Chapter 8

The days that followed were filled with pure bliss for Mina. Her friendship with Sapphire had morphed into something more, something she had never believed was possible. Mina had long ago assumed she’d be alone her whole life. She was the only person her size (as far as she knew) and the thought of someone desiring a girl the size of their thumb was unlikely, to say the least. Yet Sapphire had embraced the idea. Perhaps their bond transcended their differences. Perhaps it was simply the novelty of it, a kink that was new and exciting. To be honest, Mina didn’t care which. She wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Older and more experienced, Sapphire was quite adept at bringing pleasure to her tiny friend. All it took was a well-placed fingertip or the caress of a tongue to send Mina into ecstasy. For her part, Mina was still learning but she’d wandered around the redhead’s body enough times in their rehearsals to have a good idea of what she liked. 

Thus far, they had erred on the side of caution. They kissed, touched, and explored each other but had not outright slept together. They were unsure if Mina could survive the experience.

“You’re pretty durable, sweet pea,” Sapphire said. “But ya can still get hurt. Not sure ya should be spelunkin’ in my nethers. There’s some powerful muscles down there. I wouldn’t wanna crush ya in the throes of passion.”

Mina lingered on this image a bit longer than she should have before answering.

“No. Uh, we wouldn’t want that.”

“Tell ya what,” said the ginger giantess. Sapphire traced the inside of Mina’s little leg with her index finger, lifting it gradually until the tiny girl was straddling it. Mina shivered. 

“Why don’t we revisit that idea later?” Sapphire continued. “Once we have a better idea of your limits.”

From the minuscule maiden’s perspective, they had already crossed beyond her limits. Eulalia had raised her as a good Christian girl and a part of Mina still felt guilty about this new relationship. But another part found it hard to imagine anything evil in two people loving each other and finding happiness.

That happiness had not gone unnoticed at the saloon. As roommates and dance partners, Mina and Sapphire had always been inseparable but the other dancers had begun to see changes in their behavior. They watched the redhead giggling with the tiny girl at private jokes or snuggling her close between acts. Once, Jade caught them stealing a kiss backstage. When the young Chinese woman surprised her, Sapphire gasped so suddenly she almost inhaled Mina completely. She extracted the flailing girl from between her lips and quickly hurried off.

Rumors began to fly. Most of the dancers smiled knowingly or tittered among themselves. A few met the idea with confusion or even disgust. But as Sapphire’s sexual appetites were well known at the Mine, most of the ladies eventually shrugged it off. They may not have all approved but they knew Saph was stubborn and would do as she pleased. Goldie seemed unmoved by the whole affair.

“What you do on your own time is your business,” the elder lady told Sapphire. “Just don’t break my star.”

Everything seemed to be going wonderfully for Mina, not only in her personal life but her professional one as well. Her act continued to be a hit and men were pouring into the dance hall every night to see her and Sapphire perform. Mina had begun to save up the money Goldie paid her. She kept it in the top drawer of the nightstand where she slept. Soon, she’d have enough to cover the costs of Eulalia’s farm.

Eulalia. Mina rarely thought about her anymore. When she did, it was with a twinge of guilt. Her mother had no idea where she was. Did she worry about her? Did she feel abandoned? Or was she relieved to be free of the burden of caring for a miniature daughter? Mina wondered now and then if she should send one of the dancers to the farm as a messenger, to let her mother know she was all right. 

But she knew Eulalia would never approve of her new life. Dance halls were dens of sin and iniquity, filled with liquor, bawdy music, and loose women. Eulalia would be scandalized if she knew Mina worked at one, let alone that she was now in a relationship with one of those “loose women.” The saintly church-going Eulalia would find that horrifying. Better that she didn’t know. By year’s end, Eulalia would need to make a report to the government if she wished to keep her homestead. By then, Mina would have more than enough money saved.

Overall, life was good for the tiny dancer. There was only one fly in the ointment—and it went by the name of Diamonda.

