Tanner’s sluggish mind needed extra time to clear the cobwebs as he awakened. His attempt to sit up was thwarted by Ivory’s finger pushing him flat.

“Lay down sweetie. You gave me quite the scare there when you bumped your noggin. You need more rest.”

While the pain in his skull was undeniable there were more pressing events that preceded and followed it. He couldn’t put together the complete chain of events, but he knew enough.  “Where’s Ingrid?”

“You don’t have to worry about her Tanner. Right now you just need to close your eyes.” Ivory said.

“Did you really kick her out?”

“…Go to sleep Tanner.” Ivory sighed.

“And then what? Pretend everything before didn’t happen? That you didn’t crush my house and that you didn’t toss aside Ingrid like garbage?”

Ivory retaliated to Tanner’s probing by swiping him into her palm. “Enough, we don’t need her. It’s just the two of us now; everything is okay.”

“This is Ivory?” Tanner wondered about this facet of her he was witnessing. How strong was his denial to overlook her bizarre behavior as of late? A better question, how strong was his complacency that he let her shape his world the way she has and fueled her desire to continue doing so?

Tanner shook his head. “It’s not okay, none of this is okay.”

Ivory caressed his head with a digit. “It is dear, don’t think about it. Just rest your little head and let me handle everything.”

“Typical.” It’s what she always did in the face of his concerns. A gentle touch and platitude that placated him. In a life where he thought himself powerless and incapable Ivory was a godsend. Someone who showed him unconditional kindness and he was happy to relinquish control to. How much of himself did he surrender to Ivory that she can’t even talk to him as an equal and at what cost did his current security in life come? It was easy to constitute all his life’s problems to being small and fantasize how much better off he’d be at normal size. That’s what he always wanted, but only now realized what he needed was deeper than that.

“I can’t do this anymore. Not if you’re going to be like this.”

“Hm? What does that mean dear?” Ivory continued to rub his temple. His answer was nothing she could have anticipated.

“I don’t think I can be here anymore.”

Ivory immediately maneuvered her hand from holding Tanner in her palm to having him ensnared in her fingers.

“You don’t mean that.” Ivory said.

“I do.”

From within her grasp Tanner deciphered beyond her stoic demeanor and jittered in tandem with her trepid hand.

“…Heh...hehe.” Ivory steadied her wrist with her free hand and giggled.  “You’re so silly, this is why I’m the adult and you’re the child who doesn’t know what’s good for him.” Her grin stretched, remembering all his words were weightless. No matter what he said the fact remained he was the one trapped and weak while she was big and the in control.

“Look at where you are dear, you’re the one who is literally in the palm of my hand. In my room. Under my roof. In my house. Without me what do you have?” Her digit went back to stroking his hair, her grin curling to an elated smile. “I control your whole world and there’s nothing you can do about it. You’re going to stay put and that’s that.”

“There it is.” There was so much praise he could speak of Ivory yet the critical component of her he never acknowledged. It all came from a place of her perceiving him as small and if need be she was able and more importantly willing to force herself upon him if necessary.

“Do you really care so little for what I think?”

“T-Tanner.” Her voice waivered and the quiver in her hand reignited. There were no other options.

“You don’t get it Tanner.” She said with renewed resolve. “I was so scared when she dropped you. I always thought the worst that might happen was an oblivious moment of carelessness. But, the extent of what someone would consciously do never occurred to me.” Ivory reinforced her grip and held her son within both hands.

“That’s when I decided to do some research and found all sorts of... people. People talking about what they’d do to someone like you, what they’d want if they were like you.”

Most of Ivory’s explanation was lost on Tanner until he connected the dots after the last statement. The fetish he understood as a layer of someone’s sexuality, the question though was what Ivory interpreted from it.

“Those are just people indulging in a fantasy.”

Ivory was unconvinced. “Fantasy? Well lucky for me I have the actual thing right here.” She poked his forehead and uncurled her hand to have him lying flat on her palm again.

