Spots and Stripes Forever
It's one of those iconic scenes that everybody hears about, but nobody ever really sees. The sun rising in the distance over a flat plane, orange ball dispelling the last of night's gloom and replacing it with the fiery vibrancy of life. Tall, uncut stalks of grass swaying in an almost imperceptible breeze, dancing to the tune of the wind. Song birds begin their morning prayers, praising the world for the wonder and beauty they get to experience every morning, thanking whatever individual they think responsible for this splendour. The sky turning from purple to blue, a slow transition that the average person sleeps through.
Some don't even notice the morning at all. They sleep in until noon, at which point the heat of the day is in full swing, everybody else bustling about trying to get their chores taken care of so they can get to sleep and do it all again the next day. University students have it easy, getting to waste the day away, taking small chunks of their time out to learn about the universe around them, to earn a greater appreciation of their lives. Limited responsibilities, plenty of free time, and getting to experience it all on stunningly crafted campuses: the university life certainly isn't something to complain about.
And when they have days off, they barely get up at all. One particular leopard was just so lucky as to have his day off on Fridays, allowing him to spend his weekends as freely as he wanted. Of course, post weekend, the poor student usually didn't know what to do with himself - he would throw off his sleeping schedule so badly that his cycle was completely out of synch with his class schedule. But he would make do. The middle of the week usually fared better, and it being Wednesday, he was back on a reasonably normal pattern, getting up at 12:30 in the afternoon and heading to sleep at about 4. On days when he didn't get enough sleep, he could always sleep in lectures, especially in the classes that weren't part of his major, like English Literature.
He sat as close to the exit as he could, every class. In most cases, this meant he had to get to the lecture hall a good thirty minutes before class even started, but it was worth it. Sitting at the top of all the rows, he was the farthest away from the professor's line of sight, closest to the exit, and had the best view of all the rows in front of him. Technically, sitting in the middle of the back row would have given him the best view of everything, but that wasn't necessary, and would come with the lose of easy access to the bathroom. Plus, when sitting at the edge, he didn't have to sit next to two people, which made sleeping that much easier. Today he'd planned on making an especially good day for napping: he'd brought an extra t-shirt so he could rest his head on something soft instead of the hardwood of the desk shared by the back row.
There was one other, more prominent reason for him choosing this seat however. At the beginning of the semester, he hadn't been so picky about were he sat to take his naps. Almost a full month ago, a zebra had shown up in the class, seemingly out of nowhere. Ordinarily, this wouldn't be such a big event, as there were plenty of other zebras in the class. What made this zebra stick out so much was his sheer muscle size. The equine was bodybuilder big, ripped and cut with thick muscles that made the entire rugby team seem small by comparison. The leopard would do his best to not openly stare at the perfection of male sitting three rows in front of him, hoping that keeping his head down and his backpack on his lap would help conceal what he was thinking about during the lecture, and dreaming about while asleep.
The majority of those dreams tended to be rather inappropriate, something he wouldn't tell anybody else if it could be avoided. Worshipping biceps, licking across pecs, fondling... well about then he would wake up, a bit flushed, and glad that he relieved himself in the morning before class. The alternative to that would be to leave a nice wet spot on the front of his jeans, something he'd done during his first semester on campus, and not something he really wanted to ever happen again. His dream on this particular day was a bit tamer than some of his past ones - he was only making out with the zebra, and it was even a closed mouth kiss, hardly worth adding to the dream journal he kept in his English notebook.
Bag held meticulously in front of him at hip height, the leopard prepared to head back to his home, once more thankful for the break he had between classes on Wednesdays. The disappointment of not getting to see that zebra again until Monday, a thought which was accompanied with a sigh every Monday and Wednesday now, was held off momentarily by the approach of said zebra. The leopard watched with baited breath as the zebra didn't so much walk as he did saunter his way up the staircase towards the exit. His gait, wide and rolling to make room for his quads trapped in aqua shorts, seemed to be carrying him as quick as it could without being a run. The leopard doubted that the zebra could even run with thighs that thick, which was not even remotely an issue for the feline. In his excitement at seeing the object of his affection coming so close, he almost imagined that the zebra's focused movement was to reach the leopard.
The zebra smiled as he reached just three steps away from the leopard, coinciding with the swarm of girls that flocked around him. A peacock grabbed at his exposed bicep and cooed about how strong he must be. A lioness rubbed his pecs through his black tank top as she made comments about just wanting to eat him up, which made him look rather worried. One particularly bold giraffe was whispering in his ear, her hands running down his thighs, dangerously close to his groin. The leopard stared blankly at this gaggle of females, keeping his man from approaching. And they were doing it without any subtly. He turned to leave, wishing that he could be as bold as they were.
