"The Bigger, the Better?"

by Furor Scribendi

2008 Scribendi Productions

November 14th

Mahoro had been up for 20 minutes, sitting on the bed, but still had not gotten dressed for the day, as she was pondering her options. Last night had told her a lot about people's reactions to her new figure. She was considering whether she should step up to the next size, the 101D, or remain with the 96C.

She decided to go with the larger and then step back if it was required, but she was having some doubts. However, that WAS the point of all this, 'Try Before You Buy'. Not only to examine how she felt about all this, but how other people reacted to all of this as well. And they were certainly reacting! She arose and got dressed for the day.

She was very aware as to how heavy they were getting. It did require a lot of effort to maintain this approach, but she felt that this was ultimately the way she wanted to go. However, this particular test was creating additional problems she hadn't foreseen. She had a rather hard time getting her maid outfit on, as it wasn't really designed for someone of such increased girth as she was now becoming.

Mahoro eventually got herself dressed, but it was quite obvious how snug her uniform was. She gazed at herself in the mirror. She felt she really wanted to have herself this big. Not just to prove a point to Shikijo-sensei, but to prove a point to herself. Heading downstairs, she started breakfast and prepared for the rest of the day.

As she finished up Suguru's bento, he came down to eat. He seemed a bit draggy and when he saw Mahoro larger than ever, there was apparently no immediate reaction from him. Mahoro seemed a bit hurt by all that. She served breakfast to him, and then sat down across from him.

"Are you all right? Are you feeling feverish?" She reached over to feel his forehead.

Suguru looked up at her, and then quickly turned himself away from her, so he was looking at the wall. "Mahoro, I need to tell you something, but I can't look at you when I say this. I do think it is important that it be said." Mahoro sat upright in her seat, her immense breasts resting upon the table.

Suguru made a side glace at them, but stiffened his resolve. "Whatever it is you are doing to yourself, I would like it if you would please stop." Mahoro looked stunned as Suguru continued, gasping for air like a stranded fish.

"I know what this means to you, but you need to know what you mean to me. On the one hand, part of me is just jumping with joy. When I first saw you on the bus that day in June, I thought you were the cutest girl I had ever seen. I was hoping that I could get someone as pretty as you to be my maid, to wake me up in the morning, your lovely breasts hanging down to greet me. There is an ample bosom, on which I can rest my weary head, when you hold me and need to protect me. And for someone as hopeless as I am, it is a dream come true."

Surugu looked over to Mahoro for a moment, and then looked away, his face reddening with every passing moment, the sweat dribbling down. "I can't look at you now, because if I do, I won't be able to say this in the way it needs to be said. The other part of me doesn't think of you in that manner, because you don't think of friends that way.

"If you wanted to change anything about you, I would support your decision. If you wished to dye your hair red, that would be fine. If you chose to wear just a t-shirt and shorts rather than your maid uniform, I have no problem with that. If you feel that you must….increase your bust, then, so be it. But I don't want it to change the core person."

Mahoro started to come over to Suguru, but he kept angling away. He really could not bring himself to look at her right now. She stopped chasing him about and let him continue. She stood off to one side, so she was in his blind spot. He went on.

"If I had to choose between large breasts and a large heart, I'll take the heart every time. Just because Shikijo-sensei has large breasts doesn't make her a better person. In fact, she will never be better than you, in any manner or form. I know she can be a bit of a handful…uh, I mean, a bit much to tolerate, but that is because she knows she can never be who you are: pure of heart and kind of heart and gentle of heart."

Suguru paused to catch his breath. He felt like he was going to hyperventilate and pass out. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mahoro looking sad. He turned about to see tears on her cheeks. Immediately, he stood up and came over to her. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. Like I said, if this is what you want…."

Mahoro gave him a big hug. Suguru flinched, as her breasts pushed into him. This is a weird sensation, he thought, as he returned the hug.

"Oh, Suguru. That is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me. This means a great deal coming from you." Mahoro held him closer and Suguru was absolutely melting from it. His brain was on fire as dirty thoughts careened about his overheated fornix. There was so much he really, REALLY wanted to do with Mahoro, to Mahoro, on Mahoro, but he had to hold himself in check. His words had to mean something, not only to her, but to him. They could not be empty or baseless blatherings.

Mahoro then looked into Suguru's eyes. "This will help me a lot. I know now what I want and what I have to do. You get yourself ready for school." Wiping the tears from her eyes, she went back into the kitchen to finish up her chores. Suguru's sat back at the table, his head landed onto it with a heavy thud. He had been sweating a great deal over the last 12 hours and was afraid he would shrivel away to nothing.

