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The forest-green wool felt soft underfoot, like a fibrous moss, a terrain at once familiar and alien. I had made it to the couch, and now stood on the portion of sweater fabric draped over my girlfriend's lap. Looking behind me, I saw a pair of legs crossed casually – a bridge leading back to the footrest. Off in the distance was the TV screen, its image partially blocked by two sets of feet: Alice's, clad snugly in low-cut boots, and Annie's, bare and wagging with nervous energy. I turned and looked up at Alice. Every now and then her hand would descend into the bowl beside her, collect a pile of popcorn, and carry it to her face, to send it into the shadows beyond her lips.

I began my journey up her sweater, walking, crawling, then climbing as the surface started to slope. The fabric was a patch of thick woolen vines, growing up the shirt in criss-crossing patterns. My ascent was barred by a black plastic disc jutting out from the shirt. The button was held in place by two threads looped through its center. I happened to notice Annie looking down at me curiously from her seat beside Alice. I smiled at her and pretended to shine Alice's button with my shirtsleeve. She made a face showing a lack of amusement before she turned back to the TV.

I clutched a tangle of fibers to my right, and pulled myself in that direction, navigating upward and around the button. The wall beneath me moved with Alice's breath, in and out in a slow rhythm as I climbed. I heard a muffled gurgle from her stomach, like the grumbling of some subterranean beast. There was no sentient beast in there, but rather Alice's digestive tract, a hungry, impersonal pit waiting for some morsel to fall in. Alice's belly groaned again, as if sensing the prey beyond the wall of skin, just out of its reach. I felt a stirring in my own stomach, and the buzz of adrenaline, which prompted me to continue my climb.

As I made my way up, Alice's sweater curved around the form of her breasts, temporarily changing the angle of my climb. The fabric hung loosely there, the network of woolen ropes sagging under my weight as I fed my hands and feet through. I freed my left foot from the shirt, and sent it searching for the next foothold. I thought I had found it, but my foot slipped, and the sudden force of my weight yanked the other foot free as well, leaving my legs dangling over the open space below. Alice must have felt the sudden tug of distress on her shirt, because I felt her body stir, and when I looked down, I saw her cupped palm waiting for me to drop. Though it wasn't a long fall to her lap at my size, it reassured me that she would be ready to catch me if I fell. With a bit of effort, I was able to get my minuscule socked foot back into the sweater, and when Alice was sure I was safe, her hand retreated to its resting spot at her side.

As I reached her chest, I felt the radiant warmth of human flesh once again, and the beating of a tremendous heart. I pictured the mass of muscle, which I could surely fit inside, pulsating powerfully as it sent oxygen to each of trillions of giant cells in this giant body, this wonder of nature. How is this possible? I loved Alice, but there were moments when I feared her, something which I mostly kept hidden. I found myself thinking about physics, chemistry, biology... mankind's attempts to understand the universe. There was a power among us, towering over us, laughing at all of that. A power that just happened to take the form of two sweet young ladies. Did they truly understand what they were?

I felt my head start to spin. My mind tormented me with thoughts of shrinking away to nothing and getting lost in the threads of Alice's shirt. I imagined calling out to her in vain as I got smaller and smaller, until I blipped out of existence. My hands betrayed me, growing weak and sweaty, threatening to send me falling towards the couch. Summoning my courage, I gripped the shirt firmly. I felt my knuckles make contact with the skin behind the green wool, still alive with an obdurate pulse. I fed my hand through to feel the beating. I imagined an energy flowing through us, from a big heart to a small one, feeding me life. I felt a calmness come over me. I sensed then that the only solace I could find in this life would come from trusting and submitting to this greater being.

With a newfound resolve, I followed the fabric to her left shoulder. I reached the summit and stood up, her hair forming an alcove around me, like the fronds of a willow. In the light of the TV, her fire-red hair became a soaked brown, and her pale neck and cheek beside me took on a ghostly blue aura. I had scaled Alice more times than I could count. Each climb was different. The clothes and shoes she wore, and whether she was sitting, standing or walking, were the factors affecting the strategy I chose. She seemed to pick her outfits based on their ease or difficulty of climbing. Sweaters, pajama pants, and fuzzy slippers were all friendly terrain. There were times, however, when she challenged me almost to the point of cruelty. One time, she was walking around the house in shorts and sneakers, putting away dishes, doing laundry, and staying away from anything climbable, with one of her shoelaces dangling noticeably lower than the others.

Looking up, I saw Alice's ear. It looked about as tall as I was. I gathered a handful of hair in my fist, turning the lavender-scented silk into something resembling a rope, and began to climb. Soon I was level with her ear. I thought hard about what I was going to say. I wanted to say something simple that conveyed the fear and awe I had felt while climbing her. I thought for a while, and then the word came to me. I hesitated – I was afraid to say it. But it was the only thing that seemed to capture what I was feeling.

“I love you... my goddess.”

I slid down her hair and felt my feet hit her shoulder. I looked at her face for any sign of reaction, but she calmly continued to watch the TV. What was she thinking? I never called her goddess. There was no doubt that she had power over me. Our relationship was a game, an exciting mixture of trust and danger. But we had a tacit understanding that there were places we were both afraid to go. There were plenty of conceited women who used that label for themselves, and plenty of people who used it sarcastically on others. This wasn't like that. In my mouth, “goddess” stood for my deepest fear and noblest desire.

