had a reason to fear either of them. She had withstood what would surely be their greatest attack and though she would have many bruises and cuts to show for it, she was the victor. Besides, time wasn’t exactly on their side…every hour they waited, their power to stand up to her grew smaller and smaller.

With some difficulty, Alexi pulled the fridge out from where it stood, slowly nudging it over top of the entranceway to the sunken basement. That done, the trap door was nearly inaccessible, at least for them it would be.

Finished, she sat down on one of the kitchen chairs, exhausted. Her head still throbbed from the earlier encounter with the pair and she suspected that it would be even worse when she woke up.

“You weren’t serious, were you?” came a voice from behind Alexi.

She turned to see Alison standing before her, looking more subservient than before, like she was beginning to fear Alexi.

“Serious about what?”

“About the shrinking. About h-how much we’re-we’re going to get even smaller…”

“What made you think I wasn’t serious?”

Alison stared at Alexi fearfully while Edward looked to where the fridge had been pushed and began to size it up. I could push that out of the way, he thought. I’m still strong enough. He was already planning how he would wait until Alexi was asleep and then budge it out of the way. He’d get downstairs and reverse this process. It’d be so much easier now, he thought, now that he knew what she’d done. It had never donned on him that the controls had been set to shrink. It wouldn’t be hard to reverse at all…

A grin had surfaced on Alexi’s face.

“Actually, I’ve got a deal that you two may be interested in”

Both of them looked up at her, eagerly, Edward thinking that if he went along with her, that he could eventually turn the tables. She’d be sorry.

“I’ll agree to stop the process…to stop your shrinking…even reverse it…”

Edward and Alison looked stunned.

”You could do that?”

Alexi smiled, “Yup. Pretty easily, actually”

“I’ll reverse the process this Friday. No strings attached.”

Edward folded his arms, “Provided?”

Alexi’s face turned a light coat of red as the next words came out, somewhat awkwardly.

“Provided that I’m allowed to boss you two around from now until then. You’d have to do whatever I say”

Alexi found herself enjoying the stunned look on their faces.

“Essentially, it’ll be no different from how it was, except it’ll be me who gives the orders”

“You?” Alison croaked, not believing that this sweet, innocent girl had so successfully turned the tables on them.

“Yes, me. In fact, until Friday…we’ll pretend that this is my house…and that you two are staying here as my guests”

Edward could no longer hide his growing anger.

“That’s absurd, he said, you’ve flipped your lid you little brat!”

Alexi stood from her squatted position, unaware until she straightened her legs, that the pair of them appeared even smaller than hours earlier.

“Little brat?” she asked, raising her eyebrows at her Uncle.

Both of them fidgeted and exchanged looks. Edward had no plans to do anything Alexi asked, but he needed to buy time.

“Fine, but do we have your word that on Friday, you’ll do what you say?”

Alexi nodded, happy that they’d made the right decision.

“You have my word”

It made her feel funny at first, bossing them around, but whenever she felt the sting of her numerous bruises, her charity seemed to disappear.

* * *

The ever-dwindling pair made their way into the kitchen the following morning. Alexi was already seated at the table, wearing tattered jeans and a very old, thin t-shirt that didn’t quite extend to cover her belly. Her bare feet were propped up on a chair opposite her, something she’d been told not to do in their house.

“Morning, she said to them, how are you feeling?”

Neither of them replied, but by the disgusted, hateful looks on their faces, it was easy to tell that neither of them relished what was to come.

“Ready to start listening to the new boss?”

Alexi withdrew her feet from the chair and then stood, walking towards Edward.

“Come closer, please”

Reluctantly, he did, not wanting her to glower over her height advantage, but knowing full well that she would anyway.

“I knew it, Alexi beamed, you’re even shorter than yesterday, would you look at that?”

Edward looked up at her, meditating on the face that he would later make suffer. Her gloating wouldn’t last for long, he thought to himself, quietly planning his revenge as he looked up at her.

“Soon you’ll get even smaller!” she rang.

Edward’s present height now put him in the position of having to look up to her bosom – to look up to actually see her breasts. This wouldn’t have been so bad if it weren’t for the huge smile on her face.

“This is how we’re going to start everyday from now on – by measuring you two in comparison to me”

“Everyday until Friday is what you mean, right?” countered Alison.

Alexi looked over to her, still smiling, “Friday?”

“Yes, Friday, Alison continued, that’s when you promised that you’d reverse this ridiculousness”

Alexi began towards Alison, “Oh, yes. How can I forget about Friday? I did promise, didn’t I?” She stopped just shy of coming into physical contact with Alison, obviously enjoying how it felt when they were stacked up against her. Alison was even shorter than her husband, putting her face just inches above her navel, a fact that produced considerable laughter from Alexi.

Alison stared at Alexi’s partially bare midriff, watching it move and shake along with her laughter.

“So, she said, just to recap, Edward is just shorter than my breasts and you, she said, happily pointing down to Alison, will be the same height as my belly button by…what? The end of today?”

Alison shrugged.

“Wow, Alexi said, this is just great don’t you think?”

Alison looked to her husband, as if to say, no, it’s not that great.

“Let’s start breakfast, Alexi announced, I’m going to read the paper while you two cook for me, okay?”

“For you? We’re hungry too, dear” said Alison.

“I’m sure you are, Alexi replied sitting back down at the table and unfolding the paper, but I’m bigger and need more to eat than you two”. Alexi inflated her stomach as big as she could (which wasn’t very big at all) and began to rub it.

She laughed again, opened the paper and propped her bare feet onto the chair opposite her.

Edward and Alison began to prepare breakfast for the three of them while Alexi combed through the paper, cursing over the lack of classifieds. In ten minutes or so, everything had been prepared. Edward himself brought her plate to the table and set it down next to her. Alexi lowered the newspaper and looked at Edward and Alison, how they had just cooked for her…for HER…this could get to be a routine around here, she thought.

“This is so terrific. I love having my own slaves!”

Edward went red in the face. “Slaves!?! he shouted, that’s going too far! Slaves we are not!”

Alison touched Edward’s shoulder, as if to caution him against doing something that he may very well regret.

“You big brat! he continued, get your big foot off the chair so that my wife and I can sit down and do it this instant!”

Alexi stared at Edward and then looked over to her bare feet, which currently occupied one of their chairs.

“But my feet are resting on that chair, she said calmly, you want me to be comfortable, don’t you?”

Edward slapped at her feet, pushing them off the chair.

“I don’t give a @!#$ if you’re comfortable!”

Edward was furious and looked seconds away from another attack. Alexi looked at him, wondering if she would have to once again prove her dominance. To be truthful, she didn’t savor the idea, since she was still in pain from the night before, but if he were challenging her, she’d be the first to rise to the occasion.

Slowly, Alexi put down her fork and pushed her plate aside.

“Edward, she said, do you want me to kick your ass?”

Edward was seeing stars he was so angry. The audacity! This girl that he’d opened his home to was now trying to control his life. He wouldn’t stand for it.

His hand shot out towards her, but somehow Alexi grabbed it between both of her own, stopping the momentum in mid-swing. The two stared at one another for a moment before Alexi gently enclosed his hand within hers, as if to simulate a handshake. So overtaken with surprise was Edward, that he actually went along with it, watching curiously as she began to pump his hand.

“I am a brat, you’re right”, she said, continuing to shake his hand and to stare him in the eyes.

“But as long as I’m bigger than you…”

Her grip began to tighten.

“…you’re going to listen to me”

Edward began to squirm, trying to pull his hand away from hers. When that didn’t work, he pulled with his other hand.

Alexi continued to stare at him in the eyes, her face as calm as could be.

Edward gasped as her grip continued to tighten. His free hand slapped at hers, scratched at it, but it would not loosen. His face turned to a look of horror as he looked up and saw her perfectly calm face, one that suggested she wasn’t even exerting herself.

“Please, please stop, he gasped, I’ll do whatever you say”

Alexi continued with her grip, tightening it even further while the corner of her mouth broke into a very slight smile.

“You’ll do what I ask?”

Edward nodded quickly and Alexi finally she let go. He fell onto his butt, looking at his hand, as if he expected it to have broken (which it hadn’t). He was stunned, but also, partially grateful that she hadn’t retaliated more aggressively given her current strength.

“Ready to begin?”, Alexi asked, calm as ever.

Edward nodded again.

“Good, she said, sounding even more confident than before, now crawl under the table, take my foot and gently put it back onto your old chair where it was”

Edward instantly got to his knees and motioned forward, his head easily fitting beneath the table. Carefully, and like he was dealing with a time bomb, lifted her foot off the floor, slowly. Alexi allowed her knee to extend, making the process easy for him. Slowly, he lowered her foot onto the chair.

“Now the other one”, came her voice from above.

Edward looked at his wife, who he could still see from his position underneath the table. She nodded, urging him to do what Alexi said, not wanting to rouse her anger any further.

Edward lowered his head beneath her propped up calf and placed his hands on her second bare foot, gently raising it onto the chair.

After both of her feet rested comfortably on his chair, Edward, still on hands and knees, began to back out from underneath the table. Not until he had partially emerged did Alexi’s voice sound yet again.

“What about a kiss?” she said.

Edward stopped and craned his head up to where Alexi was seated. He wasn’t sure what she meant.

“A kiss?”

Alexi’s brow furrowed.

“For my feet, she announced, you should kiss each of them, I think”

Edward hesitated, still feeling the pain in his right hand from earlier. He wanted to revolt, to rebel, but his better sense of judgment told him not to. Not yet.

On his hands and knees, he ventured forward, gently pecking the sole of her left foot.

The moment he had done so, her right foot began to sway, as if it were waving at him.

“How about this one?”

Edward kissed the side of her right foot.

“No, she said, the bottom. Kiss the bottom”

Edward did, feeling smaller than he’d ever felt before. He looked up and could see a portion of Alexi’s face from over the rim of the table. She was unaware that he could see her, but he could. Her teeth were exposed in a large grin.

“You can get up now” she said.

Edward did, standing and then lowering his face in shame. Alexi gestured to her plate of food.

“Did you make enough for yourself?”

Edward nodded. They had.

“Good. Come sit down and we can eat”

TO BE CONTINUED

THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET – 5

Tuesday came and went, ending much how it began, with Alexi requesting tasks from Edward and Alison that she couldn’t (or didn’t want) to do. After eating together, Alexi had finished reading the paper before going out to the back deck to get some sun. Before she knew it, she had fallen asleep, completely exhausted from the night before. Her body needed to heal, she knew that, but at the same time, the fear she once had of the pair of them had completely vanished. She was far stronger than either of them (or even combined for that matter), she was faster too.

Inside the house, Edward, seeing that Alexi looked to be dozing, threw his weight into the fridge, trying with every ounce of his strength to move it so that it wouldn’t block his path to the basement trap door. Even enlisting Alison’s help didn’t aid his cause. Sure, they managed to budge it just over an inch or so, but that was it. Nowhere near the amount they would need. Edward cast his glance outside to the sleeping Alexi, basking, completely unaware in the sun. How he hated her…

He noted with a certain degree of dread that Alexi seemed to be waking up. About time, he thought, been asleep out there for over an hour. He watched as she stretched her naked arms into the air then her legs, maximizing their length as she yawned and then slowly sat up.

“I could use a drink of water” Alexi called out, knowing somehow that they would be within earshot.

Alison looked to her husband. “It’s just for two more days”, she said, motioning to the sink and filling the glass.

That night, liberties that they had taken for granted for so long, such as sleeping in their own bed, were taken from them as Alexi announced that she would now be sleeping in their room. Just the same, she still managed to fall asleep on the couch with the television blaring just a few feet away, loud enough to prevent Alison and Edward from falling asleep.

* * *

Wednesday morning - Alexi lay on the large queen size bed and slowly opened her eyes. She lay there for a moment, retracing the events of the past few days as she rubbed her eyes and yawned. A grin grew on her face as she stretched her limbs. These truly were the lazy, hazy days of summer. She could have whatever she wanted and didn’t have to lift a finger.

At first, it had been felt really weird bossing them around. After all, they were her Aunt and Uncle. But the more she did it, the more surprised she was at how easy it was. Something else was happening too. It was at the back of her mind, but Alexi was conscious of it just the same. The smaller they got, the less they seemed to matter. Of course they were still people, yadda, yadda, but it was almost like seeing them get smaller made it easier to take control – as if their size reflected how important their cares and needs (or in their case unimportant) now seemed to her.

