Sunday sucked.

            Technically it started off sucking at 8am when Erica's alarm rang, but really she'd been awake most of the night through.  She'd just lain on the bed staring, still with an aching head from the white noise experiment.  She stared at the ceiling, stared at the alarm clock, stared at her little big sister Danielle sleeping under a tissue on the bed to her left and stared at her big big sister Brittany who silently pretended to be asleep. 

            If you wanted to be completely accurate the sucking had begun the night before and just hadn't stopped.  After her failed attempt from the stairwell to set her siblings at ease Erica had squeezed past them to clean up her dining room mess.

            "Oh thanks guys," she said when she found it already cleaned up.  She turned around and there were Brittany, Cole and Derrick looming over her in a half circle.  "You didn't have to…I was totally going to clean it up…"

            "What exactly did Dad mean 'take care of us'?" Derrick said.

            "I'm not signing anything," Brittany said.  "Just because you puked doesn't make you special, I had a headache too, I'm not shrinking either."

            "What were you guys talking about upstairs?" Cole said.  "Because if you're making plans for us we have a right to know."

            Erica didn't know who to respond to.  "You guys, I'm not planning anything, c'mon.  I mean yeah I'm gonna take care of you when you're little and…"

            "I'm not shrinking!" Brittany interrupted.  

            "Oh great, that's awesome Brittany, I'm really really glad," Erica said, her voice rapidly getting higher and faster.  "But Mom & Dad just wanted to talk to make sure I was ok doing it…staying in the house and I guess making sure everyone has food and stuff and…"

            "So you're going to keep us locked in the house?" Derrick said.

            "But what exactly did Mom & Dad say, what paperwork are we signing, EXACTLY?" Cole continued.

            "When we're little can you give us airplane rides?" Sammy asked, joining the party.

            "I DON'T KNOW, STOP IT!" Erica screamed.  To her surprise they did stop, unsure of themselves.  And did they look a little frightened? 

            "Kids, back away from the sister," Harry's voice boomed. 

            'Oh thank god,' Erica thought.

            "This has been a big night and we're going to have an even bigger day tomorrow.  I want everyone in bed lights out in 10 minutes.  STARTING NOW."

            "Thanks dad, I was starting to freak out a little," Erica said as her siblings left. 

            Harry handed Erica the tissue box containing Danielle.  "If you're going to be responsible you'd better start practicing."

            Harry kissed Erica on the forehead, then kissed his index finger and rubbed it affectionately across Danielle's head before walking away.  Erica looked down at the package cradled against her chest and the two sisters shared a long moment while the status quo settled on them.  "So how do you sleep, like do you want me to get you a shoebox or..."

            "Shoebox?  I sleep in my bed!" 

            'A stinky shoebox, next she'll ask if I want my very own running wheel.'

All morning the suck kept right on going. 

            "Hey Brittany, do you know what time Dad said for us to be ready?  Brittany?" Erica said as she rolled out of bed.  "I know you're awake, you never sleep later than me.  Fine, be that way."

            As soon as she left the bedroom Sammy started following her down the hall.

            "Erica, when we're little are we gonna live in your room?"

            "Sammy I…"

            "Or…ooooh, can you set up my battleship and we'll live in there, and you can lift it up and fly us around!  Oooh, can we play action figures when we're little, like you'll hold one toy and move it around and Derrick and me can fight it?!"  

            "Sammy leave me alone, I need to use the bathroom," Erica said sharply and left him standing in the hall.

            "Huh.  How ARE we gonna use the bathroom?" 

            When Erica reached the bathroom she found it occupied and Cole waiting at the door.

            "Ah man Cole, can I get next?  I really gotta pee," Erica said, used to her big brother letting her slide. 

            "Hey don't tell me what to do," Cole said, looking down at Erica who came up below his shoulder.  "No line cuts, even for giants."

            "I wasn't telling you what to do, I was asking you big jerk!" Erica said and stormed off.  In case of emergencies there was always her parents' master bathroom. 

            Just before she knocked she overheard her mother's voice behind the half closed door.

            "Maybe we should just let Mr. Arnold take us to the institution Harry.  We can live together there and at least we'll know that we're safe."

