A Taste of Gingerbread Village

By – Garrnet

	Snow poured down from the skies, blurring the lines between the road and the surroundings, aided further by the cover of night. Amidst the fierce white downpour, two headlights barely radiated through the storm. Trekking through the snow-ladened road was a meek sedan, somehow able to keep steady despite its appearance. Defiantly piloting the car was a surprisingly cheerful wolf. Dialing the heater down, she unzipped her fluffy purple hoodie to reveal a casual white t-shirt. Riding alongside the wolf was a light-gray cat, arms crossed and holding her blue sweater close to her body. She was much less confident about continuing through the storm.

	“Lyn, would you please just pull the car over? We can't see a thing and you clearly have no idea where you're going.” The cat pressed, distressed by the increasingly treacherous road ahead. 

	“Of course I know where I'm going, Jess.” Lyn insisted, squinting intensely out of the window. “It's just a little snowy outside, that's all.”

	“Yeah, and the ocean is just a little wet. Maybe if my stupid phone could get a signal I could look up the way home.” The cat sighed and stared tiredly out her window.

	“That's the problem with kids these days! Without their phones, they're helpless!” Jessica rolled her eyes as hard as she could while Lyn grinned innocently.

	“You know that you're a kid these days, right?” Jessica couldn't help but crack a smile. “Besides, we wouldn't have found the restaurant without my...” before she could finish, she noticed she could just barely make out some light coming from ahead. “Hey, you see that?” As they trudged forward, the distant light became more apparent.

	“Looks like a tunnel or something, yeah!” The wolf drove as fast as possible, eager to get out of the storm. “See, Jess? I told you I knew where I was going.”

	“It's... It's just a tunnel, Lyn. Why would that mean anything?” Jessica asked, raising an eyebrow at her enthusiastic friend.

	“Tunnels always lead somewhere important, silly! I'm sure we'll find something on the other side, and then we'll figure out where to go next!”

	“Whatever. Wake me up when you find something.” The cat closed her eyes and slumped over to the side of her seat. Lyn, on the other hand, was wide awake, confident that there would be something waiting at the other side. The tunnel seemed to go on endlessly. After what felt like an eternity, the wolf stared curiously out the window as the lights lining the tunnel changed from a dull yellow to a bright red and green. Her pace hastened as the exit drew near. Finally the car emerged from the tunnel and out into the sun. While snow still covered the ground, the roads were crystal clear, much to Lyn's delight. Her excitement only grew as she began driving past streetlights that she could've sworn looked just like candy canes. Driving further down the road, her jaw dropped as she spotted houses that she was certain were made out of gingerbread.

	“Jess! Hey, Jessica! Wake up!” Lyn shouted, slapping Jessica on the shoulder.

	“I'm up!” The cat jolted up and rubbed her eyes. “Hey, why is it sunny out? How long have you been driving, Lyn?”

	“Only like thirty minutes, I think. But who cares! Look around you!”

	“Are those gingerbread houses?” Jessica asked, her eyes slowly widening. “And are those gingerbread people?”

	“They are!” The wolf squealed. “Are you thinking what I'm thinking?”

	“I don't know, Lyn. I really need to watch what I eat and you always somehow get me carried away with you. It took me forever to lose the weight from last time.”

	“Oh, please! You're plenty capable of getting carried away on your own.” Lyn laughed and pulled the car over in front of what appeared to be the town hall. She unbuckled her seat belt and zipped up her hoodie. “Come on, follow my lead.” Jessica sighed and got up and out of the car. She was pleasantly surprised to notice that it was rather warm out. The two strolled up to the doors of the town hall, crouching down to get inside. They gazed upon the ornate room, amazed that almost everything inside was made of candy and treats. Ahead of them at the reception counter was an adorable little gingerbread secretary.

	“Well, hello there! You two must be new to Gingerbread Village, no?” The secretary asked cheerily.

	“Why, yes, we are!” Lyn grinned widely while Jessica continued to look around.

	“Why don't you go visit our mayor? He's just in that room over there. I'll let him know that you're coming in.” The secretary picked up the phone and pointed the two over to a door at the back left of the hall. Lyn grabbed Jessica's arm and dragged her along to the office. The pair stood in awe of the elaborately-crafted candy office, the grumbling of their stomachs growing steadily louder.

	“Greetings, strangers!” The mayor of the village stood up to meet his guests. “What brings you here to our village today?”

	“Well, to be honest, we were heading home but got lost in a pretty bad snowstorm and wound up here.” Lyn explained to the mayor, looking him over and licking her lips. He was about half her height and adorned with an elaborate frosting outfit.

	“Sorry to hear that. Why don't I give you a personal tour of the town and you can relax here for a while until that storm ends?” The mayor walked over to shake their hands.

	“That sounds awfully nice, Mr. Mayor.” Lyn smiled politely. “And in return, how about I give you a tour of my stomach?” Before the mayor or Jessica could realize what was going on, Lyn lifted the miniature mayor up into the air and quickly into her mouth, chomping him down in moments.

	“Lyn!” Jessica whispered sharply as she nervously checked to see if anyone else was around. “You just ate the mayor! What's your problem?”

	“Oh, sorry, Jess,” the wolf burped and rubbed her stomach, eyeing the rest of the office. “Did you want to eat him? You can have that secretary out front.” She walked over to the mayor's desk, got down on her knees, and took a big bite out of it. “Mmm, even his desk is delicious!”

	“Cut it out, Lyn! Let's just get out of here,” Jessica urged.

	“Relax, would you? Why don't you try a bite of this instead of freaking out?”