Alexi’s feet dropped from the bed to the floor. Time for her favorite part of the last few days – seeing them and how much they had changed over night.

* * *

It had been a proverbial long night with neither Edward nor Alison getting much sleep. The process of awakening to a body that you once knew, a body you trusted…only to find that it was smaller than you last remembered it, was a horrifying one. Without the knowledge that it was all coming to an end in just two more days, they would have begun to go out of their minds.

The sound of bare feet slapping on the kitchen floor could be heard.

“Come out here you two” Alexi’s voice called out.

The pair climbed from bed, dragging the sheets with them to cover their nakedness. When they emerged, dreary eyed, into the kitchen, they were met with Alexi’s laughter that bellowed through the room.

“Oh…my…gosh…she said, the sound of her feet approaching them, look at you two. You’re even smaller!”

The pair looked up to the sound of Alexi’s voice to see her approach. Alexi hadn’t changed since getting up and was wearing a pair of her Uncle’s boxer shorts and a tank top with no trace of a bra underneath. Her breasts jiggled freely underneath the thin fabric.

“Let’s measure you again, she said, approaching Alison, your turn to go first”

Alexi took a step closer to her, accidentally nudging Alison’s face with her partially exposed tummy.

“You have to stand up next to me, really, really close”, came Alexi’s voice.

Alison did, approaching her, looking directly at her navel. My gosh, she thought, I’m the height of her navel!

Above her, Alexi was obviously thinking the same thing.

“Looks like I was right. You’re only as tall as my belly button”

Alexi advanced even closer so that her belly nuzzled up against Alison’s face. Her stomach felt warm and soft against her skin.

“See if your nose can fit inside my navel”, she rang.

Alison looked way up, past her breasts, to find Alexi’s face.

“You’re not serious”, she said.

“I am, actually. Do it”

Alison lowered her face and inched forward ever so slightly so that her nose lined up with Alexi’s large navel. Leaning forward allowed the navel to swallow her nose, engulfing it and hiding it from sight. Faint traces of body lotion wafted into Alison’s nose from Alexi’s soft skin. Her vast and taut stomach shook with laughter as it must of tickled. After a moment of having Alison’s nose buried within her navel, Alexi took a step backwards.

“And how about little Ed here?”

Edward looked up at Alexi and could see from her expression that all hesitation had vanished from her face. The small amounts of awkwardness she seemed to have up until this point, the embarrassing nature of what she was asking them to do, the trouble she had initially had with ordering them around – all of that was gone.

“Look up at me, Ed”

Edward did. Since when did she call me Ed?

“You too. Wow, you really shrunk over night, didn’t you?”

Edward stood just a fraction taller than his wife, but still, essentially, was as tall as her navel, a fact that seemed to delight Alexi.

“Wonder what it’ll be like in a week? You two’ll be sock lint”

Edward glared at her. How he wanted to lash out…

“Only until Friday” he said as calmly as he could.

Alexi exhaled and raised her hands so that they rested on her hips. She then nudged his face with her belly.

“What’s that?”

“It’s only until Friday, that’s what you said to us. You promised”

Alexi continued to look down at him and then without taking her hands from her hips, took a baby step forward, nudging him back with her stomach.

“That’s right, I did say that, didn’t I?”

Edward took a step back, but managed to avoid stumbling and stay on his feet.

Alexi advanced further, her stomach nudging him a third time.

“Well, we just have two days then, don’t we?” she said down to him.

Edward took another step back and felt the wall behind him. Alexi advanced yet again, this time stepping even closer than she had with Alison, in effect, forcing Edward’s back against the wall, pinned between it and her massive partially bare midriff.

“Lots of fun to be had between now and then, right?”

* * *

It was now late afternoon and Edward stood in front of a mirror that had been used to gauge his height loss over the past few days. Only problem was, he was now too short to see himself in it. Instead, Edward stared at the wall, his head tilted up slightly, as if wondering whether he would ever be tall enough to see his own reflection. If he had, he would see a frightened face with more than a trace of growing anger. Anger at Alexi. Anger at her promises and at her treatment of him and his wife. Just this morning, he’d been able to see the tip of his head in the tall mirror, but that was no longer the case.

Having collected his thoughts, Edward turned towards the living room, where he could hear the trails of a conversation. Edward walked through the kitchen, marveling at how everything had changed – even the chairs were too tall to sit on now, unless he boosted himself onto the edge. The food, the water, all of it was now out of reach. They were becoming more and more dependant on that giant brat.

Edward made his way from the kitchen round the corner into the living room, pushing the leaves of a house plant (one that had dangled beneath his knees just weeks ago) from his path. Getting closer, he could Alexi reclining on the couch, feet extended. Alexi was quick to notice him.

“Look who’s here”, Alexi exclaimed, her voice sounding very relaxed.

Edward came closer to the couch only to see his wife seated at the opposite end, tending to one of Alexi’s bare feet that was propped up onto her small lap, dwarfing it in comparison. Alexi looked down the length of the couch to the ever-diminutive Alison, smiling at the size of her foot in comparison to her Aunt.

“Do the toes again, okay?”

Alison nodded and frantically began to kneed Alexi’s large toes with her much smaller, nimble fingers. Alexi groaned with pleasure and then smiled dreamily at Edward.

“She’s an amazing masseuse”

Alexi’s head fell back onto the arm of the couch as the foot rub was obviously sending her to a deep state of relaxation.

“That’s perfect. Keep doing that”, said Alexi, opening her eyes just a peep to see Edward’s angry expression. Despite feeling numb with relaxation, Alexi managed a bit of a grin.

“Go run a bath for me”, please, she said to him blankly, a really hot one”

Edward paused, wondering if he should listen to her or not. His eyes fell onto his wife, who looked exhausted with the giant bare foot on her lap. Alexi’s toes flexed and spread apart as she stretched out her legs, yawning heavily and then looking briefly to Edward.

“The bath?”

Edward hurried off.

* * *

This was too much.

It was all Alexi could do to keep herself from passing out from relaxation, as she lay naked in the steamy bath water. Her eyes were so heavy she’d given up trying to keep them open.

Outside of the bathroom, Edward talked to his wife.

“This can’t go on”

Alison was silent.

“I’ve got a good mind to take a knife and—“

“It wouldn’t help, Alison finally piped up, and she’s too strong. She’d overpower you”

Edward fell silent. She was right.

Alison looked at him and then at herself.

“We’ve shrunk. Even from this morning”

Edward nodded grimly.

“By this time tomorrow, she’ll be carrying us around like dolls”

“Yes, but Friday…”

“Do you think she’ll keep to her word?”

Edward looked to his wife, unsure.

Splashing sounds were heard from the other side of the door. Both Edward and Alison flinched, ready for anything.

Mild cursing from the other side of the door was heard.

“Alison. Come in here”

Alison, with fear in her eyes, pushed the door open, only to find Alexi standing in the bath water, dripping wet and buck-naked.

“There aren’t any towels”

Alison looked around, trying to see through the steamy air.

“I’ll take the one you’re wearing”

Alison looked down to the towel that had been covering her own nakedness since lunchtime.

Quickly and without question, Alison removed the towel from her body, motioned forward and held it up as high as she could, as if to attract Alexi’s attention.

“No, no, her voice traveled down, it should go on the floor for my feet”

Alison quickly lay the towel down and then took a step back. She couldn’t help but stare in wonderment at Alexi’s body through the steam. She looked like an Amazon goddess, all gleaming and clean. Her left leg lifted from the water and slowly came to the floor, stepping down onto the towel like distinguished royalty. Then, as she braced her arms against the wall, her right leg emerged from the water as well, bringing her naked pelvic area into close quarters with Alison’s astonished face. Alexi looked down through the steamy air to see Alison gawking up at her. Indeed, her tiny look of awe sent shivers through Alexi’s spine. She couldn’t help but smile down at her, fantasizing that this wee woman was one of her many subjects and that she was a Queen.

* * *

A few moments later, Alexi emerged from the bathroom, towel around her midsection and waist. By the looks of it, she hadn’t taken the time to properly dry herself. Edward was quick to take notice.

“You’re dripping water all over the floor,” he said without thinking.

Alexi stopped and looked at him.

“Am I?”

Alexi looked back to the puddle forming behind her as the water dripped from her long wet hair. In an instant, she untucked her towel, casually letting it drop to the floor, smiling, as she stood tall, wearing only a pair of skimpy red panties.

Edward was stunned.

There she stood, bare breasted, without a care in the world.

“You can use that to mop it up with, she said smiling down at them, any problems with that?”

Alison shook her head as if to say no, but Edward was about to get agitated.

“You can’t walk around this house like that. You-You-You’re practically naked!”

Alexi looked down to her pert breasts, “You wanted to clean up the water, didn’t you?”

Edward was red in the face.

“This house has rules - - you know that, he spat, barely able to form a sentence, now go put some clothes on”

Alexi was quite amused from being bossed around by this little man. She took a step towards him and was delighted to see him instantly take a step back.

“I’m faster than you, remember?”

Once next to him, Alexi reached down and pulled down her panties, kicking them off from her bare feet and then squatting down to his eye level from her massive height.

“Anything else you’d like to discuss?”

Edward swallowed nervously, looking into Alexi’s eyes. Drops of water continued to drip down her face from her wet hair.

“We--We have rules, he stammered, you can’t walk around naked”

Alexi’s teeth displayed themselves as her lips parted into a revealing grin.

“I can do whatever I want, remember?”

With that, she stood to her full height, her naked crotch rising into view as it was now close to his same height. It took effort, but Edward managed to pull his eyes from it, raising his head into the air in order to see what she was doing.

Red was what he saw.

Followed by laughing.

She was fitting her panties onto his face.

Edward’s arms shot up to stop her, but to little effect. The red fabric of her underwear was firmly pulled over his eyes, nose and mouth. He couldn’t help but smell her scent.

Edward’s next words were muffled from underneath the fabric of her panties.

“You can do whatever you want…but only for one more day after today!”

Still smiling, Alexi reached down and patted him on the head, turning to leave.

“Yeah. One more day”

Alexi stooped to pick up the other towel then began up to her bedroom, her tall legs and her near perfect ass swaying through the room, her breasts jiggling as she eventually disappeared up the stairs.

Less than ten minutes later and just prior to drifting off into a very deep, luxurious sleep, Alexi masturbated at the thought of what she had just done.

TO BE CONTINUED

THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET – 6

“You know, there’s something very wrong with this plan of hers…”

Alison sat up from the floor where she’d been sitting and looked at her husband.

“What’s that?”

“Well, Edward commenced, she says that as of tomorrow, she’ll be returning us to our normal sizes, right?”

Alison nodded.

“Well first off, if she does it, it’ll be a gradual process. As gradual as the two of us are shrinking right now…”

He paused, beginning to pace. Alison loved that side of her husband. Loved it when he got an idea. It usually meant he wasn’t going to let give up.

“So, he continued, we’re looking at a week, if not more, for us to get back to normal height, correct?”

She nodded again.

“So you see my point…?”

“Afraid not, no”, she said.

Edward’s eyes had lit up, as if his suspicions had been confirmed.

“Look at what she’s done to us…to me, mostly. She’s abused us, she’s come fairly close to injuring me, belittling you…what’s next? What’s she planning on doing when we’re back to normal?”

The expectant look on Alison’s face sank a little.

“You don’t think she’ll keep her word, do you?”

Edward continued to pace. “No, how could she? She’s crossed the line and she knows it. What she’s done to us isn’t something we can just write off and laugh about in a few months, she’s…she’s attacked us. There’s no going back”

“So, what? You don’t think she’ll do it. What DO you think she’ll do”

Edward’s face became quite grim.

“I’m not sure, but I know that she can’t afford us getting out of here, can she?”

This was a sobering thought, one that was interrupted by the sound of the front door opening. It was Alexi they ventured, since she had been missing upon their getting up from bed.

Alison looked to Edward.

“Did she take our car?”

Edward looked back at his wife, “She must have”

“Morning, Alexi called out from the living room, anybody home?”

Neither of them answered her, but seeing that it was their house, they ventured out into the living room to see where she had gone.

Alexi was loading groceries in the front door. Lots of them. Alison counted a dozen full bags at least. Liquor too. A couple of cases of beer and a few bottles of wine.