It was a repeat of the scene from Monday, and the Wednesday before that, and the Monday before that. In fact, the leopard noted rather grimly as he kicked a rock down the front steps of Safra University, he'd seen any number of girls fawning over the zebra after every class they shared for the past three weeks. He wasn't entirely surprised the girls were all over that zebra, he would be too if he wasn't so timid. Who wouldn't want to caress those mounds of muscles, feel the soft fur across his heavy and firm pecs, maybe give his ass a squeeze and his.... The leopard shook his head clear, to try and distract himself. His backpack wasn't blocking his front anymore as he left school, it wouldn't do to embarrass himself in public.
There was a small pond a short walk from his house that the leopard regularly visited when he was feeling emotionally distraught. He'd spent many afternoons there crying up in a tree that overlooked the water, most of those times during his teenage years when he had to come to terms with his homosexuality. When his tears would be spent, he'd just have the pristine view of an untouched pond, a setting sun over a flat plain that would rise again in the morning, to repeat the daily woes. When he'd come home, well after dark, his parents would accuse him of having gone out to party with the hyenas, and ground him. No matter how much he had explained while they were still alive, they had not understood.
Sitting in the tree had the unfortunate consequence of reminding him of the afternoon he'd learned of the rather bizarre accident. He still could not believe that the wrecking ball had broken off of the chain, or the amount of damage it had caused. His parents were not the only ones to have died that day, some undergoing long term agony before finally passing on. He was thankful that they had died quickly.
How long had he been up in that tree today? His thoughts had carried him away again, leaving him lying on a thick branch that stretch surprisingly far over the water. Watching the sun drift lower on the horizon, the sky changing from blue to a slight purple hue, he allowed himself some more time to bask in the fading warmth of the day. With his eyes closed, and his ears flat on his head, his thoughts drowned each other out until nothing but pure silence remained in his head. Silence that was disturbed by the splashing of water near by.
The leopard's eyes darted towards the source of the sound, bugging out when they spotted the muscular zebra from class. The leopard was shocked - he'd assumed that nobody else knew about this place, that it was his private little territory. Watching somebody slowly enter in the water - even if they were rippling with sinew and clad only in a very tight blue speedo - set his defensive instincts on high. He was being invaded, assaulted at his own front gate, and that sort of injustice simply would not stand.
Moments before roaring out his challenge at the large herbivore, the zebra, completely clueless of whose land he was walking on, dropped his speedo, letting his ripe package flop out. He tossed the swimwear to the shore, smiling all the while as he stepped into the pristine pond. The leopards jaw dropped as he stared at what the zebra was packing. It was not, much to the feline's dismay, as overlarge proportionally as the muscles on the equine, but it wasn't small either. Just the right size that if it were on anybody else, it would look normal, in fact. But on somebody so musclebound, it just seemed to measure up a bit small, in the leopard's opinion. It was, he had to admit, a bit difficult to tell from his current position. He leaned forward, resting precariously on the branch.
The leopard yelped, flailing as he fell from his perch into the water. The splash as he entered the pond kept him from hearing the zebra's exclamation of surprise. With his arms and legs pushing through the water madly, the leopard prevented himself from treading effectively, wasting his energy as he attempted to gasp for air. He tried to call for help, but was restricted when cool liquid flooded into his lungs, causing him to sputter and sink under the surface completely.
Oxygen returned with a heavy gasp as his head finally broke the surface of the water, pushed upwards by a strong force that he didn't register immediately. His eyes remained closed as he focused on tasting the air free of fluids, promising himself that he would never get into water again if he could avoid it. He didn't struggle when that same force removed his shirt, nor did he mind the cool sand against his back sticking to his fur. It would come off later with a few good shakes and some brushing. The leopard's breath slowed, relaxing as the adrenaline abandoned his system. His chest itched, but he didn't have the energy to scratch it. As it was, opening his eyes to see the face of the concerned zebra overhead took more effort than the cat would have liked.
The feline gasped, which quickly turned into a cough as the water in his lungs tried to force itself out. The hacking caused his throat to burn, his eyes tearing up as his body spasmed without any control on his part. The equine's large, meaty paw pushed down on the leopard's chest, forcing the cat to stabilize and not jerk too much until the fit passed. He could see concern written all over the zebra's face - the face of his crush. To have been caught like this, nearly drowning while spying on the zebra, made the leopard flush with shame.
"You okay?" The zebra asked, a deep baritone that made the leopard's ears quake. He wanted to say yes, it's wonderful to be so close to you. To say no, this is the most embarrassing thing ever. Yes, keep your hand there. No, I wasn't spying on you. Yes, closer. No, go away. Whatever emotions flicked across his face, the zebra certainly noticed them, as his own expression turned to worry. "You don't look well, let me get my phone. I'll call for help." The zebra was up and heading for his shorts, running, showing how his bubble butt flexed with each step. But the leopard wasn't watching. The minute the zebra had turned away, the feline gathered up his strength, letting the adrenaline kick in again to bolster his mad dash away from the man he'd been dreaming about.
