A commission made for testprofile80 featuring his wolf Braun.

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Fool's Gold

(A commission for ~testprofile80)

With legs pumping and heart pounding, Braun raced through the dank, dark cave tunnel. The brown and cream colored wolf smiled wide when he saw a light at the end of the tunnel. He dodged sharp rocks and hanging stalactites nimbly and with all the skill that came from years of being a successful theft. Water dripping from the ceiling and splashes from puddles wetted his fine leather tunic and cotton pants, but that didn't bother Braun. Survival was his focus right now. As the wolf reached the cave opening, beams of light glistened off of the object hanging from his right paw: A shiny ruby encrusted in ornate silver hooked to a sturdy golden chain. It was the only bit of loot the greedy wolf was able to get his paws on before making a hasty escape.

He only slowed his pace when he was a few hundred feet outside of the cave entrance. Exhausted, Braun collapsed to the ground panting. The wolf listlessly tossed the pedant on to the grass next to him. Looking back at the cave, he judged there would be no way for that dragon to pursue him; the opening was far too narrow for such a large reptile to fit through.

Braun did not believe any of the drunkards at the tavern who said there was a dragon living in mountain, an actual dragon, guarding the treasure he was after. The wolf shrugged it off thinking they were only spinning tales. He only learned there was far more to their tales when Braun, in the middle of stuffing his rucksack full of gold coins, felt a massive claw wrap around his torso and lift him several dozen feet in the air. Soon, the wolf was face-to-face with an enormous dragon who had hidden in the shadows of the vast, treasure-filled cavern in the heart of the mountain waiting for the opportune moment to strike. Its black and green scales glistened in the dim cave light as it eyed the wolf (presumably its soon-to-be dinner). Braun fought to loose himself from the dragon's grip, but the slim wolf simply could not weasel himself free. The dragon opened its maw slightly revealing row after row of razor-sharp, porcelain-white teeth. Braun said a prayer to a deity of his choosing as the dragon brought the wolf closer towards its mouth ready to take a bite out of him. The stench of brimstone filled Braun's nostrils. He was certain that this was his last heist until the dragon's dark yellow eyes darted to the ruby pendant in his paw, the pedant he was about to shove into his overstuffed bag before being snatched up. Braun looked on in confusion as the dragon stared at the gem. Moments later, Braun found himself sailing through the air, eventually landing on top of another pile of coins which broke his fall. Not one to question his good fortune, Braun ran for his life. The dragon did not pursue him; the beast slunk back into the shadows.

Braun sat up from the tall grass after having rested. He reached for the piece of jewelry and held it up to his eyes. Examining the dangling gem, the wolf figured that, while it was the only thing he stole from the cache of gold and jewels, this item alone would fetch a nice price. He knew a merchant in Iggorath who would pay at least a few thousand silver pieces for it, more than enough to make the venture worth it.

The wolf was parched from his escape, and all of his belongings (including his canteen) were still in the cave. Picking himself off the ground, Braun tossed the pedant around his neck as to not lose it as he hunted for water. Despite being a fairly simple piece of jewelry, he couldn't help but notice how much heavier it felt around his neck than he anticipated. Braun also couldn't help but notice the encrusted ruby shined ever so slightly brighter. A trick of the light, he reasoned. The faint trickling sound of rushing water could be heard off in the distance, and the thirsty wolf made his way towards it.

Braun was thankful to find a body of fresh water not too far away from him. A small waterfall fed into a lake filled with crystal clear water. Approaching the shore, the wolf dropped to his knees and dipped his maw in, sucking up hearty mouthfuls of water. The cold liquid delightfully rushed down his throat and satisfactorily quenched his thirst. The wolf then dipped a paw into the lake and splashed more of the chilly water over his face, wetting his fur and refreshing him.

Sighing in relief, Braun watched as the ripples he made in the water slowly ebb out. The surface returned to its previously glassy state. In the reflection on the still water, the wolf caught a glimpse of himself and the pendant still hanging from his neck. The ruby looked a tiny bit redder, a tiny bit shinier. While in most other circumstances the wolf would have taken a moment to admire his handsome features, Braun sensed something was a bit off. Carefully investigating his reflection, he tried to nail down what was off. Was his fur awfully messy? No, his fur looked just the way it always had. Was his nose a little stubbier? Nope, again the wolf judged that was normal too. His cheeks, Braun realized, did look almost imperceptibly more full and puffy. Yet he reasoned that it was due to a simp-

A pop, and ripples reverberated through the water again. Braun yelped in surprise, quickly leaping to his feet. The wolf swiftly looked around him to see what just startled him. But the culprit was obvious. The flat abdomen (this is, his previously flat abdomen) was rapidly expanding, straining his tight black leather tunic. The swelling mound had already exploded off the bottom button of Braun's tunic and was looking ready to burst the next button up. Soft creamy fur peaked out as his new belly surged forth. The tunic's material creaked and groaned as it tried to contain the suddenly swelling mass.