            "I'm not having this conversation again Margie," Harry said.  "You and I read the same reports, those places are prisons.  I promised you that I was never going back to a place like that, and I'm damn sure not going to let my children grow up in cells."

            "You'd rather they just get lost somewhere or eaten by an animal?  I love Erica too but she's my little girl, how could we trust her when we're so small, she can't…"

            "She can and she will.  She has to."

            Erica's didn't want to hear anymore and turned away, her face hot and her eyes beginning to moisten.  She slammed into Derrick and tripped into his arms. 

            "Whoa whoa whoa," he said and set her upright.  "Easy.  Look, I know I was kind of a jerk last night...." 

            Erica was glad at least somebody wasn't being mean or weird.  "Yeah, a little bit."

            "It's just that…Hey, where's Danni, weren't you taking care of her now?"

            Erica's eyes went wide. 

            "Ohmygod-I-forgot-Danni!," she screamed and ran off. 

The rest of the day's suck arrived in full force in the form of Mr. Arnold.

            He was nice enough, a slim young man in a light grey suit with the kind face Marjorie had described, and he had shaken Erica's hand with a large smile when she was introduced as the appointed guardian.  Erica noticed that he didn't shake anybody else's hand, even her dad's.

            He introduced his assistant as Ms. Dane.  Ms. Dane stood several steps behind and the to the left of Mr. Arnold and was a mature Asian woman in her 40s.  She had a smooth complexion and fine features and held herself with a reserved intensity.  She stood taller than Mr. Arnold on 3" heels and wore a black pencil skirt and white blouse, and when she turned Erica saw that the tight pony tail at the back of her head stretched past the middle of her back.  From her tissue box held at Erica's waist Danielle noticed that Ms. Dane looked at her with a focus that made her feel a bit like a mouse suddenly spotted by a hawk. 

            Ms. Dane crashed a heavy filing box onto the living room table and passed out thick packets of paperwork, each several inches tall and held together with a large black binder clip.  Slid through each binder clip was a pen imprinted with the letters NTSA alongside a pair of happy stick figures, one large figure holding a small figure in its stick hand.

            "Ok, let's see what we've got here," Mr. Arnold said as he flipped through a packet.  "We've got registration papers with the NanoTechnologic Support Agency, powers of attorney, transfer of assets, registration for a full NTSA post-reduction medical review, suspensions of all licenses and previous registrations/affiliations, various waivers, application for disability payments, and a whole lot of gobbledy-gook that I could spend the rest of the day listing so let's not.  Hey, would anybody be able to offer me a glass of iced tea or some juice?"

            They spent the afternoon advancing through their packets mostly in silence, filling out an endless series of signatures as Ms. Dane danced among them with the sharp clack-clack of her black heels, pointing out missed boxes to check and firmly moving them along when they stalled.

            Every page offered a new glimpse of their future status and Erica felt like every time she looked around somebody was giving her a weird look, either resentful and angry or a little scared but usually just that weird stare which meant they were imagining her gigantic. 

            Erica helped Danielle with her packet, turning the pages that Danielle stood on and carrying the weight of the pen as Danielle dragged it along to sign.  All morning she'd been helping Danielle, asking her if she was comfortable, if she needed water or to go to the bathroom in the sink or a thousand other little tasks. 

            "I'll tell you if I need anything, can you just back off for 5 seconds!" Danielle eventually shouted when Erica had leaned over her and asked if she was warm enough.  For just a moment Erica's enormous face went tight and Danielle thought she was going to get it, but then it softened and she said "Ok Danni, I just want to make sure you're safe and ok, you just let me know."

            Sammy raced through his packet and signed everything in sight.  Cole and Derrick both gave up reading every line after an hour, Harry & Marjorie after two.  Brittany continued to insist that she didn't need to sign anything and gave Mr. Arnold her best 'I'm Pretty - Do What I Say' smile.  "I really don't need all this but it was so nice of you to help everyone else."

            Mr. Arnold returned her smile full force.  "Well how about you just fill these out just in case and I won't file them until you say so, ok?  I'd just hate for you to shrink down to an itty bitty thing and not be registered, all kinds of terribleness could happen to you then and I'd just worry so."  Ms. Dane put a hand around Brittany's shoulder and led her back to her paperwork.