They stared at her while Alexi continued to load them into the house. Soon she closed the door behind her. Once she had, she turned to bolt the door shut. Given what they had just spoken about, the sound of the bolt latching into place sent a shiver up Edward and Alison’s spine.

“Thought we needed more food around here”, Alexi said, marching past them and carrying the first of many loads into the kitchen. As she passed them by, Alison stared upwards, noticing quickly that Alexi’s size made her seem more and more like an abominable force. There had been the first few days where she’d merely appeared like a gawky overgrown girl – an outcast that would forever be chastised about her height. The next few days, however, left them with a different perspective: her colossal proportions were becoming more and more frightening, due not only to Alexi’s mammoth body size, but also to her own inability to stop her. Once again Alison had to remind herself that it was them who were shrinking…the world was exactly how it always had been. It was they who were different. It was they who were hostages in their own home.

And there was very little they could do about it.

Alison began to cross into the kitchen, but was quickly met with the denim pillars that were Alexi’s legs. Both ladies stumbled to avoid collision but Alison bumped her head on a portion of Alexi’s thigh, rebounding off of it and almost falling down backwards. Alexi’s hand reached down from above and touched the top of Alison’s head, patting it gently as she would have done to a child.

“Careful there” her voice sounded before her long legs carried her back across the room.

Alison stared at Alexi as her knees bent and her long arms wrapped around bags of groceries, easily hoisting them into air. This normal girl, she thought to herself, has become a monster.

Edward was now walking towards the bags of groceries while remaining careful to stay out of Alexi’s path. He stared at the bottles of wine, wondering.

“Where did you get the money for all of this?” he stammered.

Alexi was on her way back from the kitchen. She stopped just shy of where he stood and grinned down at the ever tiny Edward. He must have shrunk again Edward thought, as Alexi loomed over him, seeming bigger than ever.

“Thought you’d never ask” she said and turned so that her jean covered ass faced directly towards him.

Edward stared up at her rear end, embarrassed that she would present it to him in this disrespectful way. The sight of it aroused fear in Edward as he realized how its elephantine size (proportionately speaking) could so easily incapacitate him if she so desired.

“Reach into my back pocket” her voice said.

Edward stared at her pockets and at her ass, not believing that he could even reach that high.

“Can’t reach? My mistake”.

Alexi bent her knees, which lowered her ass before his face, even closer now. His nose could almost touch the denim.

“Go ahead. Right pocket”

Fearfully, Edward stood on his toes and reached up to the top of her pocket. Since Alexi stood in a bit of a squat, her jeans were tighter than normal, making it difficult to reach his hand inside the pocket, but after a bit of struggling, he successfully inserted his hand into the denim enclosure. He felt something.

“Bingo, she said, now pull it out”

Edward fought to maintain circulation in his arm that was now trapped inside the pocket of her tight fitting jeans. Alexi looked over her shoulder and saw how ridiculous Edward looked. A grin grew on her face as she straightened her legs and stood up straight, pulling Edward off the ground with his hand still trapped inside her pocket.

Edward’s body flailed against the back of her bum and legs, groping awkwardly, and hating every second of this indignity. Alexi laughed at him.

“Got it?”

“Yes, I think so”

Alexi stooped down so that Edward’s feet could once again touch the ground. After a moment of prying, he managed to pull his arm from her pocket and found himself staring at something that looked rather familiar.

His credit card.

Alexi giggled from above.

“Thanks for the food incidentally. It’ll go a long way”

Edward stooped to pick up the card and then realized what a futile gesture this was, as he figured she’d take it from him. No sooner had this thought crossed his mind than Alexi squatted down next to him and gently pried his hand away from him, taking the card and then standing to her full height.

“Now let’s have some lunch”

* * *

At four o’clock in the afternoon, Alexi, having changed into jean shorts and a white undershirt, had flopped down onto the couch, intent on relaxing for a few minutes. She had the TV turned up fairly loudly and had pulled off her socks, resting her bare feet on the coffee table, something she’d been told not to do just weeks earlier.

Alison and Edward were in the kitchen and couldn’t help but notice how Alexi had positioned a chair in front of the back door, stacking the top of it with dry goods, as if to prevent them from escaping. Still, it may have been an accident or a coincidence. That’s what Alison told herself anyway – anything to keep her mind from settling on the unsavory truth that positioned her as a prisoner.

“Room service!” Alexi’s voice called overtop of the loud television.

Alison began towards her, but Edward stopped his wife by the arm. She looked back at him.

“I have to go. She’ll get mad otherwise”

“So let her get mad, he said, let the brat get as mad as she likes”

They stared at one another.

“Room service!” her voice called again, laughing at her own audacity.

Alison entered the room, followed by Edward. Alexi had opened a bottle of wine and by the looks of it, was on her third of fourth glass.

“Would you like some? she asked. After all, you did pay for it”

They both shook their heads.

Alexi looked to her near empty wine glass.

“Pour me one more, will you?”

Alison moved to do so, carefully lifting the wine bottle and surprising herself with how heavy it felt. Even half full, it wasn’t something she could hold as effortlessly as she had hoped. Once finished, she carefully lifted the glass and brought it towards Alexi who was slouched over on the couch, eyes darting between the TV screen and the two of them.

Alexi smiled as she took the glass from Alison’s outstretched arms. After gulping down half of the glass, Alexi took her feet off the coffee table and leaned forwards, resting her chin on her hands.

“You know, I was thinking…”

Her eyes looked around the room, glazed over slightly from the wine.

“I really like this place”

“Of course you do, Alison said, we like it too. That’s why we had it built for us”

Alexi’s eyes, heavily under the influence of alcohol now, fluttered onto Alison.

“I like you, she said. I like how small you are and you know what?”

Alison looked at this inebriated girl.

“What?” she asked.

“I especially like that you’ll do whatever I say”

Alison swallowed. Her mouth was suddenly drying up.

Alexi leaned forwards.

“Won’t you?”

Alison nodded.

“Say it for me”

Alison tried to swallow.

“I’ll do whatever you say…”

Alexi burst into laughter, delighted at this small woman saying this to her.

Once again her eyes began to look around the room.

“But this house…I really, really do like it…”

“Yes, dear, Alison timidly said from below, you mentioned that…”

“Did I?”

Alison nodded.

“Did I mention that I want this house?”

Edward and Alison were silent.

“You want this house?”

“Yes, she said. I want it for me. For my own. I want it to be mine”

Edward took a (small) step forward.

“Well, it’s ours. You can’t have it”

Alison shot him a look, as if to say, “she’s drunk, just humour her”

Alexi fought to keep her eyes open and then swallowed what was left in her glass.

“Can’t I?”

“No, you can’t, he began. We had a deal. You said you’d reverse this on Friday! Well guess what? That’s less than five hours from now. So enjoy your little fantasy here, get as drunk as you bloody well like, but only for five more hours! Hear me? Five? ‘Cause after that, you’re out of here!!!”

Alexi doubled forward, her head sinking below her knees. It held there for the longest time as she expelled every ounce of breath from her lungs before she inhaled and let out one of the loudest laughs Edward had ever heard. Her entire body seemed to be moving involuntarily as she lunged forwards and back with laughter. Her hand knocked over the wine glass and her right foot nudged the table as it extended, flexing into the air while she reeled.

When she finally finished, her eyes were watering. That’s how hard she had laughed. Edward was steaming mad, so mad that he didn’t count on her arms suddenly reaching forwards and grabbing him, pulling him towards her with no real degree of effort on her part.

Once he was close and completely within her drunken clutches, she held him close to her face, spraying him with bits of saliva as her words shot out, interspersed with remnants of her mischievous laughter. Her breath smelled strongly of liquor.

“Did you actually think I was changing you back? You believed me?”

Edward just stared at her.

“You think I’d give this up? You two catering to my every whim? Huh? My own little playthings?”

She looked to Alison who looked close to tears.

“Don’t cry, little one, she said, I’ll always have a soft spot for you, now come here”

Alison feared the worse, but found herself doing exactly what Alexi commanded.

Alexi hoisted Alison onto her knee, so that they each sat, perched on one of her legs. She bounced them up and down a bit.

“There you go, horseys. Fun, huh?”

Edward could do nothing. Neither could his wife.

“Think this is good?, Alexi’s voice sounded from behind them, wait until you’re even smaller”

Alexi’s barefoot extended across the floor and with her toes; she grabbed one of her tennis shoes.

“Maybe you’ll be sleeping in here after all!”

TO BE CONTINUED

THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET - 7

It was seven am.

Alexi lay sprawled on the couch in a contorted position typical of someone in his or her early twenties. Beside her, on the table, were the emptied bottle of wine and two equally empty bottles of beer. Still in her jean shorts and undershirt, which had slid upwards, revealing her stomach, Alexi looked not unlike any other sleeping woman in her early twenties. It was only when Edward and Alison neared her sleeping form, that her size, in contrast to theirs, became spectacular.

Edward gaped at Alexi’s slumbering body, wondering as he did every hour, how this had ever happened. What happened to this girl? How had she become so cruel? Better question: how was it that he was now just slightly taller than her knees? Maybe smaller? He couldn’t tell since Alexi was lying down.

“She’s passed out?” Alison asked her husband.

“Looks like it”, he ventured, clapping his hands together loudly. The sound made only a fraction of the noise it would have if he were at his full size, but the fact that Alexi didn’t bat an eye led him to believe that she truly was out for the count.

“I don’t think she’ll be awake for a while”

“Should we try and leave? Escape?”

Edward looked at his wife, almost ready to agree with her. Inside, he knew that was the right thing to do. To leave. To run away and never have to deal with this overgrown brat again, but looking at her, sprawled the way she was and then thinking to the numerous humiliations he had endured the night before, brought him back to thoughts of revenge.

“I think we should turn the tables”

“What?”

“This is our last chance, he said, his eyes wide with excitement, I mean look at her, she’s helpless”

Alison cast her glance to the comparatively huge woman on their couch, watching as her chest rose and fell with her every breath.

“What do you have in mind?”

* * *

Within 20 seconds, Edward had formulated an idea. It was a bit on the cruel side, but then again, drastic times call for drastic measures.

Numerous extension cords had been pulled from every closet and every corner of the house that their small size would allow. All in all, they had five of them, ranging in length. Alison stood back while Edward did the dirty work, watching with a general hesitance as a voice deep down in her stomach told her that they may very well regret doing this.

Edward was quick. He tied Alexi’s hands first, as tight as he dared. But as he continued, he came to realize just how ‘passed out’ this girl actually was. She didn’t even flinch when he pulled one of the cords as tightly as he could, securing her wrists together and then letting them fall onto her stomach.

Next came her legs.

Edward looked to his wife who clearly did not want to participate.

“You don’t want to help?” he asked, sliding the cord under one of her ankles.

Alison shook her head.

“I’m afraid”

Edward looked back at her.

“Of what exactly? She’s out cold, honey”

“I’m afraid that…”

“What? Tell me”

“I’m afraid that…we’ll both regret doing this. Honey she’s sooo big. What if she gets angry again?”

Edward looked back to the passed out woman on his couch. It never failed. Each time his eyes fell on this lovely young girl, he had a hard time believing that she had been capable of what she’d done. Must’ve gone to her head was all that he could rationalize to himself. Her size in relation to theirs – it had effected her and not for the better.

Edward fed the extension cord under Alexi’s behemothic left leg, which extended off the couch and down onto the floor. He knelt besides her dangling leg, his small head close to her taut but enormous thigh. He readied himself to lift what he assumed would be a heavy load.

“Tighten your stomach," Alison said, "you’re less likely to strain your back”

Edward cast one last glance at his wife, partially rolling his eyes at her.

With both hands clasped underneath her mid calf, he rose from his squat and managed to lift Alexi’s limp leg off the ground with only a bit of difficulty. Once it was on the couch, he braced himself against it for a moment in order to catch his breath. Alexi’s over-sized toes were mere inches from his face. After a brief second he shoved her foot towards her other so that both of Alexi’s long legs (each one longer that he was tall) extended next to one another.

Edward stood up straight, breathing heavily.

“See? Not so tough”

Next he proceeded to wrap her bare feet with the extension cord. The same feet he’d been forced to kiss mere days ago. Imagine that, he thought, how utterly absurd. He hoped that once this time in their lives had passed, that no one would ever refer to the events of this week again. It would be too humiliating.

Alexi’s toes flinched instinctively; spreading apart slightly and then relaxing as Edward continued, tied both of them together. She seemed so peaceful, lying out before him, her face seeming so far away from the tips of her toes.