Dumbstruck, Braun immediately tried undoing the stressed button. It blasted off before he could do anything, shooting away like an arrow. The flaps of the tunic opened a bit, revealing more of the inflating belly. Now panicking, Braun grabbed the pot belly that had mysteriously formed with his paws, pressing inward to try and stop the growth. The flesh under his paws felt soft like bread dough and warm to the touch. Fat, Braun realized he was swelling up with fat. The belly kept growing, pushing against his paws. Gravity was gently pulling on Braun's gut; the ball of lard was now hanging over the top of his pants.

The third button of his tunic started to groan as Braun bloated. The garment was meant for a slim fur; it was not designed to handle such girth. Not wanting to completely ruin a rather fine tunic, the wolf quickly undid the last of the buttons and pull the article off, tossing it to the ground. Both the small boulder of doughy flesh and the pendant hanging from his neck danced around wildly as Braun frantically disrobed. Had the wolf not been in such sudden dire straits he might have seen the ruby was now a shade of neon red.

Whimpering in disbelief, Braun watched helplessly as his belly fattened more. The wolf's gut resembled several overfilled sacks of grain like the ones he saw on the streets of Iggathor. And it was just as heavy. Braun could feel the soft soil of the lakeshore sink under his feet due to his new weight, feet which he could no longer see past his cascading gut. The wolf pawed at the mass. Flesh jiggled and bounced as he did so. His paws easily sunk into inches of lard.

In almost an instant, Braun's slight chest experienced such a sudden expansion. Flat pectorals immediately ballooned out into two hefty, wobbling mounds. The wolf's attention turned to his fluffy chest. He gulped as he jabbed a moob with his paw; it jostled about. The chain of the ruby pendant rested in the valley of flabby mountains; the pendant itself rested at the top of the curve of Braun's billowing stomach.

Braun didn't know why he was suddenly turning into a fat fur, but the wolf knew that it was spreading. No doubt his lower half would start blowing up as well. He cursed himself for wearing such tight pants, even though tight clothes were sensible for a thief as they left no extra fabric to catch or trip up on. A tightly knotted cord held them up and, Braun worried, unless he got it undone quick it would be painfully problematic soon.

The wolf tried to free the knot. Unfortunately, his gut was so bulky that he could no longer reach past. It had ballooned up to the point that it was hanging halfway down his thighs and stuck out a few feet, a soft boulder of pudge. The once-thin Braun now needed some help to heave his belly up and out of the way.

A few dozen feet away were the remains of a tree. It was a jagged stump with charred edges standing nearly waist-height. A rotting log laid on the ground nearby. The tree was the victim of a lightning strike. Braun made his way to the stump, belly slapping against his legs. His walking pace was slowed in equal parts due to the couple hundred pounds newly added to his frame as well as the awkwardness of dealing with a huge belly wobbling around wildly. Reaching the stump, Braun went to work resting the huge, cream-colored mass on it. After a couple of failed attempts, the wolf was able to lift his gut onto the stump, giving him clearance to undo his pants.

As his paws reached for the knot, Braun heard a series of creaks followed by a loud ripping noise. The worried wolf glanced over his shoulder and found the source. His trim butt was the newest victim of his predicament. The back of his cotton pants had exploded open. A pair of brown furred orbs ballooned outward, shredding the seat of Braun's pants all the way up to his fluffy tail, exposing his rapidly rounding rump.

Despite being alone, the wolf's cheeks burns with embarrassment. Braun got back to the task at hand and swiftly unknotted the cord of his pants. As he shimmed the cotton garment down, he could feel his thighs jiggle slightly. They, too, were blowing up as well. Had Braun waited a moment longer and the wolf would have been too big to get them off.

Braun hauled his belly off the stump. The weight of it shifting away nearly dragged him to the ground. He could tell it had grown heavier while he was working to remove his pants. Naked, panicked, and getting impossibly fat impossibly fast, the wolf racked his brain about what to do next. He needed help and he needed help fast. But Braun was miles away from any nearly hamlet or village he knew of. Surely though, he reasoned, a road or trail must be nearby. While there was hardly a chance that a fur would happen upon him at the right moment, it was a chance Braun needed to take. He couldn't afford inaction.