            After Sammy finished his packet Erica excused herself to the kitchen and let him help Danielle.  She just needed to get away from those stares.  She was starting to feel like she couldn't breathe, like her family was closing in on her and cutting off all oxygen.

            "Pretty heavy, huh Erica," Mr. Arnold said giving her a start.  She hadn't even seen him enter the room.  "Look, I know what it's like, I've been through this with a lot of people.  And you know what I've learned?  Those people out there can resent you, they can treat you like you're the freak and gang up on you, but none of that even matters.  From now on the only thing that matters is Erica, you're the big man of this house and your first job is to never let them know they've got you on the ropes, not ever."

            He pulled a slim powder blue binder out from behind his back. 

            "This is for you.  It's a little more straight forward than the packets Ms. Dane made for those people out there.  This will register you as a guardian with the NTSA.  Puts your name on the lease for this house," he said and rapped his knuckles on the kitchen counter, "the car, any property or assets previously owned by any of your appointed reduced dependents.  We're going to set you up with a bank account where you can receive your monthly disability payments, I got you bumped up to $7,327 per reduced dependent and you are welcome. 

            "At the end of the binder you’re gonna see a list of classes you can take.  I can't tell you that you have to take them, but I'm telling you that you should.  You'll like em, we'll teach you how to pay the bills, make tiny meals, all that good stuff."

            Erica looked up at Mr. Arnold, trying not to let her voice choke as she processed what he'd said.  "And what happens if I don't sign any of it.  What happens if I just screw up?"

            Mr. Arnold's smile faded.  "Well then I come back, only instead of paperwork and a bunch of nice pens I bring cages and I take your family back with me to the Institute.  I don't want that so I think you should take a deep breath, sign every page in this lovely blue binder that I picked out for you myself, and meet me back in the living room with a big smile on your face."

After Mr. Arnold & Ms. Dane left the day passed slowly, allowing the suck to really stretch out for maximum effect.  

            Erica felt like she couldn't do anything right, either Brittany would ignore her or Cole would bark at her and twist whatever she said into something mean and Sammy wouldn't stop pelting her with shrink scenarios.  Danielle kept snapping at her when she just wanted to make sure she was ok, and everywhere she turned someone was giving her that look that meant they were imagining her towering into the sky. 

            After dinner Erica excused Danielle and herself and went to bed early. 

Danielle lay overtop her bed's covers underneath a pair of tissues that smelled faintly of aloe.  Her hands tightly gripped her crude velvet gown as she tried not to freak out.

            Today didn't go well, everyone avoided looking at her and when they did instead of calling her cute they just looked afraid.  Danielle didn't love how patronizing big people acted but being adorable was better than being a freak or some harbinger of doom.

            She rolled over and looked at Erica's lumbering shape, like some barely discernible behemoth looming far off in the darkness.  Between them stood a nightstand carrying the tissue box she had spent most of the day in next to a lamp.  She heard sobbing.

            "Erica!" she called out.  "Erica, pick me up, come over here."

            After a few seconds Danielle was scooped up in a warm hand several times bigger than her own body but still somehow delicate.  It was shaking and moist and smelled like salt water. 

            Erica carried Danielle to her own bed and laid against the wall, her belly low and her head and shoulders propped up by her pillow.  She turned the lamp on and held Danielle in her folded hands resting on her belly. 

            The small lamp cast a dim bubble of light around Erica which was swallowed up by the blackness.  Looking around Danielle felt like Erica was the only real thing, floating in the void. 

            "Hey sweetie, do you need anything?" Erica said and let out a loud sniffle.

            "Erica, hold me up to your face, ok, really close."

            When Erica lifted her Danielle reached back and slapped Erica's cheek with a scream.  Erica dropped Danielle onto her chest in shock and Danielle went tumbling down to rest on her soft belly.

            Erica held her hand to her cheek.  "Danielle what the hell?!"  

            Danielle stood awkwardly to her feet on the unstable ground and pointed a finger up at Erica.  "What the hell is you need to stop crying and acting like a little girl!  Now lift me back up!"