She truly was gargantuan compared to him.

Edward applied the last few pulls, tightly securing the cords around her feet and then standing back, as if to admire his handiwork. He looked to his wife but instead of echoing a reflection of his own reassurance, her face looked more nervous than ever.

“What are you going to do when she wakes up?”

Edward stood, hands on hips.

“Well, I’d say there’s going to be some pretty intense negotiation”

* * *

A dry gagging reflex deep in her throat is what finally woke Alexi. She smacked her lips several times before bothering to open her eyes.

A burning sensation was nearby. It took her a moment to trace it to its source, but it seemed to be coming from her wrists and from her ankles. As she slowly regained her senses, Alexi began to realize that the burning sensation was increasing.

That’s when she opened her eyes.

Her eyes fell on the messy table top, the empty bottles of wine and then down the length of her own body.

She was tied up.

“Not funny” she murmured, far too quietly to alert either Edward or Alison who were in the kitchen.

She swallowed, trying to wet the inside of her mouth with saliva.

“I said not funny!” she spat out loud, wincing at the pain in her hands and feet.

A moment later, Edward ventured into the room, looking very proud of himself.

“Well good morning," he said to her with a brand new tone in his voice. A tone she hadn’t heard from him in over six days now, "have a good snooze?”

Alexi watched him as calmly as she was able, anticipating that when he got close enough, that she would sit up and release herself from this ridiculousness.

“Hope the couch was okay," Edward continued, "I know it’s not as good as our bed that you’ve been sleeping in, is it?”

Alexi grinned to herself. He was getting closer. Any second now, she thought.

Meanwhile, Edward too was grinning, but for entirely different reasons.

“Hope those cords aren’t too tight”

Now was the time…

Alexi leaned upwards, tightening her stomach muscles in order to bend and to release herself from the cords.

Nothing.

She could barely move.

She tried a second time, this time, using more of her strength.

Nothing.

She flexed her legs as hard as she could, pulling her knees up to her chest, but this too was futile.

“Damnit," she yelled, "let me go this second! Untie me!”

Edward grinned at her, approaching closer than he ever would have dared had she not been fastened.

“Sorry, what was that? Let you go? Oh, I don’t think so”

This time Alexi writhed on the couch, growing red in the face from her exertion, trying with every muscle in her body to free herself.

Still no luck.

“You see," Edward began, "walking through the room now, you’re going to stay like that until I can get Alison and I back to normal”

Alexi was furious. How could she have been so stupid?

“Nothing to say? he asked. Oh well, just as well, I suppose”

With that, Edward left the room, leaving Alexi red in the face and very uncomfortable.

* * *

Inside the kitchen, the fridge had been moved. Not by Edward or his wife, but by Alexi. She’d moved it a day ago since she figured that neither of them could make it down in the basement by themselves at their present body size.

She was wrong.

While Edward prepared to descend into the basement, into what he hoped was the new opportunity to reverse his size, Alexi writhed in pain on the couch.

Alison stood by her husband, but could not help but hear the very, very loud thump sound originate from the other room. The thump was followed by a distant whimper.

It was Alexi.

It took all of Alison’s willpower to not stick her head around the corner to see what was going on. She wouldn’t get out, that Alison was sure of. She’d seen her struggle. There was no way.

* * *

Alexi had rolled herself off of the couch, but hadn’t counted on the brief plummet to the floor being nearly as painful as it had been. Presently she lay face down on the hardwood floor. She struggled to roll herself over onto her back, which she managed to do without too much trouble. Her wrists and her ankles were burning more intensely now, due to the tightness of the electrical cords.

How much longer could she stay in this agony?

“You can’t leave me like this!” she shouted into the empty room.

There was no reply to speak of.

* * *

Alison continued to hover in the kitchen, daring herself to peek into the living room. She had heard noises and wanted to know what Alexi had done. Having seen Alexi struggle with her bonds, Alison was certain that she couldn’t escape. With that in mind, she slowly extended her face beyond the border of the two rooms, looking to the couch.

At first, her heart rate quickened, as she couldn’t see Alexi. A mere second later, however, she saw that she had rolled herself off of the couch onto the floor. That explains the THUMP she thought to herself.

Slowly, Alison tiptoed away from the hole that led to the basement, not that she had to tiptoe, given that her current body mass enabled her to move anywhere through the house without making a sound to speak of.

Alexi craned her neck in order to see her.

“Are you going to untie me?”

Alison, still hovering near the kitchen, shook her head.

“Please," Alexi continued, "it burns. My hands and feet…I can hardly feel them…”

Alison ventured into the room several steps, still proceeding cautiously.

“H-He tied you up because of what you did to us…because of what he thought you would keep doing to us,” she stuttered.

Alexi continued to crane her neck towards Alison.

“Aunty," she said (calling her that for the first time in years), "I was drunk, I didn’t mean it, I promise”

Alison had continued through the room and was now standing closer to Alexi. She studied the length of Alexi’s arms and legs, figuring that she had shrunk even more over night. Was she even as tall as Alexi’s knees she wondered?

“I’m sorry, dear," she said, "Edward’s in the basement right now and as soon as he’s got the machine figured out, we’ll be on our way back to normal”

“He can’t reverse it," Alexi said, "I took pieces out from the back of one of the consoles, it’ll never work without them”

“You did what?" Alison asked, looking more worried than ever, "why would you do such a thing?”

“I know, I know. I’m terrible," the enormous girl rang out, "I’ll be good now though, won’t ever, ever cross you again. I promise”

Alison knelt close to Alexi’s face.

“I am sorry, dear," she said again, "but there’s nothing I can do”

A glimmer appeared in Alexi’s eyes.

“Yes there is. You can untie me and I’ll put things right”

Alison shook her head.

“I’m sorry, I don’t believe you”

A small tear leaked from Alexi’s left eye. It wasn’t from sadness, but from pain.

“You’ve got to believe me. I’ll do anything”

Alison gently stroked the hair from Alexi’s face. She noted that her hands looked the size of a newborns’ in comparison to Alexi’s face.

“Don’t cry," she said, "please, I hate seeing you cry”

Alexi continued, tears forming at both eyes now.

“I never should have done the things I did. It’s just so---it’s so---I can’t describe it, but being big is something I’ve always wanted. Since you guys, especially Uncle Edward were kind of mean way back, it just seemed right to -- I’m really sorry…”

Alison looked down into Alexi’s eyes. She was more than three times her own height, making it sometimes difficult to relate to her as the niece she once knew, but just then, just for a second, she remembered.

“My hands, Alexi continued to plead, they hurt so much. If you untie me I’ll apologize and make things right”

Alison continued to touch Alexi’s hair, stroking it gently.

“You’ll put the pieces into the machine again?”

Alexi nodded.

“You won’t stand in our way when we reverse our own size back to normal?”

Alexi shook her head.

There was a long pause and then Alison began to untie Alexi’s hands. She had to struggle to do so since they’d been pulled so tight.

“Does it hurt?” she asked her.

Alexi nodded that it did, but then fell silent as Alison continued, successfully freeing her from her bonds within about 90 seconds or so.

Once her hands were free, Alexi tried to sit up, but couldn’t for a second. Alison tried to help her from behind, propping her up, but her miniscule strength wasn’t near enough to budge even a fraction of Alexi’s weight.

“I’ll be okay, just give me a second”

Alexi lay there for another few seconds and then eventually sat up to undo her feet. Once finished, she carefully and very slowly stood up, bracing herself against the couch in order to do so. Having been tied for so long and having a hangover on top of it wasn’t the best feeling in the world she thought.

Alison watched with trepidation as Alexi stood to her full height, wondering if she had just freed a monster or not. In any case, her suspicions were correct, she had shrunk even further. She didn’t even measure up to Alexi’s knees anymore.

Alexi continued to stand still, allowing the feeling to come back into her arms and legs. She was monstrously huge, Alison thought. What have I done?

Alexi looked down to Alison and then stooped slightly to pat the top of her head, not unlike petting a small dog.

“You did the right thing, Alison”, Alexi said, before starting forward and heading towards the kitchen.

Alison rushed forwards, meaning to catch up to her before she got too far. This was no small feat however, as, even though Alexi was walking, her long legs carried her a further distance, much quicker that Alison herself could move.

“Please," she said, "stop”. Alison managed to catch up to her legs and they had stopped in mid stride. Alexi’s huge feet pivoted as her body turned to face her.

“Don’t hurt him," she begged, collapsing onto Alexi’s huge bare feet, "please! I’ll do anything!”

Alexi looked down from above, her head reeling from the effects of too much liquor. This did not, however, prevent her from noticing that Alison had shrunk since the last time she’d measured up against her. Seeing her down there on the floor, her entire head about the same size as one of her feet, cowering like an animal…it was quite exhilarating.

Alison caressed Alexi’s feet, cupping her hands around her ankles, rubbing them and then gently kissing the top of her feet and toes.

“I’ll do anything," she repeated, "just don’t hurt him”

Alexi was unable to tear her gaze from this diminutive woman sobbing and kissing her feet. It gave her a feeling of intense power. She would stand there a moment longer, continuing to let her Aunt smother his feet with kisses. Maybe she’d even raise one legs into the air, in order that Alison suck on one of her toes? That might be fun, she reasoned.

The one thing she was sure of though, is that when she grew tired of this, that she would enter the kitchen and make sure that Uncle Edward never had the chance to do this to her ever, ever again.

TO BE CONTINUED

THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET - 8

Alexi had waited for Edward to climb up from the basement. She could have gone down to grab him and then haul him up with her, but anticipated the look on his face when he first saw her – that look of astonishment.

Indeed, the baffled look on Edward’s face – a face that seemed smaller than even last night – was well worth the wait. Alexi relished the silence in the room as his eyes darted around, his head tilting from side to side – all of it in astonished reaction to seeing her freed.

Alexi had thought of a number of things to do to him for punishment. There were many to be sure.

What she ended up doing, however, was quite different than her initial plan. It had to be a prolonged punishment, one that lasted a long while – maybe even several days. As tempting as a quick fix would be (breaking his arm, knocking him unconscious, locking him in a closet – all of which she could now do without breaking a sweat), Alexi elected for the prolonged punishment. More satisfying, but also, more effective in deterring her Uncle from trying anything like this ever again…

While Edward stood at the top of the stairs (which had become increasingly difficult for him to even climb) and after Alexi had grinned down at him long enough to strike sufficient fear in his thumping chest, she calmly walked out of the room and then out into the garage. It took her a few minutes, but she eventually found a roll of fishing line that looked like it’d never been used. She took it inside and calmly cut off a three-foot section, walking into the kitchen as she did.

Alison was in there and so was Edward. Both looked up at her nervously. What was she doing? Was she going to tie me up now, too? Edward wondered. No, he reasoned, she was too creative for that. She’d likely try something more diabolical – something more degrading.

And he was right…

Once finished, Alexi bent down and inserted her bare foot through a noose that she had fashioned, tugging on it gently so that it lightly gripped around her anklebone. She then stood to her full height, and looked down at Edward, who leaned against one of the cupboard doors. She dangled the other end of the fishing line from her fingertips.

"I’ll be on one end and…"

Edward swallowed.

"…and you’ll be on the other…"

With that, Alexi began towards him, strolling leisurely across the kitchen floor, knowing full well that even if this small man tried to run, that she could easily catch him. In fact, as this new idea proved, she thought, I can do whatever I want.

Seeing this behemoth young woman approach him didn’t stop Edward from trying to get away. He artfully jumped over the lid that opened to the downstairs basement, landed and began to run. Above him, he heard a chirp of laughter – not a bellow, but a titter, like his pointless attempt of escape was partially amusing the giant woman.

"Like to run, do you?" Alexi said, her hand descending from above and falling on his shoulder, gripping him lightly and halting his run to a dead stop with considerable ease.

"Hey, shrimp," the voice said from above, "look up at me”

Edward paused, and then did what she asked.

There was no doubt; she was bigger than before…scratch that…he had become smaller. In fact, the already loose fitting towel that had been wrapped around his waist was threatening to drop to the floor.

"I was right, she said, you’ve become smaller."

Alexi turned to Alison, beaming.

"You both have!"

She turned back to Edward.

"You tied me up against my will, didn’t you?"

Edward nodded. What else could he do?

"I’m curious, how long did you plan to keep me there?"

Edward didn’t answer.