Suguru was sent on his way to school, albeit a bit tottering from weakness. Mahoro went back into the house and changed out, putting the items back into the suitcase. She still wanted the augmentation, but she knew that she did not have to go overboard for it. She now knew how to phrase her request to get better results from Vesper for it. As she stared into the open suitcase, she thought how nice it would be to have pictures of herself and….a new thought presented itself to her.

Getting out the phonebook, she made a series of calls. Once that was done, she grabbed the two suitcases and left the house. In the yard, Slash was lounging about.

"Slash, I need to step out for a couple of hours. Please watch the house."

Not a problem," he said and rolled back over, going to sleep.

As Mahoro headed down the street, her departure did not go unnoticed. To everyone else, it looked like a father taking his younger child for a walk, but looks could be very deceiving. The young boy spoke into a cell phone.

"Base, this is 227. Subject has left the house and we will tail. I am going to activate the Capture Drone. I will report on progress."

Oblivious to all this, Mahoro took the suitcases downtown, but she was not going back to the doctor's office. Instead, she went into Focus On You, a photo studio. She was greeted by a rather studious person.

"Ah, yes, my 10 o'clock; Ms. Ando. Do you have what you might need?"

She held up the suitcases. "I think I do." She was escorted to a back area where she put down the suitcases.

"Have you given thought to what you wanted to do?"

Mahoro nodded. "I would like it to come off like those glamour photos for actors."

The photographer nodded. "Yes. So a shot like this…." He got a binder and showed a series of photos. There were head shots and moderate body shots. "Is this what you had in mind?"

Mahoro nodded. "Yes, but in color, rather than black-and-white."

"Is this what you are going to wear?" he gestured towards her outfit.

"Yes. Why?"

"Not to dissuade you, but your outfit is rather monochromatic, save for your brooch and ascot. I think I could do some really fabulous work in black-and-white. Let me show you." He seated her and put up some basic lighting. Grabbing an instant camera, he took one shot, swapped out cameras and took another shot. "I want to show you how we can make it look good in both direction, but I can make the monochrome better."

When the shots were ready he showed them to her. "Let me explain. With the gray scale, I can play up light and shadow better. I can soften your skin tones and get a sharp clarity to the edges.

"If you were going to show a bit more skin, then I would have no qualms in going with the color, but I feel that it does not take full advantage of the colors. I mean, a green background is just not fully worth it to have color shots. I do want you to think about this as I get some things ready." Mahoro looked at the test shots as the photographer set up.

Meanwhile, outside, 227 sat on a bench, feeding the pigeons, trying to look normal, the drone at the ready. He spoke into the phone. "Base, this may take a while. I am going to leave the drone here while I investigate further."

Inside, the photographer had Mahoro sitting on a stool as he took a series of base shots. She was impressed as to how quickly and efficiently he worked. "So, I am taking these basic shots and we can discuss effects later. Some people wish to have a dreamlike quality to them."

"I would like a nice sharp and clear photo. I want them to see everything is crisp detail."

"Good, good. That makes things so much easier. Now, what is in your suitcases? Different outfits? Certain props or items you require?"

"Well, yes and no," said Mahoro, as she blushed. She went over and opened them for him to see. He merely nodded.

"Dr. Payoo Payo, right?" Mahoro nodded. "I know exactly what to do. I really love that guy." He went over and brought another binder to Mahoro. "Take a look at these."

Mahoro opened the binder and saw wonderful photos of these women with the appliances on. She was really impressed as to how he made everyone look so pretty and not freakish. She saw how well he really was able to render the photos in black-and-white.

"Did you get the Moose?" he asked. Mahoro again nodded. He set up a dressing screen off to one side and moved the suitcases behind it. "I am ready when you are ready."

Mahoro came out and sat on the stool as the photographer made some final light meter tests. He got behind the camera and waited…and waited….and waited. He then peered about the camera and looked at her. Mahoro looked back at him. "Is there a problem?" she asked.

"I might inquire the same of you." He came over to her, looking pensive. "A photograph does more than show what can be seen; it can also show what can be felt. But I am not seeing what you feel."

Mahoro looked puzzled. The photographer continued. "Did you ever see 'The Little Mermaid'? When they were in character design, Glen Keane, head animator, told his staff that 'Ariel is sexy in an innocent way, unaware of her natural charm and appeal.' These photos I'm taking are not of some cheap floozy or some pneumatic bimbo or some gold-plated hussy. They are of you, as you want to be remembered, and something to be proud of, not hidden away as some kind of terrible mistake."