“I wonder what they’d give to have someone so small around.” Her pincer-like nails gripped onto his shirt. “Many of them compared it to having their own doll that they can dress up and play with.” After some tugging she removed it and repeated the process on his pants.

“Ivory enough!” Flail as he did Ivory’s might prevailed and his pants were discarded alongside his shirt, his undergarments followed right after leaving him nude.

“No, it’s not enough Tanner. Do you honestly believe that everyone out there is as kind as I am?”

“So, what’s the alternative? You just expect me to be stuck here forever!” Tanner exclaimed.

“What choice other choice do you have Tanner? As unlikely as it is at least you would probably survive being someone’s doll, however there were far more popular preferences.”

Gripping Tanner’s wrist between two of her digits she lifted him above her head. Reasonably anything beyond the height of a table made him uneasy. The easy fix was simply not looking down, however in this flimsy grasp where his legs dangled over the equivalent of a multi-story building there wasn’t anything else to focus on than a long long fall.

“Don’t worry you’re not going to fall sweetie. After all, from what I saw several people would love to see something like this.”

Tanner feared any excessive movement would make Ivory lose her grip. He was forced to remain in static terror as she hovered him over her titled head.

“I must admit I’m curious to why so many people would like to eat you. I’m glad I get to experience first hand what the appeal is.”  

Tanner forced a swallow. “You don’t mean that.”

“Of course I mean it, it’s so easy all I have to do is lower you just like this.” Ivory demonstrated and parted her mouth open.

Tanner had to stay calm, he knew Ivory’s game now and this was her last-ditch effort to break him. This situation called for every tactic of mental resilience, but he was ensnared the second he looked down into Ivory’s mouth, so deadly yet oddly mesmerizing.

“She’s going to stop, she has to.” Tanner told himself. There’s no way Ivory would ever do that, then again, he would’ve said the same about her crushing his house, calling him not normal, belittling him while he was at her feet… would she really do it? She said it was just the two of them now, could this be her sick way to make sure they were always together as he was digested by her stomach acids- No! He can’t psyche himself out, she was going to stop she had to.

With every iota of descent Tanner’s next breath was harder to muster than the last. “She won’t do it.” He stared at the center abyss of the pink cavern that was the one-way ticket to her stomach drawing closer. “She won’t do it.” He was near her lips and the breeze of her exhales tickled his feet. This was the moment her fake out would be revealed. Ivory lowered him further and his feet were submerged first into her mouth.

“Ivory!”

The pressure on Tanner’s wrist lessened and his heartrate spiked as he wondered if she was going to let go at any second. He was lowered deeper leaving half his body from the waist down submerged. The cold sweat on his body contrasted by his lower half being encased by the humid warmth of her mouth.

“I-I-Ivory.” He stammered.

With a quick flick Ivory ran her tongue up his legs and Tanner cracked.

“NOOOOOOO!” Tanner drew erratic breaths desperately attempting to calm his shivering body while Ivory lifted him from her mouth. He closed his eyes trying to draw from his depleted well of courage, ignoring the tears on his face, and the fact Ivory placed him to the floor.

“Well that was interesting, though I don’t get how anyone would go through with that and not choke. Either or I almost forgot, there was one thing even more popular.” Ivory smirked. “Isn’t it fitting that everyone wants to crush you.”

Instead of fight or flight, his body conspired against him and froze. Tanner barely mustered enough control to clench his fists and tried willing his body and mind to do anything to overcome its fear. His being was aware it was faced with the perfect recipe of terror, associating Ivory’s godlike size with immeasurable strength, the danger she posed on his smaller being, and an awareness that he lacked any means of defense. It didn’t know the next move and the auto response generated was bladder relief.

Ivory couldn’t keep a straight face as the trickle of urine leaked to the floor. “Hahahaha, are you that scared sweetie! But let me guess you’re going to somehow survive out there?” She mocked before shifting back. “You’re pathetic Tanner.”