* * * *

“These mashed potaters are amazin’!” Sapphire said, stuffing another spoonful into her mouth. “The cook outdid himself t’night! Have ya tried ‘em yet, Mina?”

The little woman looked up from her picnic-blanket napkin and shook her head. She was always astonished by how much food Sapphire could consume. In the time it had taken Mina to nibble a strip of salted meat, Sapphire had already finished a plateful of potatoes and gravy, a slab of roast beef, a pile of boiled vegetables, and copious amounts of beer.

It was the latter that had Mina a bit concerned. Sapphire had downed several glasses with supper, celebrating another successful week of their partnership (in more ways than one). And while the redhead could usually hold her liquor, her words were beginning to slur.

If anyone else had noticed, they gave no sign. The other dancers were busy chatting amongst themselves and enjoying their meal. Mr. Pinky was treating them all to a jaunty tune on the piano and there was a general air of fun and frivolity. Across the table, Mina saw Diamonda scowling at her now and then but that was nothing new.

“Ya gotta try these, Mina!” Sapphire insisted. She spooned up a sample of the mashed potatoes and dumped it onto the napkin. Mina flinched as the large white glob crashed down beside her, spattering her dress with gravy. With a scoff, she held out her arms at her sides and tried to shake the sticky brown liquid off her.

“Careful, Saph!” Mina called. “You’ll ruin my costume.”

“Don’t ya want any taters?” the giantess asked, her face looming above. Long red hair formed an impenetrable curtain on either side of Mina and she could smell the alcohol on Sapphire’s breath.

“Eh, more f’r me then!” Sapphire dipped a finger into the potatoes and slid it forward, scooping them up. Mina rolled to the side to avoid the long slender appendage as it swept past. Sapphire brought her finger to her lips and sucked on it. She then reached for her tankard of beer.

“Don’t you think you’ve had enough for one night?” Mina asked.

Sapphire tipped back her head and drained the mug in one sip. She wiped the corner of her mouth and looked back down at her girlfriend.

“Wossa matter? Afraid I’ll get frisky and take advantage of ya?” Sapphire reached down with her finger once again, this time hooking it under Mina’s skirt and lifting it upward. As the tiny girl gasped and tried to pull it back down, Sapphire burst into giggles.

“Relax! I knows the rules,” she finally said. “Even if ya are lookin’ extra adorable this evenin’.”

Sapphire leaned down and planted a kiss on Mina’s head—her entire head at once, as well as part of her torso. Enormous plush lips pinned the little lady to the napkin. Though she was startled at first, Mina soon returned the gesture and planted tiny kisses on the wide expanse of wrinkled flesh above her. When Sapphire finally disconnected, Mina laid back contentedly on the table and sighed. She glanced at her garments. They were now covered with a red lipstick stain as well as the thick brown gravy. She shrugged. They’d have to wash her outfit before tomorrow’s show.

“There’s only one thing t’ worry ‘bout when I’m drinkin’,” Sapphire admitted. “The call o’ nature. ‘Scuse me for a bit, sweet pea.” She got up from the table a bit uneasily and began shuffling off in the direction of the outhouse.

Mina sat up and looked at the remains of her supper. She had finished the strip of beef but surprisingly, she was still hungry. She glanced around her. Sapphire’s plate was just about empty save for a few stray carrot slices. They looked rather tasty. Mina got up and walked over to the plate, pulling herself up onto the lip of it. Sapphire had admonished her not to climb onto people’s plates. But the redhead wasn’t using it at that moment. Surely there was no harm in stealing a piece of carrot.

She had just made it to the center of the plate when she was eclipsed by a dark shadow. Mina sensed the looming presence of a human above her.

“Back already?” she called, turning to look up. “That was fas—”

Her words caught in her throat when she saw who was standing beside the table. Diamonda looked down at her with hands on her wide hips and a mischievous smirk on her face high above.

“Hungry, are we?” the blonde giantess said.