Picking a direction, the wolf began heaving his enormous body towards where he hoped a road would be. As a svelte theft, he was used to nimbly maneuvering his slender body. Now that he was four times going on five times his original size, Braun's brisk walking pace had been whittled down to a glacial awkward waddle. His thighs, now fat enough to bludge up against each other, fought for space as Braun shuffled one heavy limb past the other. Each step only propelled him forward a foot or two. This frustrated the imperiled fur. Each step made the two flabby globes of his butt flop up and down. While Braun would rather not have a rear that could shatter most chairs, he was grateful for it served as a useful counterbalance to his tremendous belly. And each step caused his blimping body to jiggle uncontrollably all over. Even his moobs wobbled like mad just from the wolf's walk. The ruby pendant bounced around, trampolining off Braun's jiggly chest. The gem shone a fiery red.

While the wolf previously had a superior cardiovascular system that let him run for miles interrupted, Braun did not possess much in the way of raw, physical strength. In carrying a few extra hundred pounds of fat and more, the wolf quickly became exhausted. Braun's breathing became labored instantly. Beads of sweat trickled off of his forehead. He wanted lean on his knees and catch his breath. But the ever-growing globe of creamy fur made it impossible. Even as he stood, the wolf's growing gut was sagging down past his knees, greatly hampering his movement. Soon, his ineffective waddle would be impossible.

Defeated and exhausted from hauling his humongous body an embarrassingly short distance, Braun collapsed to the ground. His descent was much shorter than he expected. With a rump like two large wine barrels and legs as thick as tree trunks, there wasn't as much distance to cover between his butt and the ground. The wolf was thankful to at least have a comfortable seat to rest on. Another quiet whimper escaped Braun as he dejectedly watched himself blow up dozens of pounds at a time.

The wolf witnessed his gut expand outward, slowly overtaking his legs. Braun would soon be able to tickle his belly with toes. So huge was it that the wolf doubted he could ever reach down to his belly button again, which deepened to the point that a fur could easily fit a fist inside. While his thighs grew into shameless blobs underneath him, the sheer enormity of Braun's stomach forced his legs apart, letting his belly spill out on the chilly forest floor. His arms and paws had finally started fattening. Paws like plump sausages, forearms so thick with lard, biceps resembling overstuffed pillows, Braun did not think he had the strength to move his girthy arms anymore. The wolf's cheeks had ballooned as well. Poor Braun could be mistaken for smuggling whole apples in his cheeks like a chipmunk. A thick ring of fat developed around his neck, making it nearly impossible for the wolf to move his head. Braun wanted to at least see the damage to his backside. Always a bit proud of his formerly petit yet full rear, Braun's butt was now as wide as the wolf was tall, each cheek a brown flabby lump a couple hundred pounds heavy. His fluffy tail, surrounded on all sides by thick slabs of fat, struggled to wag as it thumped against the gelatinous blobs. Though he'd never be able to turn his head to see that. His vision was limited to vast expanse of his belly, the watermelon-sized moobs, and the ornate pendant hanging from his neck. That pendant was supposed to bring him riches. Now it would forever remain hanging around his thick neck. Forever be ar-

The pendant! Braun snapped out of his fatalistic daze. Perhaps it was the pendant doing this to him! No wonder the dragon let Braun get away! The pendant must be cursed! What dragon would want cursed treasure? The curse only began affecting him when he donned it. He reasoned that if he could somehow get it off, the charm would be lifted and he'd shrink back down to his thin self.

The wolf realized he had to work fast. At the rate he was expanding, Braun would soon be too fat to move his arms, or too wide to get the chain off from around his neck, or both. He attempted to raise a heavy limb which dangled listlessly on his blubbery flank, managing to raise it up a few inches before letting it drop again. It felt weak and useless. What little muscle he had struggled under an ungodly amount of fat. But he tried again, grunting loudly as he willed his immense arm up to his neck. A paw nearly paralyzed with fat worked to dig out the golden chain pinned under the collar of fat that was the wolf's neck. Braun maneuvered his head as best as he could, giving a few precious centimeters of space for him to slip a fat digit into the fold. The wolf worked swiftly and diligently, freeing the chain from his neck fold. The ruby pendant bounced around wildly on his chest, colliding off his cushy moobs. The gem burned bright and angrily like lava. With the chain now free, Braun only needed to remove it from around his neck. Inch by inch he raised the chain up. It was truly a Herculean task. His arm felt pulled down to the Earth by many, many pounds of fat. Yet Braun persisted. Grunting, panting, he willed himself to lift the pendant higher. The ruby, now at eye-level, shined so brilliantly it nearly blinded the wolf. With a huff, Braun exerted one final bit of energy, making his arm lift the final inch to get the chain from around his bulky neck and head. He let gravity drop his heavy arm back down. Releasing the treasure, the pendant bounced off of his vast belly and landed on the grass a few feet in front of his incredibly overweight body.