            Erica tentatively pinched Danielle's waist between her thumb and forefinger and held her several inches away from her face, well out of Danielle's pitiful reach. 

            "Now did that hurt?!" Danielle shouted.

            "Of course…a little bit…I mean, not really," Erica said, hand still on her cheek.  "But that's not the point, you can't just slap me you…."

            "Of course it didn't hurt.  I just slapped you as hard as I could, my hand is burning and I hurt my shoulder and you barely felt it.  Do you know why Erica?  It's because I'm puny!  I'm 3" tall, I couldn't hurt you if my life depended on it but you could toss me across the room with one hand.  You have all the power!

            "In a little while that's gonna be the deal with everyone.  You could pin Cole & Dad to the ground with your finger, stick mom in a jar and stuff your bra with me & Brittany and there's nothing we could do about it. 

            That's what the whole world is like for me Erica, the whole fucking world is one big lesson in power for me now and it's terrifying.  If some perv wanted to feel me up there's nothing I could do to stop him, if a bird thinks I'm lunch then I'll get eaten, if Sammy decides I'm an action figure then guess what, I'm GI Jane and I better pretend I like it because I don't know what will happen if he gets mad!  And the only thing in the entire scary ass world that's stands between me and all of that is my baby sister Erica."

            The yelling looked strangely cute coming out of Danielle's pixyish face but it still made the panic in Erica's chest inflate until it filled her up.  One day and she'd already screwed it up and Mr. Arnold was going to come with his cages and his smile and… 

            "I know and I'll do it, I'll do whatever you guys need!"  Hot tears ran down Erica's cheek.  She let Danielle drop into her cupped hand and brought her closer. 

            Danielle slapped her again, this time with both hands.  It almost stung a little but Erica didn't drop her. 

            "NO!   You walking around with sad eyes begging to make me comfy just shows me how pathetic I am!  Your family doesn't need nice little Erica the mouse asking if we're ok, we need a damn lion making sure of it.  You're the mom & the dad now Erica, and that means that you have to be tough, it means that you have to decide what's best for us and stick to your guns even when we whine, and it means that when we look up at you we need to believe that you know what you're doing, EVEN IF YOU DON'T!"

            Erica didn't say anything, but Danielle noticed that the tears had stopped at least.  Erica placed Danielle onto her belly and pulled a big wad of tissues out of the box on the nightstand. 

            "Hey," Danielle yelled as Erica wiped her eyes, "That's my house you're soaking!"

            "Oh, Danni I'm sorry I just…"

            Erica paused. 

            "I mean…tough, I need them and I'll get you some more tissues in the morning." 

            After a few seconds she said smiled weakly.  "Was that better?" 

            "A little bit, very butch." Danielle said with a wink.  She sat down on Erica's belly and let her velvet gown swallow her up.   She let out a long sigh.

            "Erica, do you know what I felt when you threw up last night?  Ya know, aside from horror and disgust and the absolute knowledge that I was about to die in a flood of sister vomit?  I felt relieved, so relieved that it was you who was going to stay big and not Cole or Derrick or Sammy, or god help us Brittany.  I love them but when you're this size you just know who you're safe with and I don't feel safe with them.  You make me feel safe.

            "You can do this.  It's ok to be scared but you have to step up and find a way to make this work for you.  And c'mon, after 16 years of being the little sister you get to be a giant, have fun with it, be a little selfish.  You can do anything you want to me and I can't stop you.  Can you really tell me that you never wanted to have one of us under your thumb, even a little bit?"

            "Danielle no, I love you."

            "What about that time when you were 7 and Brittany beat you up for knocking her bike over?  Or when Derrick told you that ice cream truck drivers always stole one little girl every day?  You cried every time you heard one playing music all summer."

            Erica smiled weakly.  "Heh, yeah, I guess I could have a talk with him about that.  Maybe I could put him in a bowl of rocky road when I do."

            Danielle laughed.  "That's right!  Or what about when I told Dad about you and Lisa buying pot from that gross guy at the bus stop?"