Alexi’s foot raised into the air, her bare toes nudging him in the solar plexus, slightly winding him.

"Answer," she said again.

Edward clutched his stomach area and looked up at her. Slowly, her poised foot lowered to the floor, then shifted as Alexi widened her stance, putting her hands on her hips.

"I was…I was trying to reverse the process on the machine. I guess I needed…needed to keep you away until I finished"

Alexi’s smile faded.

"You were trying to reverse the process, so that…what? You could be big again?"

Edward nodded.

"Big, like me?"

Edward nodded.

"Big enough to do whatever you want? Whatever your heart desires?"

He nodded again.

"Edward," she said calmly, "look up at me once more, will you?"

He did. She looked sternly down at him.

"Listen very carefully now, okay?"

Edward did, waiting for the words that followed.

"You will never…I repeat never…be as big as me, got it? I’m a giant. Can you say that?"

Edward nodded.

"Let me hear you say it then."

Edward said, "Giant."

"No," she said down to him, "me, I’m a giant. Let me hear you call me a giant”

"You are a giant," he said, sounding ever more nervous.

Alexi was standing directly over him, but then motioned even closer so that he face was practically touching her bare calves. Currently, he stood just halfway as tall as her calf. She doubted, in fact, that he’d even be able to touch her kneecap unless he jumped.

Edward looked absolutely miserable at this point. Would the humiliations ever end? He looked up once more at Alexi, noting that her tight fitting underwear could be seen from underneath her loose fitting boxer shorts. It wasn’t something he wanted to see, in fact he’d have blushed and turned away if not for this agonizing predicament he found himself in.

"And to remind you that I’m a giant," she said, her knees bending towards him, "you’re going to go wherever I go."

Her pelvis crouched and expanded into view as she squatted before him, her mountainous crotch lowering until it hovered just beyond his face, unwavering, as she held him still with one hand while fitting the noose around his neck with the other.

Seeing that he wasn’t trying to flee any longer, both hands began to adjust the noose, tugging it down over his shoulders and the pulling it snug once it reached his waist line. Then she pulled it again until it was even tighter, causing Edward to inhale suddenly to catch his breath.

Alexi stood once more, her patterned boxer shorts rising high as a treetop above him. Once again, her two large feet stood before him, scrunching the floor and wiggling occasionally as feet and toes do.

"Hope you’re fast on your feet," she said, taking a moderate step while kicking the drop door to the basement closed at the same time. Edward wasn’t sure what she hoped to gain by this, so he stood still, wondering.

Alexi turned back and looked down at him. "Don’t quite get it, do you? Wherever I go in the house and whatever I do, you’ll be there with me."

With that, she took another step. The noose tightened and the slack between his waist and her ankle quickly disappeared. Another step by his monstrous niece. This time his body was jolted forward in her direction as the bind between them snapped into action.

Alexi seemed pleased, smiling down at him and then smiling at Alison too.

"It’s a bit like walking a dog," Alexi said down to her, "a very, small dog that is."

Alexi walked from the kitchen and Edward was immediately pulled behind her.

* * *

The afternoon began as a relatively mild one for Edward. He sat on the floor, while far above him and sitting at the kitchen table, Alexi sat, reading the paper and sipping some tea. Once she did get up, however, things began to become much more difficult for him.

Alexi proceeded to busy herself throughout the house, tidying up the remnants from the night before; putting away the wine bottles, opening the curtains and even sweeping. Not that odd a task you say, but consider that a man standing just slightly over a foot tall was tied to Alexi’s foot, struggling to catch up and rarely given a moment to catch his breath, before she was on the move again, lurching Edward across the room, even dragging him sometimes – a sight that brought a light, girl-ish laugh from large mouth.

Alison watched from the back of the room, fearing for her husband, but now, more often than ever before, aware of the fact that she seemed to encounter less problems when she was quiet. She that’s exactly what she did, she sat quietly on the floor, lest she arose the mischievous anger from her king-sized captor. This is the best way to survive this, she thought. I’ll keep to myself.

"Pretty fast on his feet, isn’t he?" Alexi called across the room to Alison, who in turn, forced a grin back at her, trying her best to agree. Edward’s towel suddenly loosened from his waist, leaving him naked. He continued to slide across the floor, grasping at chair legs while trying to slow his ascent. Suddenly Alexi stopped, allowing Edward a moment, however brief, to catch his breath and actually stand to his feet. He stood there, naked, next to her giant feet, ready to collapse.

Finally he looked up and saw that Alexi was looking at him rather intently, almost as if she were deciding something to herself. She was grinning, that much was sure, no doubt because of his lack of clothes, but still, there was something more. He continued to look far into the air, trying to imagine what was going on inside that head of hers.

Alexi began to nod to herself.

"I said you’re coming with me everywhere and I meant it."

With that, she took a step across the room, once again pulling Edward with her. He managed to keep up this time, but only by running at full capacity, occasionally bumping into the back of her legs and the soles of her feet, only to rebound and fall backwards and then dragged across the kitchen floor to the staircase.

"I’ll go a little slower on the stairs," she announced, "just to be fair."

She took a step up, then another, then rather than lifting Edward into the air to catch up, waited for him to hoist himself up each individual stair. This soon became exhausting for Edward, so for the last few of the steps, she merely extended her leg and swung it to the top of the last few steps, pulling Edward effortlessly along with it.

Once at the top, Edward collapsed, face down, his face buried in the carpet.

"Get up," came her voice, "I have to go pee."

Edward’s face looked up from the bristly carpet fibers that dug into his face, astonished at what she said.

As if expecting him to protest, Alexi continued, "I said everywhere and I meant it."

With that, she launched down the hallway, pulling Edward behind her, no longer concerned whether he was keeping up or not. Edward was soon dragged along the carpet behind her until the carpet turned to the linolium of the bathroom.

Alexi closed the door behind them. Edward watched, expecting her to be embarrassed, at least as embarrassed as he was, but no. The colossal-sized Alexi promptly pulled down her boxer shorts and underwear then immediately sat down onto the toilet. A moment later the inevitable sound of urine tinkling into the water below was noisily heard.

Edward stood as far away from this monstrosity as he could. The string that connected them stretched to its limit, as Edward stood disgusted by her.

Alexi looked down at him. "Why are you so far away?"

Her legs, held together by her dangling underwear, extended off the floor, pulling Edward towards the base of the toilet and to her bare feet. Edward, once regaining his footing, stood on the floor as the tinkling continued above him.

A short fart was heard from above. Edward flinched.

Alexi laughed at his reaction.

"Get used to it, little man. This is your new life."

* * *

THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET – 9

Edward dangled precariously off the end of the bed, feeling more than a little bit like a rock climber as he struggled up the side and onto the level part of the mattress.

It had been two days since she’d tied him to her foot and since then, his body was a mess of carpet burns, welts and bruises. Truly, this was the most physically difficult thing he had ever encountered. Since he’d been tied to her, he’d undergone more shrinking. In fact, twice now she’d had to re-tie his noose as Edward had on more than one occasion woke to find that he could have almost escaped had it not been for her uncanny ability to sense whenever he was up to something “bad” (as she put it).

She was asleep now, as the snoring sound above him testified. It was an awful sound, so gentle and soothing at regular size, but in his shrunken state, it was a laborious sound of doom, a sound he wished he would never hear again, but alas, tied to her as he was, he had very little choice.

Presently, Alexi lay above him on her side, her chest expanding with every breath she took, blowing a cool air over him now that he stood close to her. He could actually smell her breath as it waved over him, as if floating down from a huge and distant fan. It was the smell of the tomato soup she’d had for lunch. and it made Edward sick to inhale it. He wondered if he shouldn’t throw himself off the edge of the bed once more, hoping against any degree of logic, that their bond would somehow break and that he could scurry across the floor to a hidden place.

Edward peered over the edge of the bed then looked back to the face of his giant, slumbering captor. What had snapped in her mind, he wondered? When had the moment been when she transformed from adoring niece to colossal subjugator? He didn’t know, but that didn’t stop him from wondering as he stared at her, still, after all this time, overwhelmed by her size.

Edward, you see, had shrunk quite a bit in the past 48 hours. He now stood shorter than Alexi’s deodorant stick (he knew this because she had placed him next to it early that morning). Because of his size, she had freed him from her leg, lest he incur any permanent damage to himself. Possibly to accommodate him, but mostly to amuse herself, she had tied him around her waist so that he dangled precariously below her navel, bumping into her crotch as she walked through the house. When she sat, Edward’s “leash” would allow him very little length, forcing him to remain very close to her nether region, which, along with the rest of her, had become all the more intimidating of late.

Alexi had taken to calling him dummy most of the time now too. “How’s the weather down there, dummy?” she’d ask him as he ricocheted against the thick texture of her blue jeans. “It’s wonderful up here I must say” This sort of tactic continued with Alexi and never seemed to fail to amuse her. Then again, few, if any women had ever been in her position before, so who was he to judge?

Alexi, on the other hand, had left Alison, alone for the most part. Alexi would tease her now and then, but not near to the degree that he himself had been. He and his wife hadn’t actually spoken in over a day, since whenever they were together; Alexi somehow managed to dominate their time (not to mention the conversation). Edward didn’t blame his wife for what little she was doing for him, because frankly, what could she do? Alison was equally powerless against Alexi, who now, had she wanted to, could have snuffed either of them out without any effort whatsoever. It would be like stepping on a mouse, he thought…

“Gotcha!” a voice came from behind him only a second before Edward was being lifted into the air by fingers that seemed to come from nowhere.

Alexi had woken up without him noticing.

“You’re not going anywhere now, are you?”

This was something that happened quite a bit. Alexi would leave him be for the longest time, then, without any warning, she’d “play giant” as she put it, corralling him with her hands (sometimes her feet) and then say things like “You’re sure small, aren’t you?” or some such nonsense, as if he could ever forget about his height.

Edward squirmed uselessly from within the cage of her enclosed fingers.

“Where’s dummy planning on going?” Alexi asked, jutting out her bottom lip. Edward didn’t bother to answer. Since he’d gotten as small as he had, he’d become more of an object to her and at the same time, less of an actual person. She’d changed the tone of her voice to that of one reserved of talking to babies or to small dogs or cats.

“I must’ve fallen asleep, she said out loud, still holding him above her face with her outstretched arm, how long was I out?”

Edward just looked at her, knowing that she didn’t necessarily want to hear his answer. He was small enough that it took her just one hand to dominate him now.

“Time to go downstairs. I need to eat something”

With that, she propelled herself off the bed, still holding Edward in her right hand securely. Then, she lowered him, allowing the slack to lessen and him to once again dangle from the string wrapped around her gigantic hips. Alexi wasn’t wearing pants at this particular moment, so Edward had the pleasure (and it was a pleasure, believe me, compared to being chafed by denim blue jeans) to bounce against her pantied crotch and soft upper thighs.

Alexi stood to her full height and looked back down at him, jutting her hips out a bit which caused him to swing outward and then return to bounce against her legs. She smiled, then widened her stance to shoulder width and jutted her hips once more. This time, like a swing, Edward swung, but instead of harmlessly bouncing off her thighs, he swept up between her thighs as the string extended to its full length. She’d done this several times, in each case continuing to do so for several minutes, often getting a strange look on her face.

“You look pretty silly, dummy,” she said after a moment.

* * *

Edward could judge, by the range of things that she was doing with them, that she was both testing her limits and possibly (but hopefully not) getting bored.

For a snack, she’d made herself an egg sandwich. There weren’t any regular meals to speak of anymore. If she was hungry, she ate. If she remembered, then they would eat too, often doing so in circumstances designed to amuse her.

Today was no different. After finishing her sandwich, Alexi lay back onto the couch like she did several times a day, taking her mostly empty plate and ripping off a piece of egg from between the remaining crusts of bread. Edward and Alison stood together on the coffee table, each hoping to get some of the food, as it had been a while since they’d eaten anything.

“Hungry?” she asked.

Her giant hand was suddenly moving towards Alison. The fingers carelessly wrapped around her and immediately lifted her off the table, letting her down rather thoughtlessly onto the vast expanse of her stomach. A moment later, Edward was grabbed as well. She had become increasingly unsympathetic with both of them, not seeming half as gentle as she had been days ago.

“How hungry are you exactly?” she asked as her eyes darted between them and the television that she clicked with the remote.