	“Alright! I'll try it! But then we need to get out of here, okay?” The cat grumbled and situated herself at the opposite end of the desk. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and cautiously bit into the desk. Then she took another bite, and another, and then several more, quickly losing control of her appetite. With every mouthful of gingerbread her stomach became hungrier and hungrier.

	“There you go! That's what I like to see!” Lyn cheered Jessica on as the two made short work of the desk, leaving only crumbled bits remaining in a matter of minutes. Without a word Jessica bolted out of the office and back into the main hall with Lyn close behind. She went straight to the welcome desk, apologized profusely, and grabbed the gingerbread secretary, stuffing her into her mouth. In the meantime, the wolf sampled as many objects as she could, from pillars and paintings to tables and chairs. Each bit tasted better than the last, leaving the two yearning for more. Jessica, feeling that she had tried everything in the town hall, began to move towards the exit.

	“Whoa there, Jess! Slow down!” Lyn grabbed the ravenous feline and yanked her back.

	“Hey, what gives?” Jessica whined, trying in vain to break free. “You think that was enough to fill me up, huh?”

	“No, and I want more too! Just take it easy for once. We gotta make sure we eat all the gingerbread people first. Why don't you head up the right side of town and I'll head up the left? Once you think you've gotten everyone, meet me back here, alright?”

	“Yeah, yeah, eat everyone, meet you here, got it.” Lyn loosened her grip on her friend, watching her hastily head over to the next house. The wolf briskly made her way to her first house, worried that her friend's voracious appetite would cause a scene before she could get to anyone. The pair went from house to house, devouring anyone they found inside. Jessica became considerably less apologetic with each gingerbread person she swallowed, swept up in her desire to eat more and more. Lyn, on the other hand, took her time with her meals, savoring every bite. After some time, the wolf emerged from the last house on her side of the street, rubbing her distended belly and letting out a hearty belch. She waddled her way back towards the town hall to check up on her friend. Once there, she found her pacing back and forth. She noticed numerous bites had been taken out of everything nearby.

	“Finally! I've been waiting for ages!” Jessica exclaimed, pulling the town hall sign out the ground and biting into it fiercely. Her stomach had grown slightly larger than Lyn's, causing her sweater to begin rolling up her body.

	“Hey, Jess! I'm fine, thanks for asking.” Lyn quipped as she watched Jessica tear into the sign. “Don't forget to breathe every now and then! Did you even chew anything you ate?” The cat ignored her and continued to consume the sign. “Well, now that all of the gingerbread people are situated comfortably in our stomachs, I think we can slow down a little. And by we I mean you.”

	“You're just upset because I'm gonna eat more than you,” Jessica boasted, her mouth still full of the last bits of the sign.

	“Is that so? Well then, consider your challenge accepted!” The two once again went their separate ways, keen to have a taste of every last building in town. As such, no building was safe from the appetites of the two gluttons. Lyn found the bakery to be incredibly delectable, wolfing down both the treats inside and the store itself. She unzipped her hoodie, giving her white-furred stomach more freedom to fill out. Jessica, meanwhile, voraciously tore apart a large house, munching on the corners until the whole thing came crumbling down, at which point she dove into the rubble and dug in to whatever she could find. While their stomachs ballooned bigger and bigger, the wolf and the cat chomped their way through the village. 

	After an hour of fanatical gorging, the entire town lay in shambles. Even the spacious town hall had been turned nearly entirely to crumbs. In the middle of the cul-de-sac, two gingerbread-filled bellies towered over a half-eaten statue, filled to the brim with sugary treats. Both of their belly buttons protruded from their outstretched middles, and the buttons on their pants had long since snapped off from the pressure. Jessica, finally coming down from her sugar high, clutched her over-stuffed stomach and groaned in agony, feeling like she could burst at the seams at any moment. Lyn, lying by her friend's side, was much more pleased with herself, resting her head on her arms and gazing up at her gigantic gut with glee.

	“See, Jess? That wasn't so bad, was it?” The wolf chirped, grabbing a chunk of nearby chocolate and stuffing it into her mouth, getting some on her already frosting covered mouth. Her t-shirt, having ridden up to her pushed-up chest, was equally spotted with crumbs, frosting, and chocolate, although she didn't seem to notice the mess at all.

	“I feel like I'm gonna barf,” the cat moaned, wiping some crumbs off of herself. “I can't believe I let you talk me into this.” Her sweater had also rolled completely up to her chest, leaving her massive belly exposed.

	“Well, if it makes you feel any better, I think you did eat more than me.” Lyn noted, recalling Jessica's prior assertion and feeling just a tiny bit jealous.

	“You're right, knowing I was a bigger pig than you, the queen of excess, does make me feel a whole lot better! In fact, if I wasn't certain that I would explode, I'd eat you too!”

	“Just admit it, you had fun!” Lyn smiled and reached over to slap Jessica's stomach, much to her friend's displeasure. “Besides, you wouldn't eat me. Who else would make you get out and find something like this? Even if it was almost entirely on accident.”

	“The same person who better make me get out to the gym and work this off.”

	“Fair's fair. I'm gonna complain the whole time, though.” The wolf giggled and let out a hearty belch, still marveling over her enormous belly. Stroking her white-furred stomach filled Lyn with joy. Jessica sighed and closed her eyes. She had a hard time understanding how Lyn could be so ecstatic while her own stomach gurgled and churned, trying its best to contain the piles of candy and sweets. Still convinced that her enlarged friend had coaxed her into letting herself go, the fit-to-bursting feline vowed to get a little payback. Once she could move again, that is.