"Jane, something weird is in the forest," Mara said, a look of confusion on her face.
"What?" The rogue answered, a bit dazed from her sleep.
"You'll just have to see," and with that, the two headed deeper into the woods until Jane was met with possibly the most unexpected sight: A small festival.
" What the hell is a fair doing here?" Jane asked, bewildered.
"I don't know, I haven't gotten close but it seems like no one is here despite there being recently lit candles."
Mara was right. No one was in sight but the small pavilion was well maintained. Many striped tents were strewn about the forest path, as well as torches, booths, and even a small fenced-in area for animals. Yet there were no signs of life anywhere from either man nor beast. The fair seemed completely empty.
"We'll we need supplies so let's have a look," Jane said, getting to her feet and heading into the center of the fair. The two explored the various outdoors attractions, but nothing of use was to be found.
"Nothing's here," Mara said, confused.
"Well, we haven't searched in there," Jane pointed at the central tent, above which were the words "Freak Show".
The two walked into the tent, pushing aside the entry flaps as they stepped through to the interior, "So just what is a 'Freak Show' anyways?" Jane asked as the two continued through a hallway, letting the flaps close behind them.
"You've never heard of them? I'm not too surprised I guess, they used to be very popular across the lands, especially the Imperium after its collapse," Mara explained as they walked past sections of walls made if glass that looked into where the freaks would presumably be kept... if any were here. The place seemed deserted just like the rest of the fair. Above each pane of glass seemed to be plaques of wood where the names of the attractions would presumably be, but oddly enough each one was scratched beyond being legible. Each of the rooms they had seen looked like they had various furniture inside, including containers that might have useful supplies inside, but each and every one of the doors they came across thus far were closed and locked.
Mara continued, regardless of the chill she felt running up her spine at seeing the vandalized plaques, "You don't really see them these days, at least not here in Bitemarsh, but back then they were kind of like travelling shows. They were really depraved and cruel though, I mean they kind of had to be, they were essentially created from the decadence of a fallen empire. They pretty much put those who were either malformed from birth, accident, or magic on display, or sometimes just people with unusual physical characteristics."
"Like fat people?" Jane said, looking back at the mage as she quirked her brow.
"Well, erm, yes. Usually people with girth are considered wealthy, well-off, or even lazy. After what happened in the old empire though, that changed somewhat for their culture... how did you know anyways?"
Having looked through and walked past the various empty rooms, Mara and Jane came across the first named freak room, and once Mara had read its plaque Jane didn't need to say another word. Above the door was the word "fattest lady." Looking through the glass, Jane saw a large bed big enough for four and a very big dining table. The two adventurers shared a nervous glance, Mara grabbing her curved belly in her hands subconsciously as they both pondered the implications of this. The door to the room was open however, unlike all the others, and the chance to search for goods was too much for Jane to pass up.
"Might be something in here," Jane thought. She walked inside the room as Mara looked around outside, the elf apparently too spooked by the sign to join her investigation and noticed that the glass was one way in this room. In here the glass wall was a mirror from the inside reflecting herself and the room. As she searched Jane didn't notice the door quietly shut and lock.
She stood up from looking under the bed and put a hand on what remained of her leather armor: It felt even tighter than it did before somehow. Suddenly, Jane heard faint, tittering laughter, its tone feminine and mischievous, yet also haunting as it echoed hollowly through the room. Immediately the rogue's eyes were drawn to the two-way-mirror, the only possible source of the noise, and as she looked at the mirror in terror, she realized she had begun gaining weight impossibly fast. Her stomach was clearly bigger, her ample hips and butt pushed her armor to the limits and her comparatively smaller breasts were also swelling larger.
The strange laughter rang through the air once more, and Jane suddenly felt extremely self-conscious as the straps of her armor burst apart to reveal the pale, fleshy belly beneath as it continued to bloat. She ran to the door, feeling a rip down the middle of her leather pants as she did. She tried the door but it was horrified to find it was locked, "Mara! Help!" She yelled.
Mara hadn't seen what was going on in the other room, having been too busy searching through a nearby stack of crates. As soon as Jane's screams had reached her pointed ears however, the mage leapt into action and ran for the door, her eyes widening and her heart pounding with fright as she saw a panicking and already fatter Jane on the other side of the glass.
Jane could hear the sound of footsteps and after the door handle rattled from Mara's own attempts to open it, she heard the elf's voice, "Jane! Hold on, I'm going to get you out of there!"
Mara's mind was racing, trying to figure out the best options. The fastest way to get Jane out of the room would be to simply blow the door open with a spell, which wouldn't be too hard for the experienced wizard. It might be dangerous for the rogue however, especially considering the small room she was in left very little space to take cover from the explosion. Alternatively, Mara had noticed what seemed to be an office at the end of the hallway that could very well hold a key to the room Jane was locked in, but the fattening rogue had precious little time.
After a brief moment, Jane heard Mara shout from the other side of the door, her reply comforting the helpless rogue whatever it was...
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