Edward and his wife nodded, as if to indicate their hunger. She didn’t notice, but rather lifted the bottom of her shirt, as to reveal her bare stomach. Her giant finger lowered from the plate, cramming a piece of egg into her belly button. Her finger pushed it in deeply, circling it and then rubbing the excess off just outside. Once she had, the grimy finger, coated in bits of egg yolk, pointed to Alison.

“Hungry enough to eat from my navel?”

Alison nodded. She would take what she would get. They both motioned forward eagerly.

“Oh no, not you, she said, blocking Edward with her hand, you get to eat later”

With that, she plucked him up at set him on her upper thigh.

Alexi looked around the room, as if for a new way to humiliate him. Finally, she looked at her lower body.

“You get to eat when you can tell me how many moles I’ve got on my legs…”

Edward looked down the span of her leg, which seemed to stretch into eternity.

Above him, Alexi chuckled lightly, her eyes on the television. He looked to his wife and gestured that she should eat, which she did, telling him that she’d sneak him some.

Off Edward traveled down the length of her left leg, precariously trying to keep his balance. The moles he found were very faint and resembled light colored freckles. After about five minutes of working past her knee and then up again, he had counted five of them.

Alison knelt on Alexi’s stomach and took a piece of the mashed egg, eating what she could.

“Clean up all the yolk, Alexi’s voice sounded downward, and I mean all of it”

As Alison did just that, Edward approached, standing at the base of her belly and waiting expectantly. It took a while for Alexi to notice him as she laughed at the television, her stomach shaking along with her. Edward’s feet widened to secure his stance, each of them sinking lightly into the softness of her skin.

“What’s the number? How many moles?” she said, looking down at him, appearing amused at Alison who was kneeling to lick around her belly button.

“Five” Edward shouted from within cupped hands.

“Hmmm, she said, more than I thought”, then returned her gaze to the television.

Edward watched Alexi for what seemed like forever. She had forgotten about him again and was changing channels, finally finding some black and white movie and staring at it intently.

“Do I get anything to eat!?!” Edward yelled from the base of her stomach.

Alexi stared down her nose at him, as he stood on her stomach, appearing only as patient as his hunger would allow.

“Yes you do…”, she said turning once more to the tv.

“…But not before I get a good night kiss”

Edward looked back at his wife, astonished.

“But you just got up!” he shouted.

Alexi stretched her arms above her head, “Yes, but I’m sleepy again. Both of you come kiss me and then I’ll fetch you something”

A moment of pause between Edward and the Alison as they looked up at her, wondering what she meant. A kiss? Surely she couldn’t be serious…

“We should go, Alison said, trudging up her stomach, come on”

Edward followed, keeping his eyes on Alexi as they drew nearer to her face, walking up over her upturned shirt and further up still, traveling between her breasts while treading on her bra. Eventually they stopped just below her collarbone.

Alexi laughed again at the tv then lowered her chin and strained to focus on them, which was tough, since they were so small and so close to her eyes. The pair looked up at her, up into her nostrils, which flared as they drew in air and at her parted lips as she prepared to speak.

“What will I do when you two shrink down into nothing?”

Alison looked back at Edward, fearful. Was this a concern or a threat?

“Seriously, she said with a trace of concern, will you two stop shrinking?”

Edward stepped closer; close enough to touch her enormous chin.

“That depends, he said loudly enough to be heard, what did you set on the machine?”

The concerned look on Alexi’s face slowly diminished and her eyes grew soft.

“I can’t even remember, she said, doesn’t matter anyway…”

“What do you mean it doesn’t m—“

“Alison, you’re first, Alexi cut in, her voice much louder than Edwards, come and kiss me goodnight”

A very worried looking Alison inhaled but did nothing.

“Come on, Alexi said, on the lips. Come kiss me on my lips”

Alison stepped forward, standing as tall as she could, but was unable to reach her mouth past Alexi’s chin, that is, until she lowered it even further, bringing her enormous mouth into a nearness that was truly frightening.

Alexi puckered, a slight grin creasing the corners of her mouth.

“A kiss?”

Alison leaned forward and put her lips to Alexi’s, kissing a portion of her bottom lip, which was many, many times the size of her own. Alison began to ease backwards, thinking that the kiss was over, but instead, the lips advanced on her, puckering again and parting slightly. This time the giant lips enveloped Alison’s mouth, most of her face too. It was a short kiss, but long enough to coat her with some of Alexi’s spit. After Alexi was done, she leaned back and her lips parted to reveal her teeth.

“Thank-you” she said.

Alison stepped backwards, scaling down her upper chest to stand still, nervously glancing to Edward, who proceeded forward to kiss her too.

“Not so fast, Alexi said, raising her arms above her head, where they stayed, you have to kiss me here”

She was pointing at her left armpit.

Edward hesitated.

“Sometime today would be nice…” she said, looking at him seriously as if to suggest that she actually meant it.
With that, she began watching the tv once more, waiting as Edward climbed up her shoulders, across part of the couch until he was close to her underarm.

“Make it a nice one too”, she said, barely breaking a grin.

Edward braced himself, knelt and then leaned forward over her armpit, which was only partially exposed due to the sleeve of her shirt. He could smell her deodorant and scant waves of sweat. It wasn’t too unpleasant, but far from appetizing. Her fingers appeared suddenly, pulling up her already short sleeve to expose the rest of her armpit.

“All set” she said.

Edward leaned forward and kissed under her arm. Alexi laughed.

“Once more. Kiss it once more”

He did. He kissed the coarse skin, wanting to be anywhere on earth rather than where he was at this moment.

She laughed again, not because it ticked, but because she had begun to lower her arm. Edward craned his neck from his already awkward position to see what the descending shadow was, realizing a little too late that she intended to trap him underneath.

Her arm lowered the full way and trapped him, half-exposed, half-not, in her armpit. He kicked and moved his arms, but it was no use.

“Nighty-night, dummy”, she said in the direction of her arm pit, chuckling lightly.

Alexi shifted her weight suddenly, sinking her body lower into the surrounding couch pillows. She grinned down at Alison, who was now standing on her stomach.

“Seriously though, Alexi said, looking down the length of her body, what will I do if you two continue to shrink?”

With that, she closed her eyes.
THE FLOOR BENEATH HER FEET - 10

Life had been tough of late for Alison and Edward, few would dispute this fact. The fear of continuing to diminish in size was the largest fear to be sure, but others included Alexi’s increasingly casual behavior with the two of them (mostly Edward) as well as the various trappings of the house, now that their shrinking showed no signs of slowing. New barriers presented themselves every day, as their environment continued to grow around them. Though Edward had longed for the day when Alexi would free them from her clutches and leave them to their own devices, he now feared that his wish had come all too true.

Alexi seemed to have forgotten about them of late and they were free to roam the house. At first he had thought this was due to the fact that neither of them could possibly escape any longer, both being much too tiny. Now he feared that she truly had moved on, seeming more and more interested with things going on down in the basement.

All through the night there were the sounds of trampling footsteps. Hushed voices – some hers, while others were ones he didn’t recognize. When he and his wife awoke, there were no longer signs of anything having gone on. Occasionally Alexi would march through the room, her huge bare feet clomping past the two of them, mindful of not stepping on them, but still…coming a bit too close on occasion.

“Hi squirts” she’d say the odd time, barely looking at them as she crossed from one direction of the room to the other, sometimes dropping a piece of bread or whatever she couldn’t finish down onto the floor. “Make sure you eat all of it, she’d say, I don’t like sweeping up after you too” It was true, she didn’t. Once she’d dropped some custard (or was it pudding?) down onto the floor. When neither of them could eat any more and made the mistake of leaving a bit of it smeared on the floor, the giant Alexi was none too pleased at having to wipe it up.

Three days like this and still no information to share between them. The shrinking continued, albeit at a much slower rate. Each of them could fit into one of Alexi’s shoes at the same time. How did they know this? Was it because they had willingly climbed inside one of her shoes?

No. Not exactly.

It was two days ago, when, once again, watching television, Alexi absentmindedly snatched Edward from the floor with her left hand as she pulled off her right sneaker with the other. Sure, she still enjoyed humiliating him, but the fact that she barely seemed to pay attention as she dumped him down into her still warm, humid tennis shoe, told him that her boredom with having two shrunken people at her every whim was increasing.

The smell, no surprise, was terrible. It was like being in damp, enclosed room where something had recently died – it was that bad. He expected to see her giant face peering down from above, but only the sound of her laughing at the television was to be heard. A few minutes later, his wife was dropped inside too.

“I need some privacy,” she had said. And that was that.

It was presently morning and both of them, having forgotten to be fed, were walking across the living room floor in search of crumbs that they may have missed the day before. They had just woken up and were still partially disoriented from their sleep.

Sounds were coming from one of the bedrooms. Together, they proceeded in that direction, staying close to the corners of the wall, for walking down the center of a room was asking to be stepped on.

The sound grew louder as they approached, sounding more and more like someone was grunting. They looked to one another wondering what it could be. Then someone spoke. Edward and Alison froze, listening.

It was Alexi’s voice.

“It’ll be fine, okay? Can you trust me? Just stay here another day or so and…everything will be fine”

Then another voice. A male voice.

“Okay…okay, but…I don’t mind telling you…this whole thing has got me a little scared”

Alexi giggled.

“I can tell, she said, now can we finish?”

The mattress slowly began to squeak.

Edward and his wife had traveled completely across the hallway now and were each standing just outside the doorway from where the voices came from. Edward peered around the corner into the spare room, which had a single box mattress against the wall for when they had guests.

Alexi was on the bed and other than being partially covered by a blanket, was naked. From what he could tell, she was having sex with someone who lay beneath her. Edward’s expression changed to one of bewilderment as he motioned forward and stepped into the room. Unheard.

“That’s good, Alexi said to the man she lay on top of, but faster”

The giant couple lying on the bed began to gyrate at a quicker pace now, Alexi seeming to call the shots. Edward continued to approach, noticing something that seemed very odd.

It was the man’s hands.

Both of them were propped up and pushing on Alexi’s upper chest, as if to brace himself from the full weight of her body as she continued to bounce on top of him, thrusting her body down onto his own. His hands, Edward noted…they were smaller than hers were. At first he thought nothing of it, but getting closer still, and with a greater portion of what was going on coming into view, he saw that the man’s body was significantly smaller than Alexi’s.

Instantly Edward knew what she had done. He spun around to signal to his wife only to realize that she had followed him and was practically standing over his shoulder.

Alexi grunted from above them and so did the man. They were soft grunts and sounded not unlike anyone having sex, except that the size of the couple amplified their every sound considerably.

The mattress continued to squeak, louder now as their movements intensified.

Edward and his wife moved under the frame, where neither could be spotted, each of them looking upwards to the springs on the underside of the mattress, watching as they contracted and expanded, squeaking loudly, like they were being moved by some huge force from above.

The man’s voice said something.

“You’re too heavy, he said, you-you’ve got to stop”

Alexi laughed and panted as the squeaking continued.

“Hold your horses” her voice strained.

“No, he said again, you’re going to break my ribs”

But then it started…

Alexi’s panting turned to a light hum, slowly growing to a gasping sound as she continued to force herself down on the smaller man. Edward and Alison remained underneath the mattress, fearful that they would be crushed should the bed collapse.

Alexi’s gasping turned to a moan and was gaining in volume. She’s going to have an orgasm thought Edward.

The man beneath her was squirming now, madly trying to push her off of him. Alexi grabbed the top of his arms and easily pinned them over his head, pushing her full weight on top of him as her moaning turned into more of a yell.

She continued thrusting herself down on him – her face, a radiant expression of joy – his own, wincing in pain.

Ten seconds later it was over.

The squeaking subsided and all that could be heard was Alexi’s labored, though now more relaxed sounding breath.

Then her voice could be heard to say:

“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” she tittered.

Edward and Alison watched as Alexi’s huge bare feet descended from above and landed on the floor, inches away from them. Neither of them moved, knowing that it’d be tough for her to spot them.

“C’mon, she said to the figure still on the bed, let’s go down to the basement”

There was little sound. A light moan from the man.

“What’s the matter? she asked, You can stand, can’t you?”

“I think…I think you may have broke my ribs”, the man’s voice said.

Alexi began to laugh, her feet shifting in posture. Slowly at first, then seemingly delighted with herself, both at having just had a colossal orgasm, but also at having broken a man’s ribs in the process.