Amused she watched her pitiful child’s uncoordinated stumbles to a vertical base and him struggle to hobble a couple of feet away before she intercepted him underneath her toes with three steps of her mighty feet.

“You should have always known it would be this way.” She patronized increasing the pressure on his puny body through a careful dispersion of her body weight.

“I won’t give up…” Tanner squeaked, lacking an ounce of conviction.

“That’s what you don’t get Tanner. Do you think it matters whether or not you give up? You are under my foot because that’s where I want you to be! This fact is no different here than it would be anywhere else. You could be safe in my care, but you’d rather try your luck and inevitably be treated like this!” Ivory focused her weight further on Tanner who despite trying his best to resist his arms quickly gave out and he lied smushed onto the floor.

“Deep down you know it’s true too. How often have people looked down on you, picked on you, and humiliated you for no other reason besides ‘they can’? Everyone knows the answer except for you, because you’re small! We all know this Tanner, so when will you accept it?”

“…I don’t know.” Tanner wept. Why did it have to be this way for him? He wanted to forget the days of him being bullied, the stares of bigger people looking down on him, the condescension of people belittling him. What did he have to prove by going back into the world and subjecting himself to that treatment? What would he have to show for it besides abuse and misery? It was so scary, was he better off here?

“Give up Tanner, you’ll always be small.”

“That’s not true!”

Ivory paused, alleviating the pressure on her son at the unexpected voice from outside the door. After a moment of deliberation she recognized it belonged to the youngest daughter of Blair and Abel.

“Abigail?” Ivory questioned. “Why are you here? Leave!”

“I won’t leave.” Gail declared. “You’re wrong about Tanner. You don’t see the same Tanner I see.”

“You know it all brat. You don’t understand anything.” Ivory spat. “You’ve spent all of two days with him and you think you know him better than me? Tell me eavesdropper, do you know he’s underneath me right now? Do you know he’s utterly helpless while I’m having a casual talk with you? The same small Tanner that I see, is the same small person that everyone sees.”

“HE’S NOT SMALL!” Gail barked. “You think he’s small because you look at him for nothing more than his size. He’s more than just his height measurement, a lot more!”

Gail huffed and regained her breath. “He’s brave, braver than everyone I know. I thought it was tough being the shortest in family and in most places I go. But when I see Tanner who has gone through and dealt with so much, it’s inspiring, it takes real perseverance, yet all you want to do is shrink him down and make him feel like he doesn’t matter!”

“Tanner, please listen to my voice.” Gail relied on faith that he was listening. “I won’t stand by and let her treat you like this. I’m not going to hurt you. You’re so strong Tanner. I know it’s hard and there are times where you’re tired of fighting to find your place in the world, but we’re all here for you, me, Ingrid, Blake, Abel, Blair, Julie, all of us. You’re not small Tanner. You’re big.”

Ivory was stunned by Gail’s impassioned speech so much that she neglected her initial question of why Gail was there. While Ingrid and Blake did leave the house, they remained outside so the former could call Julie. Gail remained inside staking outside the door to ensure things didn’t escalate too far and only interfered when Ivory’s radical behavior neared its apex.

“Miss Ivory please open the door.” Another voice begged.

“Blake?” Ivory mouthed out. The last pivotal detail that flew under her radar during Gail’s speech was Julie, Ingrid, and Blake all making their way upstairs outside her door.

“Ivory please. I understand what you’re thinking, but this is not the way. This will not do any good for Tanner or yourself. So please just open up.” A concerned Julie tried to reason.

Ivory shook her head. “N-no, you’ll take him… I know you will.”

“Mom. If not for our family, if not for me, do it for Tanner’s sake. Please stop hurting my little brother.” Ingrid’s voice cracked.

“I would never hurt him.” Ivory said.

Every person standing opposite of her was ready to rebuke her statement, however the person who refuted it came from right underneath her.

“You hurt me more than anyone else.”