Mina dropped the carrot and stared up at the towering figure. “Er, yes. A little,” she answered.

“You know, you shouldn’t go scurrying around people’s dinners,” said Diamonda. She crouched down until her huge features filled Mina’s horizon. “Someone might mistake you for an appetizer.”

Mina gulped as the giant woman licked her lips lasciviously. Diamonda reached a massive hand towards her, causing Mina to gasp and duck. She covered her head in a futile gesture. But the hand passed over her and continued onward, reaching for something on the other side of the plate. Diamonda grabbed the bowl of mashed potatoes that the ladies had been passing around.

“If you were hungry, Mina, you only had to ask,” she said. 

The blonde-haired colossus grabbed the wooden spoon and began ladling potatoes onto the plate, dropping them directly onto the tiny girl. Mina shrieked as she was buried in an avalanche of white clumpy starch. Diamonda spooned more and more mashed potatoes on top of her, smiling sadistically. She reached for a gravy boat and began pouring this onto the mountain that had encompassed Mina. The little woman was by now completely lost in the mush, hidden from sight. Diamonda looked around. The other dancers and employees seemed to be preoccupied with their conversations and weren’t looking her way. With a grin, she reached for a spoon.

“Play us another one, Pinky!” a voice called nearby. Diamonda turned and saw Sapphire making her way back to the table, a new beer mug in hand. The blonde’s smile became more devious.

“Hey, Saph,” she said.

“Oh, hey, Di,” Sapphire answered, taken by surprise.

“Got you some more potatoes.”

“Ya did?! That was nice o’ ya. Y’know, I take back, oh, fifty percent o’ the bad things I’ve said about ya!”

“Gee, thanks,” Diamonda deadpanned. She stepped aside to allow Sapphire to take a seat. “Bon appetit.”

Sapphire grabbed her spoon and began to eagerly shovel mashed potatoes into her mouth. She wolfed them down in hungry gulps, rapidly decimating the pile before her. Diamonda stood to the side and watched.

Swimming in a sea of white, Mina had lost all sense of direction. She felt something move beneath her. Cold metal touched her skin and she slid into the concave hollow of a spoon. This was followed by the sensation of being lifted. In a panic, she pushed and kicked against the potato mash, finally clearing some from her face. She looked up and saw only a wall of thick red lips which slid apart with frightening swiftness. A gigantic cave of a mouth opened wide before her, its shadowy entrance framed by huge, pearly white teeth. Before Mina could react, the spoon was thrust through this gateway and the lips sealed behind her.

Mina tumbled forward with the clump of potatoes as it slid off the utensil. She faceplanted onto the wet, slippery surface of an enormous tongue. The spoon retracted through the lips, leaving her in darkness. The air was oppressively humid and smelled strongly of beer. Utterly terrified, Mina couldn’t see a thing but she could feel the whale-like tongue rippling and writhing below. She was tossed about with the potato mash as the gargantuan jaws worked around her. The mighty tongue shifted and pushed her to the side until she landed roughly on the hard surface of the lower molars. With a yelp, she rolled the other way, narrowly avoiding the chomping motion of the upper teeth. The two rows crashed together, gnashing and chewing the potatoes into paste.

Soaked to the bone, Mina slid through a mess of vegetable matter and saliva back to the center of the tongue. Desperately, she tried to call for help.

“Sapphire! I’m in here! Don’t eat me! Don’t eat me!!!”

It was fruitless. Whether from the noise and chatter of the dining room or the blaring piano or her own inebriation, the redhead was completely oblivious. Mina felt the tongue shift once again, this time lifting upward. She began to slide down it with the remnants of potato, plunging towards the abyss. Shrieking, she slipped over the precipice and into the giant woman’s gullet.

Mina flailed and kicked, hoping to be noticed. If Sapphire felt something tickle the back of her throat, she paid no heed to it. In a single mighty gulp, she swallowed the tiny girl whole.

To be continued...