“Come on, she said, still smiling, you’ll be more comfortable in the basement. I promise”

The man struggled to his feet, doubling over and unable to stand straight. The two of them walked towards the doorway, allowing Edward and Alison to see them in full view from their vantage point beneath the bed.

Both of them were naked. Alexi caressed the man’s shoulder gently and then pulled him towards her, hugging him. The man stood level with her breasts and had obviously just recently begun to diminish in size. He allowed himself to be hugged (not having that much choice, really), as Alexi’s long arms engulfed him, pulling him tightly towards her.

“Thanks, she said, it’s been a while since I’ve done that. Plus you’re so small, it was kind of fun, don’t you think?”

He gasped lightly, causing her to laugh once more. A moment later, they both left the room.

Edward turned to his wife.

“Looks like he’s been shrinking for just over two days or so?”

Alison seemed confused.

“How has she managed to keep him here?” she wondered.

Edward looked to the now empty doorway, “Probably told him that the size change wasn’t permanent, that he should stay inside until it wore off…”

Alison looked at her husband, “And now it’s too late?”

Edward nodded grimly, “I suspect so”

Together, they emerged from beneath the bed.

“What about all the rest of the noise over the past few nights? That can’t be just from the two of them, can it?”

Edward shook his head at the question. He didn’t know.

* * *
* * *

“Now run, she said, looking down to the floor, run for all you’re worth...”

The seven people – her tiny captives – were spilled out onto the floor from their container. None of them wasted any time debating whether they would flee or not, but scrambled in different directions rather than running in a straight line.

She thought that interesting, that they wouldn’t stay in a group.

Alexi sat on the bed above them – her body no bigger than that of the average person. But yet she was a giant in her own way given her captives were all so small. What had taken over a week on her aunt and uncle (them slowly dwindling in size at an “oh so frustratingly slow pace”) had happened in less than 48 hours with this bunch, now that she’d figured out that the machine could be pushed a bit.

The people were small; varying in height, but from a distance away, they all looked the same size – under six inches. She watched them scurry like mice – much slower though, and with a greater lack of direction. Each of them was running their little hearts out – some towards the door frame, others heading towards the door itself, hoping to hide behind it. They were so small that Alexi wondered if they even knew it was a door.

Watching them, she couldn’t help but smile at what she had created. It wasn’t her science…it wasn’t her that had invented the machine, slaving away for years for it to work…but it was her that had shrunk these people – and they were hers now.

They were HERS.

This thought made her smile broaden further. For a split second, she glanced at her reflection in a dusty mirror that stood alone on one of the drawers by the door. She stared at her delighted expression, as if wanting to savor it. When else had she felt so wonderful?

With that, her bare feet slapped onto the cold floor as she stood.

“Where’s everybody going?” she asked, putting her hands to her hips. She was no longer naked, but wearing cut-off jean shorts and a white tank top, one that had obviously been washed with darker laundry, since it had a light burgundy tint to it.

Alexi watched as the people continued to disperse, some falling and getting up, others reaching the wall only to find that they were trapped. As with her aunt and uncle, Alexi was surprised at how entertaining it was to do nothing but watch; to imagine what was going through their heads as it slowly donned on them just what in fact had happened. She’d enjoyed this with her aunt and uncle too, but it took so darn long with them!

This was better. It was short. They were short (hah). It fufilled her need for instant gratification. She had seen someone (a mailman, a neighbour, a man out for a walk), decided on them, lured them into the house, down into the basement and…voila…five minutes later, it was done.

The people continued to scramble and to move away from the bed, none of them far enough that she couldn’t catch up within two or three of her giant steps. This thought gave her stomach a shudder, albeit, far from an unpleasant one. It was a funny feeling she had from time to time that seemed to momentarily cloud her judgement – it was a good feeling. She watched them run from her, fascinated. Their tiny heads bobbing up and down.

It was time, she thought. If they got much further, she’d risk one of them falling into a heat vent or journeying too far from her sight.

“I want everyone to stop, she announced, now”

But the tiny people continued to run. Those who had hit dead ends continued on in other directions frantically.

“I said now!”

They continued to disperse.

Alexi took a forward step, then another, each slow and deliberate as she tried her best to fathom how she’d look from their tiny perspective. Was she still a good looking woman? Or was she a gartantuan monstrosity? Either way, she relished the thought.

She approached some of them, taking care that her feet not trod too close. They were so small. Could they even see past her knees? Did they even know who’d done this to them? Could they even comprehend?

Her bare feet slapped against the floor as she easily overtook the majority of the fleeing people. Several of them stopped as the sight of her gargantuan toes stepped into their line of sight. They tried to look up, but were obviously still having difficulty grasping the extent of what had happened. This was, after all, not the Twilight Zone.

One of them, a man, actually continued up onto her foot, scaling over it like he was crossing some unimaginably strange barrier. It wasn’t until she began to tap her foot up and town, as if impatient, that the three gathered there, began to accept what was happening. They stood, ridgid. More scared than anything.

“Yes, that’s my foot, she said, continuing to tap it, slower now. You may have noticed that it’s bigger than you are”

The three miniturized people stood still. They weren’t going anywhere now. They were scared stiff.

Alexi’s head turned to look over her shoulder.

Two more of them were in sight and that another two unaccounted for. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea, she thought. I should have confined the area before letting them out like this.

She swung the door so that she could see behind it. Nothing. She stepped over those cowering at her feet and peered out into the hallway, confident that their lack of speed wouldn’t have let them get this far. She could hear the distant shrieks from her feet, so noticeably loud that she at one point had to look down to ensure she hadn’t stepped on one of them. She hadn’t. They were only cries of fear.

“I only count five, she said out loud, where’s the other two of you?”

* * *

Edward and his wife Alison were witnesses to this entire spectacle. To all of it. Each of them had remained under the bed and had since crept behind one of the legs to the bed, in case she happened to look underneath. They were scared stiff.

The metamorphisis that had been changing Alexi for the past few weeks had certainly taken a dark turn, Edward thought. His sweet, flowery neice had changed into a power hungry ogre, one seemingly without feelings.

The two of them continued to watch in fear. Alison touched her husband’s shoulder. He looked at her. She was pointing. Each of them looked to the far edge of the bed where the two “missing” people were hiding. They were talking to each other, yelling even. After watching them for a moment, it became clear that neither of them had quite yet accepted what had happened – preferring to think they were in a gigantic enclosed stadium than in the spare bedroom of a nasty giant woman who had recently shrunk them.

Edward began to wave his arms, hoping to attract their attention. “If they see us, we can talk to them and explain what’s happened.” Edward waved frantically, but neither of the men took to noticing them. They continued to yell at one another.

That’s when Edward and Alison heard…

“I think I hear somebody yelling…”

It was Alexi. Despite her giant height, her ears were obviously attuned enough to detect the screams from these two men. A second later, two giant knees dropped into sight and to the floor, her enormous hand extending beneath the mattress, fingers opening and closing as they scrawled through the air.

“I know you’re down there, she said. I can hear you”

That’s when the two men, obviously driven mad by their inability to accept what was happening began to run…

…straight towards the gap between her giant knees.

Alexi’s face loomed into view from above, dropping to peer underneath the mattress. Her eyes fixed on them and her face wrinkled with a small moment of confusion as she watched the two tiny guys running straight for her. A second later, her mouth formed into a smirk. The two men continued to run straight through the path between her bent knees and towards the door. Alexi shot to her feet and spun around, very, very amused with their boldness.

“Oh this is good” Alexi’s voice said.

All Edward and Alison could do was watch as Alexi’s giant bare feet began after the men. It took her only two steps to catch them.

And that’s when she stepped on one of them.

There was silence.

Silence from her. Silence from the remaining man at the base of her giant foot. And silence from Edward and Alison.

* * *

Alexi looked down at her foot, confused.

What had she just done?

Her smile was gone, replaced by something that looked like genuine concern.

This dream world she’d been living in had just collapsed. She’s just squashed a man under her foot.

Slowly, she removed her foot and stared, sullen, down at the remains of her victim. She hadn’t even pressed down that hard, she thought, but yet this man was creamed to oblivion.

Her foot raised to the knee of her opposite leg and she looked fearfully at the sole of her foot. At his remains. She stared at it for some time.

Finally, as if to break the silence, the remaining man, the one who hadn’t been anilihated, started to run. Alexi seemed too distant to even notice.

The man continued to run, towards the group of other tiny people, some fifty or so (proportionate) metres away from him. He was running for his life. He understood now. He couldn’t have possibly fully grasped what was happening, but he knew enough that he didn’t want to be anywhere near the two legs that had chased the two of them.

A mere foot and a half away, Alexi lowered her foot, continuing to stare at the small mess she had caused by stepping onto the man and ending him. Slowly, she turned towards the group, wearing a blank expression that could very well have read apologetic.

Then.

Slowly.

Very slowly.

She smiled.

He couldn’t have seen it coming. There’s no way he would have even heard her over his own panting breath. When a shadow loomed over his shoulders, his greatest fear was only seconds away.

That’s when Alexi stepped on him too.

Not firmly. Not like she was trying to stomp him. Just enough for him to stop moving.

And that he did. Alexi looked down at the floor, to the bottom of her foot, then to the crowd of the five who remained.

It was a more sinister smile now that registered and the crowd immediately began to run.

Edward and Alison watched helplessly, both thinking that them running is probably the worst thing that they could have done.

Alexi chased them, stomping her feet down in various directions, the tops of her thighs gyrating everytime her foot connected. She squealed at the sport of it all, laughing, delighted.

Five minutes later they were gone.

She stood silently. Breathing heavily. Alone. Unaware of Edward and Alison’s presence under the door. After what they had just witnessed, they’d prefer to keep it that way.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK.

There was someone upstairs.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

The loudness of the knocking suggested that they weren’t just messing around.

Someone wanted in.

Now.


* * *

Since she was now effectively a giant, Alexi’s state was not unlike
being on drugs. The euphoric state she hadn’t come down from in ten
days, was very similar to a high brought on by some nebulous
narcotic.

She didn’t want to come down. She didn’t want to return to reality.

Worse – she wished she hadn’t stomped all those people with her foot.
Was it because they were people, like her. Lives that were now gone.
Is this why she felt badly?

No.

It was because now she has barely anyone else. Just her Aunt and
Uncle, wherever they were at the moment.

These thoughts spun through her head as her dirty, stained bare feet
lumbered forward, carrying her pretty form towards the front door and
towards the loud knocking sound.

That’s giving me a headache, she thought and once again got an ever
small glimpse into reality…the reality she’d been avoiding for some
time now; where she’d have to go look for a job, eat crappy food
since that’s all she could afford. The reality where she’d have to
pay rent…

Reality really sucks, she thought as she reached for the doorknob.
And I don’t want to leave where I am.

Alexi pulled the door open. Facing her were two police officers.

Alexi immediately burst into laughter, doubling forward like she was
drunk. Never in a million years would she have done this in the past.
Authority figures had always made her nervous and she had always been
careful to say the right thing around them. But now, still encircled
by this invisible power trip she’d been on for the past week or so,
she couldn’t stop herself. One of the officer’s took a moment to wipe
a small globule of spit from Alexi’s mouth that had coated his
sunglasses.

“Your name please?” one of them asked.

Alexi managed to stand up straight, void of the self-recognition it
would take to realise how she must appear.

“I’ll tell you my name, but first you have to tell me yours…”

With that, both officers moved forwards, indicating that she should
perhaps move if she didn’t want to be shoved from their path. Alexi
did, her gleaming eyes trained on the pair of them, still delirious
with power.

“This your home, young lady?” the silent one asked.

“Yes, she said, I own the whole block actually. Very rich. I
inherited a lot of money when I was young, you see”

The two officers looked at one another.

* * *

Edward and his wife Alison scrambled, as best they could, towards the
voices coming from the other room, though they didn’t yet know that
they were police officers. They too had existed in a state that was
far from normal for the average human being. Each of them were barely
two inches tall and while their size diminishment seemed to be over,
there certainly weren’t any indications of it reversing itself.

In the past week (had it been that long?) they had been poked,
prodded, suffocated, humiliated, tied up, insulted and demeaned.
Accordingly, they each had every reason to find out who it was who
had just entered their house.

They ran for all they were worth.

* * *

“We’re going to have to look around” the officer told her.

Alexi nodded.

“Anywhere you like”, she said, extending her arm to the
uninvestigated portion of the house, “just watch your step”

The officer looked at her.

“For what?”