I stood there for a moment, unsure what to do next. I peered over her shoulder, down at her lap. I saw her hand reach into the popcorn bowl. I then saw Annie reach in for some. I watched a crane in a light blue sweatshirt sleeve drop into the bowl. Its mighty fingers enclosed a mouthful of the buttery snacks, and lifted them through the air to their destination. Even distracted by the television, Annie's face seemed kind and gentle as always. I noticed the back of the couch, like a bridge spanning the distance between Alice's shoulder and Annie's. I hopped onto that bridge and started to traverse it, staying closer to the right edge, so that a cushion would break my fall, rather than the hard floor over the left edge. I looked back at Alice one last time. I started to feel some trepidation about what I had said to her. Her face still offered no clue to her feelings. Was she shocked, amused, or – ?

As I drew closer to Annie, I passed over the bowl of popcorn below. Its contents were mostly eaten, and the girls were finishing what remained. I took care not to fall in. Though I was large enough to be recognized as a foreign object by the girls' searching fingers, being that close to giant food just made me uncomfortable. Thankfully, I made it to Annie without any mishaps. Her right shoulder rested against the couch, and her thick neck rose like a massive column supporting her head. I stepped toward her shoulder, and prepared to make the short leap. Off in the unfathomable distance, the out-of-focus TV screen lit the front of Annie's body. I counted to three and leaped. On three, I heard the girls laughing loudly, and I saw Annie's back as she bent forward, away from the couch. Shit!

I found myself tumbling, my arms grasping the air in vain, until my fall was cut short by the immense force of Annie's back. My cry of pain was silenced as I found myself in a vacuum of darkness and pressure. I struggled for breath. My body ached and my head was spinning. This was not good. I was in trouble, and neither of the girls knew where I was. My body was pressed flat against the couch, and my head was turned to the side. I could have easily broken my nose or a bone, but had somehow managed to fall just the right way. I tried to move, praying that I could get Annie to notice me, but my limbs grew weaker, and the muffled sounds grew distant until they finally faded.

I was floating in darkness. I couldn't remember anything. I felt a jolt. I awoke disoriented and sore. I was lying down. I turned my head up and saw a large pink object. After a few seconds, I recognized the plastic popcorn bowl sitting on the couch. I lifted myself up, and tried to make out more of my surroundings. I was in a narrow alley between two tall walls. As my eyes adjusted to the sparse light, I realized one of the walls was the seat of Annie's jeans. She must have scooted forward, letting me fall to the couch. Thinking quickly, I ran towards the giant bowl. I looked back into the narrow space. If she had slid back against the couch, her rear-end would have been the end of me.

Still a little dizzy, I sat down next to Annie, leaning back into the over-sized couch. I took some deep breaths to calm myself. I rested there for a few minutes, until I felt I could stand. I started to walk forward. My body was still a little sore, but not too beat up. Annie's right leg formed a pant wall extending from the back of the couch to the front and over the edge. Her left leg was crossed under it, and her left foot stuck out from under her jeans, resting on the couch a few feet in front of me. I stepped towards the bare foot. I walked around the heel, and stood in front of the wrinkled sole and the five toes, and looked up at Annie. I decided not to tell her about what had happened. What had happened was due to my own carelessness. Annie was always careful with her powers; she was sensitive and caring toward her friends. I didn't want to upset her. I decided to get her attention. I picked up my foot, and pressed it against her sole. In the contest for foot size, Annie had me hopelessly beat. Through my sock, I could feel the flesh give slightly, like a leather couch cushion. The toes twitched in response to the slight tickle, and I saw Annie look down at me. Before I knew it, I was scooped up in her hand, and brought up to her face. She held me in her palm, with her fingers curling up behind me. She paused for a moment, her pale lips smiling, her eyes twinkling. I knew that this weird giant was as good a friend as I would ever have, and I knew that I had missed her greatly these last two years.

I felt the hand jerk suddenly, and instinctively grasped two fleshy stalks for support. I saw Alice come into view, and look down at me, squinting in the darkness to make out what Annie was showing her.

“I believe this is yours.”

Annie's hand tilted, and I dropped into Alice's. She brought me to her face, and smiled, acknowledging me for the first time during my long journey from the footrest. Her smile was sweet like Annie's, but a little mischief lurked in her eyes. She brought me to her lips, and planted a quick, soft kiss on the side of my head. She placed me next to her on the couch, and I grew to my normal height. I placed an arm around her shoulder, and we finished watching the last episode of our marathon.

I heard a click, and the room suddenly filled with bright colors. Annie was now standing in front of the couch, stretching. She looked at Alice.

“So what'd you think?”

“Oh, it was great! I just have a hard time picking a favorite Princess. They all work so well as a team!”

“I know! Don't you wish you could be an Intergalactic Princess?”

Alice smiled.

“Well, we've already got the superpowers...”

Annie looked thoughtful and serious.

“We are superheroes, aren't we... I want to use my powers for good... I want to protect the world from evil.”

I thought for a moment, and I realized that I would indeed feel safe if I knew Alice and Annie were watching over the Earth like the girls from Hero Team.

“Well,” I said, “if the Earth ever gets attacked by a giant space monster, we'll know who to call!”

“Yeah...” said Annie. She was still in a serious mood. I could tell something was on her mind.

“Hey guys... I have something I want to tell you.”

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