The wolf let out a sigh, partially out of relief, partially out of weariness from such a simple yet grueling task. Then Braun waited. And he waited. And he waited. The wolf was thankful that his growth seemed to have ceased; his shapeless blob of a body wasn't noticeably swelling larger. He was dismayed that his obese form remained. The wolf wasn’t getting any thinner either. Out of ideas of what left to do, Braun simply had to sit there on his colossal rump, covered in hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of pounds of blubber, and wait for something or anything to happen.

And so that's what he did. Days went by as the blimped-up Braun sat there watching the world go by. Animals would occasionally come to the lake and drink. Braun would watch them saunter pass his small mountain of a body without notice. He was as much of the scenery as the trees and the hills and the lake. When night came, he slept. Thankfully, all the extra fat meant he didn't need a blanket to keep him warm when the sun set. In the morning, Braun would wake up and inspect his body as best he could, hoping he burned off a little lard overnight. The changes were only ever very minor.

One warm afternoon, Braun woke up from one of his many midday naps to see rustling off in the distant treeline. Squinting due to the bright sun, the wolf tried seeing what was approaching. He reckoned some of the local fauna were coming by for a cold drink from the lake.

His heart skipped a beat when he saw another fur making its way out from the forest. The bright sunlight nearly blinded him, but he definitely could make out a faint outline of the fur as it walked towards the lake. Braun was elated. It had been some time since his incredible transformation and he was beginning to worry that nobody would ever find him

"H-hey! Hey!" Braun yelled. His insanely plump cheeks and jowls made it hard for him to form words. Even the act of speaking was tuckering Braun out. But the wolf knew that he needed to persevere if he wanted to be saved. "Help! Need help!"

Braun heard the rushing of hooves on grass as the fur ran over to him. As it got closer, the wolf was able to make out the fur he hoped would recuse him. He was a deer with blueish grey fur and bright teal markings on his legs, torso, and face. A cute fellow with clear bright eyes and a pair of purple horns, he was a bit on the short side. Braun judged that he must be well under five feet. The deer was a bit on the chunky side; thick thighs pressed tightly against his brown pants, though he was a mere fraction of the size of the hyper-obese wolf.

"H-hello?" the deer said nervously. He set the bucket he was carrying down on the ground. "Are you…"

"I need help!" barked Braun.

The deer studied the enormous wolf in front of him. He had seen a fat fur or two in his lifetime. Yet that didn't prepare him for witnessing a wolf as big as a wagon. Maybe two wagons. "What...what happen-"

"An accident! Need help!" Braun gave up on full sentences. Such fat cheeks made it feel as if he was speaking with a mouth full of sticky honey. Talking was exhausting for the wolf.

"How can I…" the deer pondered out loud. He carefully pressed a paw into Braun's belly. It easily sunk in a half dozen inches. The warm supple fat was delightful to the deer. Yet given the bizarreness of the situation, he didn't have time to play around. "Okay, um. My village isn't too far away. I'll head over there and get help! Will you be okay waiting...um, what's your name?"

"Braun…" The wolf was feeling weary again. His eyes were heavy with sleep. Just moving his mouth to speak was the most exercise the enormous wolf had in ages.

"Alright, Braun, you wait here. I'll…" Before the deer could finished, the huge wolf was fast asleep again. Thunderous snoring echoed throughout the landscape. The deer patted Braun's gigantic belly a couple of time. Shockwaves rippled throughout.

"Okay, Nimbus, gotta get this guy some help," the deer muttered to himself. Reaching down to pick up his water pail, he noticed a shiny object resting on the grass in front of the huge wolf. Nimbus picked it up and examined it. A gold chain, hanging off of it was a brilliant ruby encrusted in ornate silver. The deer stared in awe at the beauty of the treasure he found. Coming from a fairly poor village, the deer never saw such beautiful jewelry before in his life. Nimbus was immediately smitten and tried putting it on. Unfortunately, his wide antlers made it nearly impossible to get the thing around his neck. He shrugged; Nimbus figured he'll work it out later. First, though, he needed to get Braun help. Hanging the pendent off of one of his horns, the deer grabbed his bucket and rushed away towards the nearby village. Had he not been so focused on his mission, Nimbus might have noticed the ruby in the pendant glowing a bright shade of red.