Alexi burst into laughter yet again. The lack of sleep combined with
her egomaniacal state forming a strange combination.

The two officers ventured into the house further. Alexi watched them.
Scheming. After a few moments of them looking through the kitchen,
Alexi called out to them.

“I’d prefer you didn’t look in the basement, if it’s all the same to
you”

One of the officers followed the other back into the room where she
stood.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” one of the officers asked her.

* * *

The diminuative pair had arrived to the room adjacent to where Alexi
was talking to the others. Edward and his wife could make out the odd
word. Each of them picked up on the fact that there was some sort of
enquiry going on.

They continued to run. Alison passed Edward on one occasion, perhaps
due to the fact that her body had taken less punishment than that of
her husband’s over the past weeks.

Finally they arrived on the stoop that seperated the two rooms, each
of them panting their tiny breaths away.

* * *

“You’re free to search the house, but I’d rather you stay out of the
basement, that’s all.” Alexi said.

The officers were silent for a moment, trying to figure out what game
it was that Alexi was playing.

Alexi smiled politely at the two officers, awaiting their response.

The taller of the two officers leaned towards the stairs and then
said,

“Unfortuanately, you’ll have to take us down there.”

“Must I?” Alexi asked, trying to look disappointed.

“I’m afraid so” the other officer said.

One of the officers had his hand on his gun, but Alexi wasn’t
worried. Afterall, she hadn’t done anything. Such was her state of
mind.

As the officer’s motioned to the stairs, Alexi spotted Edward and
Alison running across the floor towards them, practically tripping
over her giant and dirty feet. Again, she found herself resisting
laughter at the absurdity of it all. Did they really think they’d get
the attention of the police? That she would let them?

With a casual sway of her right foot, Alexi knocked both of them
backwards and away from the officer’s, unknowingly breaking Edward’s
ribs and seriously winding her Aunt Alison.

Alexi marvelled at how far they had travelled with a mere nudge of
her foot, then looked to the two officers, already on their way down
stairs.

She followed them.

* * *

Edward sat up, still panting, but now having a bit of difficulty
breathing. Alison was also trying to catch her breath.
They had almost done it. They had come so close…

Gradually, each of them crawled forward until their heads could peer
down the staircase and into a portion of the basement. Each of them
was mindful that behind them was a selection of Alexi’s enormous
shoes, should they need somewhere to hide in a pinch.

They spent the next few minutes much like they’d spent much of their
time of late – by waiting. Voices were occasionally heard and at one
point they saw the top of one of the officers heads as he passed by
beneath them. Each of their radios occasionally squawked something or
other.

Finally, they heard what each of them feared hearing. A shout. A cry
for help. Followed by another. Followed by Alexi’s voice yelling
triumphantly, like a drug addict who had just received the fix of a
lifetime.

Edward and Alison, knowing that she’d soon clammer her way upstairs,
no doubt holding out her newest playthings, fell back to the refuge
of Alexi’s dirty, smelly running shoe. The smell was awful, but
through the past few days, they’d gotten used to it. Once inside and
out of sight, Alison looked to her husband.

“When will this end?”

He did not know.

* * *

So serious was his naseua, that the one Officer was about to throw
up. Back and forth, back and forth. He was well beyond dizziness.

Now and then his eyes would open to a particularily monstrous and
horrifying sight – a human face…far, far larger than anything he’d
dreamt of. It was staring at him as he swung. Sometimes it laughed at
him.

Bump. He collided with his partner.

Bump. Again. His shoulder ached.

Alexi continued to swing the two men towards one another as she
leaned forward, dangling each of them from a few inches of string.

Bump. They collided again.

“You two aren’t too coordinated are you?” Her giant voice boomed.

With that, each of them were dropped onto the padded cushions of the
couch.

One of the officers managed to look upwards, and try as he might,
couldn’t quite fathom the immensity of the girl who stared down at
him. She seemed as tall as a skyscraper as far as he was concerned.
She had changed by the looks of it and was wearing tight fitted black
spandex now, along with a t-shirt.

He watched her hand travel to her mouth, as if to indicate “What
next?”.

Far above the tiny officers, Alexi stood, doing just that. Wondering
how to divert her ever shrinking attention span.
 
One of the officer’s had managed to stand and was trying, somewhat
galantly, to remove the string from around his waist. He heard
laughter from above, causing him to briefly glance upwards – not high
enough to see her face, but high enough to see Alexi’s legs and
pelvic area. They were mammoth.

Then he heard her voice.

“I think I want to sit on one of you”

Her tone was calm, like she was indicating an item on a menu in a
restaurant.

“Problem is, she continued, I can’t decide which one”

The officer on his feet, half crouching, looked to his partner, still
passed out. She wasn’t serious. Was she? He glanced further up her
titanic form and saw her face. She was fingering her lip with her
mouth half open. Both of her eyes were narrowed in on the two of them
and her brow was wrinkled, like she was trying hard to make the right
decision.

“Should it be you I sit on?” she asked.

The man continued to sweat, more than before even. He didn’t fully
believe this was happening, but as he looked around, at the giant in
front of him, then at the surrounding, oversized couch, lamps and
tables, he thought that maybe he should take her question rather
seriously.

“I don’t want to kill you. I just want to see if you’ll sink into the
cushion. To see if you’ll survive…”

The man struggled, trying so terribly hard to understand why she
would want to do that to either of them.

“If you won’t decide, I will…” Alexi said down to him.

The man hesitated, then pointed to his partner, who still lacked
consciousness. In a desperate act of preservation, he reasoned that
his partner would suffer less pain that way, since he wouldn’t even
know what happened.

“Your partner?” Alexi said down to him, her hand falling to her side,
“Is that who you want me to sit on?”

The man nodded nervously from the seat.

Alexi smiled downwards.

“Okay, here goes…”

With that, she turned around. The conscious man on the couch could
barely have guessed the immensity of her rear end as it began its
descent towards his partner. She seemed to be lowering herself quite
slowly, as if she knew that he was watching her. He watched as her
large face appeared, looking over her shoulder as her latex covered
bum continued to drop.

“I changed my mind. I’m going to sit on you instead”

The man had no time. No time to run. Or even to think.

Her ass was upon him. Instantly his hands rose to protect himself.
Had he been an observer watching himself, he would have realised how
utterly futile this was. Truth be told, a woman of her mass could
easily have sat on him without even noticing. Just the same, his
hands sunk into the descending black material, pushing against it
with all his might.

Alexi felt his hands press against her bum. Barely. And exhaled with
the beginning of pleasure.
Then he did what was perhaps the smartest thing he’d ever done. He
lay down on his back. He didn’t do it as a planned maneuvre – he just
did it.

The black material spread over him as she sat down, cutting his line
of sight and filling his world with black. He felt his body lower
into the couch – sinking as her bum continued to lower onto the
couch. He tried so terribly hard to relax, not to fight it. Her ass
continued to lower, relaxing now. He felt her muscles relax, but
continued to be smothered as the fat of her buttocks spread over him,
burying him deeper and deeper. Very quickly he began to loose air.

Above him Alexi sat, perched on the couch with a grin on her face.
She looked to a clock on the wall, counting the seconds. She couldn’t
even feel him any longer.

The man started to writhe. At least to try to, for he couldn’t move.
The struggle had set in and he was quickly running out of air. A few
more moments and he would forever disappear under this black void
that still seemed to expand over his body. He felt like he was
disappearing into it completely.

Then it began to lessen.

Though it took a few seconds, the weight was lifting. Alexi was, as
slowly as she had sat down, now getting up. The man felt himself
rising with the expandable couch cushions. Soon he saw a glimmer of
light. Then more. Then he saw the substantial black fabric of Alexi’s
spandex covered rear end raise into the air.

It took him a second to realise that he wasn’t dead.

It wasn’t until he heard the giant woman laughing that he knew he was
alive.

“I can’t believe it. I sat on you and you didn’t smush. This couch is
amazing!”

With that, the man found himself looking over to his still
unconscious friend. He hoped he would never know the decision he’d
made moments ago.

Suddenly the man felt himself raised into the air and staring into
the large eyes of the giant woman.

“That must have been cool, hey? Being sat on by something 100 times
bigger than you?”

The man, of course, couldn’t agree or disagree. He was still too busy
trying to catch his breath.

She was walking now, with him in her hand.

He watched her gleeful expression slowly turn to one of concern as
she stared out the front window.

* * *

Alexi was walking outside, having closed the door to the house behind
her. She made no effort to hide the fact that she was carrying a two
inch tall man within her right hand. It never occurred to her.

The man watched her concerned face as she neared what used to be his
squad car. Inside the car, the radio could be heard. Sporadic
messages emmiting from it now and again.

From within her sweaty, sticky grasp, he could practically “hear” the
thoughts going on inside her head as she fumbled with how she would
explain a cop car in front of her house.

Man, what a dummy.

* * *

Slowly, Alexi walked back into the house with a dazed expression on
her face. This sobering incident had truly “woken her up” from her
drunken giantess power trip. There was no path of denial that would
keep her from having to deal with the car parked out front.

She heard a noise from the floor. It was the second officer. He’d
obviously awoken and fell to the ground, since he was presently
running across the floor.

Alexi looked at him and without a trace of concern, began absent
mindedly walking in his direction, much like she would as if going to
the fridge for a drink.

On the ground the officer obviously had come to grips with what was
happening. He’d even pulled out his gun. He continue to sprint away
from Alexi, running his tiny heart out.

Her giant feet continued towards him. She wasn’t even looking down.

The officer fired his gun at her, missing. His gun sounded like it
was coming from a television set in a far off room. He fired again,
this time nicking her foot, just above the ankle.

Alexi looked down, shaken from her daze, if only for a moment. She
bent forward to examine her foot. A tiny pin prick of pain. Nothing
serious. Some part of her mind must have grasped what had happened,
as she suddenly raised her foot and brought it down towards the man.
She stomped down on the floor, missing him the first time. The second
time, her giant sole found him though, ending him quickly.

That’s when she noticed the movement.

It was coming from her old running shoes.

She knew who it was who was hiding inside.

* * *
EPILOGUE

Edward opened his eyes to see that his wife, Alison, was already
awake. His body ached, but that was nothing new.

He looked to his wife, at her messy hair and dusty body, knowing that
he probably looked worse that she did.

Still. She was alive. Both of them. That’s what mattered.

Edward sat up and very, very quickly realised something rather
important.

He was regular sized again.

So was Alison.

She too came to the realization and they embraced.

What had happened?

Did it wear off? What?

Slowly, they descended the stairs. How had they gotten up there?
Where was Alexi? Where were the police men?

Alison looked out the front window as Edward went down to the
basement, quickly reemerging.

“The bodies…the shrunken ones…they’re all gone…”

Alison swallowed and held open the curtains, revealing the cop car
still outside their house. Instantly, she thought of the missing
people. The connection to their house. The squad car…the machine in
the basement. She looked to Edward who was obviously thinking the
same thing.
Together, each of them entered what used to be Alexi’s bedroom. There
was absolutely no trace of her remaining.

They searched the other rooms, too. Nothing there either. It’s like
she had never come to live with them in the first place.

Sirens could be heard in the distance. Growing louder.

Then Alison saw what looked like a note pinned to the fridge. It was
a postcard, that upon detection, appeared to have been mailed months
ago from some island off in the Pacific.

“Thinking about you two, it read. Won’t be able to make it this
summer. Hope to see you soon. Love Alexi”

The sirens grew still louder.

* * *

Alexi had disappeared from sight, knowing that the eccentric
reputation of her Aunt and Uncle, not to mention the missing people
connected to them and their undisclosed shrinking device would surely
do them in.

She was right.

It did.

Alexi had taken the remaining shrunken officer with her, determined
that since he would be the last of them that he would be make to
last. He would travel with her wherever she went. He would be her
companion. They would become friends.

When she first left the house, she’d put him down the back of her
underwear, having been so impressed with his ability to survive being
sat on moments earlier. He stayed there for hours, until, hours
later, she extracted his half-buried body from within her ass crack
once inside a train station bathroom. She cleaned him off and told
him that it was for his own safety to stay out of sight. The man
pleaded with her as she traveled. For days. Weeks even. Months.
Eventually he grew resigned, then accustomed.

Months later and on a tropical beach, Alexi changed into her bikini
in front of him. As per usual, he climbed inside her bikini bottom.
Buried within her panties, she told him he was in for a long ride. He
know longer minded.

Neither was heard of ever again.

THE END