            The soft ground underneath Danielle went hard as rock as Erica's abdomen tensed.  The last thing Danielle saw was Erica's giant eyes narrowing into slits before she was tossed into the air as Erica sprang forward onto her knees.  Danielle tumbled a few times across the soft blanket and when she got her bearings a giant finger pressed against her chest, pinning her roughly onto her back.

             She opened her eyes and her vision was filled by Erica's angry face hovering above her.

            "That was you?!" Erica said loudly, her hot breath making Danielle flinch.  "You little shit, I was grounded for a month, I had to go door to door and apologize to all our neighbors.  That was the only time dad ever spanked me!"

            Danielle's little heart pounded against Erica's finger through her velvet gown.   

'Oh shit, maybe I should have kept that one to myself' she thought. 

            "Ahm….yeah?  I'm sorry, I didn't want you getting hurt by that skeeze bag!"

            Erica stared down at Danielle for several seconds, letting the little girl squirm under her finger.  "Oh, you're sorry, that makes it all better.  Ok, fine, tell you what, tomorrow you're telling dad about when you made out with Bill Turdyck in mom & dad's bed or I'm gonna tan that little backside of yours redder than mine was.  Is that enough fun for you, shrimp?"

            "Ok Erica, yeah, I will definitely 100% do that," Danielle pleaded.  "In the meantime could you maybe let me go, I get it, you're tough and in charge!  Ah, PRETTY PRETTY PLEASE?"

            Erica smiled and lifted her finger.  "Hmmm, maybe you had a point with your 'have fun with it' doctrine."  She laid her hand flat against the bed palm up and gestured for Danielle to climb on. 

            Danielle tentatively got to her knees and crawled aboard.  

            Erica raised Danielle up and gave her a kiss with the puckered tip of her lips that still wetly enveloped Danielle's cheek.   "Was that more what you were talking about Danni?"

            "That was…yeah, that was something...Feel better?"

            "God, I actually do.  Just to not hold onto the stress so tightly for a second...Thanks Danni.  But do you really really think I can do this, keep you all safe?  I'm so scared that I'm going to ruin everything."

            "I really do," Danielle said and put a hand on her own tender chest.  "And I'm not just saying that because I'm kind of terrified of you right now."

            Danielle stood as tall as she could and wobbled a bit in Erica's palm as she gained her balance.  "Erica, if you promise to protect me, to make sure that I have food and I'm safe and maybe help me get some kind of life outside of this house then I promise to honor you as my guardian.  I promise to be a good little sister for you, to always do what you say even if I don't always agree and to do everything in my power to support and take care of you."

            "I….damnitt Danielle, you're gonna make me cry again!"

            "Hey, we went over this already, no crying.  Don't you make me slap a bitch!"

            Erica didn't cry, but instead turned the lamp off and cupped Danielle against her cheek.  Danielle hugged Erica's jaw with both arms for a long time until Erica laid herself down on the bed.  She placed Danielle onto her chest and Danielle nuzzled herself against Erica's breast, a warm giant hand blanketed overtop of her.   

            The two sisters, guardian and guarded, slept through the night grasping each other.  Erica didn't wake up once. 

The next morning Cole and Sammy lined up outside the bathroom door, waiting for their turn.  When Derrick stepped out Erica rushed up in her pajamas, her hand wrapped around Danielle's bottom half. 

            "Us first, I have to pee so bad and Danni needs to use the sink."

            "No way," Cole said and grasped the door knob as Derrick maneuvered around them.

            "Yes way," Erica said and blocked the doorway with her arm.  She craned her neck up as they stood almost body to body.  "My name's on the lease now Cole, this is my bathroom and I'll use it when I want.  So unless you want to start sleeping in my panty drawer in a few days then just back off, ok?"

            Cole stared down at her for several long seconds but Erica didn't back down.  Then he blinked.

            "Fine, jesus," he said and let go of the door knob, "you can use the damn bathroom". 

            "Thanks bro," Erica said and flashed him a big smile, then stepped inside and  closed the door behind her.  "Well that didn't suck," Cole & Sammy heard faintly.   

            The two brothers waited in silence.  After a minute Sammy poked Cole in the ribs.

            "That counted as your turn, I'm next."