He put his fingers on her eyelids, closing her eyes. "I want you to feel; not think, but feel. I want you to feel what it is like when you wear these appliances. I want you to show me your sensations, your dreams, your emotions, what you are experiencing when you put these on. Your thoughts will direct how you want to be seen and, more importantly, those feelings that you have."

He took his fingers off her eyes. "Keep your eyes closed and explore. Do what you believe you must to show me how you feel, how you want yourself to feel. When you are fully ready, open your eyes and we shall begin."

Mahoro kept her eyes close and searched herself, examining all those reasons that she wanted the fuller bust line. What it meant for her and what she was hoping to accomplish. A warm sensation filled her, a friendly, happy wave that buoyed her spirits. Yes, she thought to herself, that is exactly what I want. She opened her eyes. "I think I am ready."

"Yes, I think you are as well," he commented and the first photo was taken.

Mahoro was surprised how quickly the entire session went, even when she changed out from size to size. She did need a little help with the Moose, but it all went smoothly. It was all done with a high degree of professionalism and taste; something to be proud of when it was all done. When he finished the last shot, he spoke. "What I am going to do is work up a contact print for you and then you can select the shots that you may want. This will take a couple of days. I have your number to call you when they are ready. Do you wish to change out?"

"No, I think I'll wear the Moose home with me. It will be my only opportunity to do so. The doctor was right. It IS a bit impractical." She gestured to herself. "This is a lot of work. Thank you, again, for all that you have done." Picking up her suitcases, she left the studio. The warm feeling was still with her as she fairly strode from the store, a huge smile across her face. She felt wonderful.

Across the street, 227 and the robot watched her leave and began to give a loose pursuit. However, the robot began to outpace 227, in a mono-minded attempt to track down Mahoro. 227 debated keeping up with him, but decided instead to watch both the hunter and the hunted in this transaction.

At first, Mahoro was just walking along, taking in the slightly cooler afternoon weather, but she was aware that something wasn't right. She was getting that odd feeling again and it wasn't from wearing the Moose. Her happy feeling was fading away as the apprehension grew. So clued in to getting to the source of this anxiety, she was oblivious to the reactions about her, as people walked into light poles, crashed over small dogs and smacked into other people gaping at her. She was leaving a small swath of destruction behind her.

Someone is following me, she thought, but are they going to comment on my figure or do they want something else? The last two times I felt this way, I was correct with my feelings. Not wishing to take any chances, she began a series of maneuvers to flush out this phantom follower. If it was something worse, she wanted to be far away from civilians, in case a fight broke out.

As she turned into an alley, she ran to the end of it, dropped the suitcases and spun about to see the robot there, blocking the exit. He fired off some kind of ensnaring device at her. Mahoro barely got out of the way, her balance off-center, owing to the Moose. The net scraped against her chest, but could not fully latch on to her. Realizing she needed more room, she leapt up to the roof, the robot in hot pursuit. She had to push herself hard against the drag of the prostheses.

Atop the roof, the robot was relentless in trying to capture her. Mahoro's other problem was staying ahead of it all. The Moose was just getting in the way of everything, but she had no time to do something else, save remaining out of reach. As she pondered her options, the robot was on her mind as well. Another snare trap was fired and it missed, but it grazed her feet.

This was the same caliber of robot that tracked her two weeks earlier, but better attuned to things and less prone to reacting erratically. But who could be doing this and why? She had a hunch, but no clear evidence that this was the case.

They leapt from rooftop to rooftop. This robot was more aggressive than the last one, so Mahoro knew she had to make a stand somewhere. While in flight, she tore off her uniform top and undid the Moose, holding it like a sling. She landed on one roof, turned about and leapt back, while the other robot was in the air.

Mahoro made a movement that she was going to arc lower, but soared higher instead. The robot fired at where she wasn't. Before he could recover for another shot, as they passed, she smacked him hard in the head with the Moose, which sent the robot reeling. Now, unencumbered by the protuberances, Mahoro's agility was unmatched.

Alighting on the roof, she dropped the Moose, unsheathed her thigh sword and headed back to the robot, which was staggering about. She made short work of the robot, as an arcing pirouette put her out of range of his weapons and when she came close to him, her speed was almost blinding. The capture drone never stood a chance.

Finally tracking them down, 227 relayed the information back to headquarters as he watched from another roof. "Robot has been defeated. Send out the retrieval squad to the Nakatomi Tower. You may wish to consider Project 370 at this point. I will give a full report upon my return."

