Unpredictable Inflation, An

"For every dollar you spend...half of it goes toward the search for the beloved Sarah Macbeth....." Claire read aloud from the tag on a black dress, not unlike the one her first victim wore.

Claire's life had taken a small turn for the better after she painted the Sarah-balloon portrait, selling similar paintings and making more than enough money to live. She stood in the mall where Ms. Macbeth was last seen in public, shelling out fifty bucks for the lovely dress. "Least it's half off...I mean it's practically half a dress..." she muttered, starting to walk home and enjoying a pleasant countryside stroll when a sign caught her eye. "Psychic Readings: Half off Today only!". Claire tried to walk by, but curiosity got the better of her.

A little bell rang as Claire entered the small cottage like home, the aroma of scented candles and incense hitting her as soon as she entered, dazing her for a moment. "Welcome, welcome! My name is Elaine, and I will allow you to glimpse into you future!" A young woman, probably in her early twenties, and dressed up like gypsy from eastern Europe announced loudly, nearly giving Claire a heart attack, the girl almost dropping her backpack and shopping bag. "Come, come..." Elaine made weird motions, Claire's eye brow raising as she followed her back, the bangles on the 'gypsy's' wrists making obnoxious ringing sounds.

They entered the back room, electronic torches dimly illuminating the small circular table, a crystal ball in the center of it. "Oh...this is gonna be rich...." Claire thought, Elaine seating her and than sitting down across from her. "What is your name, young wanderer of the time streams..." Elaine asked, Claire already sensing the stupidity in the air. "Claire Buckberry..." She answered reluctantly, Elaine starting to make silly motions with her hands over the crystal orb. "Ah...you're here out of curiosity...you're....Scottish....and British..." She adds, Claire rolling her eyes a little, as if her surname and accent didn't give her the idea.

After about a half hour of Elaine's blatant cold reading, Claire sighed and reached into her backpack. "Elaine...could I ask you a question..." She asked, Elaine looking at her. "Why...of course! What would you ask of me?" She responded cheerfully, Claire smiling weakly. "Can you predict what's about to happen?" the girl asked, Elaine looking confused. "Well...it's been the half hour, so you're going to pay me, and decide if you'd like to continue, or continue on your daily business...though it's 10 p.m. so I would be closing..." She explained, Claire shaking her head. "Wrong, you air headed gypsy wannabe!" Claire exclaimed, her hand withdrawing from the backpack with a nozzle in hand, shoving it into Elaine's open mouth.

Elaine flailed her arms as the gas started rushing into her, blowing her cheeks up hilariously, her eyes tearing up as the helium made her lightheaded. Claire shoved the nozzle in forcefully, Elaine's breasts making stretching sounds as they pushed the top of her dress out. Her belly as testing the fabric of her clothing as it expanded, Claire leaping over the table as the poor inflating woman's gut pushed her out of her chair, falling backwards. "Hrmph!" Elaine grunted, Claire sitting on her belly and turning the flow on higher, bouncing a little to torment her...an evil smile spreading across her face. "Ach, you're getting rather puffy now..." Claire taunts Elaine, the woman's hips starting to show through the straining seams of the dress, Elaine's belly raising Claire higher as it expanded to the size of a huge beachball, her breasts causing a loud snapping sound as the top of the girl's dress exploded into shreds of fabric, the twin balloons expanding ridiculously now. An elongated tearing sound followed by several snapping noises signified the freedom of the woman's hips, the skirt of the dress ripping apart as her thighs and legs puffed up beyond belief.

Elaine couldn't believe what was going on, her flailing slowing down as her arms went stiff from the helium rushing into them, Claire finally hopping off and letting the woman float to the ceiling, the hose keeping her from actually reaching it. "Mmhmm! You've gotten bloody huge!" Claire sounded excited, reaching into her back pack and pulling out some canvas and paint, getting to work as a very humiliated and surprised Elaine floated there. "Wait..." Claire said, tugging the hose out and tying some flimsy string to Elaine's ankle, and than to a chair leg. Now she began painting, finding herself especially inspired when painting an actual victim. Elaine's puffy cheeks made her giggle, the poor 'psychic's' black hair swaying a little as she did. Finally, after an hour Claire finished her artistic endeavor, quickly drying the portrait and packing it away, making sure to hide the helium nozzle back into her satchel. Claire tied the other end of the string to her wrist, and after waiting for the right moment, she exited the little shop, switching the sign to closed with a now annoyed Elaine huffing angrily.

"You can't do this to me! Get me down from here!" She squeaked and complained the whole trip home to Claire's apartment, the artistic inflator humming to drown it out. As she opened the door to her apartment, she turned and looked up at Elaine. "I bet you didn't see this coming..." Claire smirked, untying the flimsy knot at her end and hastily entering her apartment. Elaine screamed squeakily, feeling herself float higher and higher, sobbing softly as she was now condemned to a life as a balloon, just another one of Claire's victims...