Staring at the smoking hulk of the robot, Mahoro looked about but saw no one else. She undid her yellow hair ribbon and tied it about her chest. It was bad enough she had to ruin another maid outfit, but there was no reason to run around in such an exposed manner. She retrieved the Moose and headed back to the alley to get the suitcases.

The Moose was put into its case, and then she called upon the Sylpheed to get her home fast. Acting as though nothing had happened, she went about her normal chores, which meant cleaning the prosthetics up, placing them back in the cases properly, changing her outfits, retying her hair ribbon and heading one last time to the doctor's office.

When she got there, she brought the cases into the back area. The receptionist was perplexed as she stared at them. "You had them for about a day…"

Mahoro smiled. "You learn about things faster than you realize. Please, let the doctor know that I am grateful for this opportunity, but I don't think the time is quite right."

The receptionist smiled. "I understand. Should that time arrive, I hope that you will consider us." She finished up the last of the paperwork and the deposit was returned.

"Yes, I certainly will." Mahoro looked at the clock. "Oh, my, is that the time? I really have to go now." She bowed and left the office.

Once back at home, she busied herself with getting things ready for Suguru's arrival after school. For someone in 'retirement', she was certainly leading a more active life than imagined. But she still couldn't figure out who was sending these robots after her. The thought was pushed from her mind as she had to get a nice snack prepared for Suguru when he came home, which she finished just in time.

"Mahoro, I'm back. Glad to leave school behind," he called out

She presented herself to him. "Welcome home. Do you notice anything different?"

He looked at her for a moment. "Your smile, which is the prettiest thing of all."

MAHORO'S SYSTEMS WILL CEASE TO FUNCTION IN 247 DAYS

End Notes

Another aspect of writing these fanfics is time placement. My personal philosophy is that I do not want to run over other stories in the timeline. For example, I cannot have her having dinner with Suguru when he is otherwise out of town, or she can't be in a TV studio fighting other chefs when she is to be downtown fighting robots.

But you also have to balance the kind of reality. As I mentioned in the Halloween episode, I need to show better the early probings by the Keepers of Mahoro and her abilities, rather then just dump it all on people with the arrival of Minawa.

I also had to put a bit of time balance between the first incident (October 31st, and this is my take on the story arc) and Minawa (December 8th, which is their part of the narrative), as though Management had a series of plans set to go if the previous one failed. And the attack on Minawa is confusing, only because I cannot see Management blowing off 54 million in this failed attempt to "recapture" 370. (This was the fee cited by them, owing to the destruction of the three Man Eaters and the delay of the program. Dr. Kanaan was on the hook for 10 of the costs. A nice way to do business, eh?)

If you read the manga, the whole Minawa affair was a plant right from the get-go AND with the death of some Management/Keeper flunky to keep it all real. (The robots that followed Minawa are just as equally destroyed in print as in picture).

The reason for this time management problem is the manga. There is at least a nine-day chunk of time and potentially a few days longer in middle to late November, when Mahoro was asked to find bombs that had been placed about a Vesper-sponsored academy by a rogue Keeper.

The anime sort of touches on this, when they had an episode of Mahoro looking for a bomb at Suguru's school that turned out to be Shikijo trying to find a time capsule of embarrassing love letters and school-girl poetry of love she wrote while she was a student at that very school.

As to Suguru's speech, that kind of reflects my feeling about all of this, that mixed emotions. I mean, when you first start to write fan fiction, there is a tendency to write "adult" stories. I have a monstrous pile of the carnal activities of Ariel, Belle, Jane Porter (from Tarzan) Mira Nova (Buzz Lightyear of Star Command), Jasmine and Jessica Rabbit. But I don't think of Mahoro that way.

I mean, what can you really do with a lemon fic or a lime fic of Mahoro? Would you even want to do one of her? You potentially couldn't even do one involving Shikijo, unless it was going to remain in the gardens of her mind.

Certainly in the realm of all of this, she is a bit of an oddity. I mean, she's rather delicate in her figure (meanwhile, Shikijo is looming across the landscape.) In the manga, Miyuki makes a comment that she finds Mahoro's body is nicely shaped (but it doesn't stop her and Chizo from buying their own Pi Deal Alpha machine) and both Chizo and Miyuki "attack" Rin at the hot springs in regards to her bust line.

Could someone explain to me all this clutchy-feely stuff I'm seeing? I mean, the same thing happens to Mahoro at the Academy, when Shiori and Yaeko check her out as well, relieved that she is just as 'flat' as they are. I know of the Western obsession with bust lines, but is it also an Eastern obsession as well, or just something that crops up in comics, manga and animes?

OK, I don't want to hear a single word about using the Nakatomi Tower.