About ten minutes of running into the wilderness, farther than he had ever explored as child, the leopard stopped, falling to the ground and panting. Either he was faster than the zebra - possible considering that the muscle on the equine would probably slow him down - or the zebra simply hadn't followed. Either way, he was alone, out of breath he didn't have to spare, and ashamed. There would be no respectable way to explain himself the next time in class when the zebra would almost certainly come over, and probably ask things like: "Why did you run like that? Were you spying on me?". The leopard wanted to cry. It was his first crush, and he'd gone and blown any chance of making something happen with it before they'd even had a real conversation.
He lay on the ground several minutes, biting his lip to avoid tears of self pity, to have them replaced with tears of pain. But it was the same thing, one way or another, an excuse to let his heartache out through his eyes. When no more water flowed, he picked himself up, brushing off the sand and grit from his stomach. The sun was low on the horizon, dipping down past the mountains in the distance, making the sky a deep purple that would soon turn to an impenetrable black. The feline began his search for home, turning back the way he thought he had run to retrace his steps. But the footprints he'd been expecting in the ground were nowhere to be found, and his own scent was masked by the smell of water. It would be blind luck that got him home.
Step by agonizing step, fire burning in his lungs to replace the evaporating liquid within, the leopard made his way through the wilderness, a landscape that should not have been foreign considering how close he lived to it. In the last rays of the dying day, with stars already scintillating in the sky, he found something - a plain, wooden shack, noticeable because of the candle that glowed in the window. Probably somebody's little get away, he figured, as he marched toward it with new vigour. Even if they couldn't tell him how to get back to his house, they could at least provide him shelter for the remainder of the night, he hoped.
His fists knocked against the wood with a dull thump, muffled by his still slightly damp fur. What he saw when the door opened took his breath away: a lion, regal and composed, with a body to rival that of the desired zebra. Muscle seemed to bulge off every part of the lion's body, obscured by shadows or brightened by light depending on the whim of the candle's dancing flame. The brown mane looked lush, softer even that the lion's tawny coloured fur, a slight fuzziness that only seemed to emphasize the brawny nature of the beast. The leopard blushed furiously when he realized the lion was shirtless, and despite wearing jeans, the larger feline wasn't really able to hide anything. A deep cough caused the leopard to snap his head upwards to meet the brown eyed gaze. "Another student visitor, aye? You boys should really make sure to know your way back before you head out here. Well, come on in, before the night fully settles in." The lion grabbed the leopard by the shoulder, smiled, and dragged the startled feline into the house. "Take a seat, make yourself at home. And tell me, what brings you out during the semester like this?"
The leopard looked around for a chair to sit on, but could find no such accommodation in the small shack. Only a table furnished the place, positioned low enough to the ground that were he to sit it would be at about waist high. The candle rested on an inner ledge behind the glass window, a lonely porthole to view the empty expanse outside. As the leopard took his seat on the floor before the table, he briefly wondered where the lion even slept without a bed or something to lie on. Surely that much muscle wouldn't be comfortable for lying against the ground. Now if -he- were to lie on top of the lion, using those pecs as a pillow, that would be comfortable. Said lion coughed when the silence wasn't filled by answers to questions. "Oh, sorry. It's just, I'm a little, well. Tired. Been a long day."
"Why don't you start with your name." the lion chuckled. "Might help put you at ease. I'm Simeon" The muscular cat sat cross legged on the other side of the table.
"Geoffrey," the leopard replied, ears flattening on his head. His tail twitched on the ground. "Thanks for the rest stop".
Neither said anything for a bit. Geoffrey flinched under the friendly smile of the lion. "So you're a student at Safra, aye?" Geoffrey nodded. "Just like that zebra then, what was his name...."
The leopard's interest in the conversation spiked. "Zebra? There's a zebra in one of my classes, really big guy, kind of like you. I just noticed him like a month ago. He sits a few rows in front of me, I watch him all the time" he regretted saying anything immediately, slumping down into himself. "Not that that means anything to you, I guess."
"That would be the one then," Simeon said. Geoffrey let out a sigh of relief inwardly that the lion had not chosen to draw attention to the leopard's excitement. "Course he wasn't any bigger than you when he walked in here. Said he was -"
"Wait," Geoffrey cut in, disbelieving. "How can somebody be my size and then your size in under a month? You sure it's the same guy?"
"Positive."
"No way." The leopard bounded to his feet. "There's no way a skinny guy like me can suddenly get all huge in a month. It takes years and years of bodybuilding and training to even get to half his size. You don't need me telling you that, just look at you. You must be thinking of a different zebra, because guys don't just go from nothing to smoking hot in under a month." His face drained of colour with the realization of what he has just said. If it wasn't obvious from his previous outburst, it would certainly be now.
Simeon grinned. "How about I prove it to you then?" He pushed the table to the side, revealing a trap door. It opened into what Geoffrey assumed was a storage room, because it looked to be full to the brim with dark skinned purple fruit. The lion removed one, not even having to lean in to pluck it from the pile, before closing it up and replacing the table. "This is a natal plum. I grow them myself, gardening is a bit of a passion of mine" He chuckled, leaving Geoffrey out of the joke. "Take this back with you, you'll want to have a good selection of clothing around when you're done eating it."
"You really think I believe that you grow magic fruit in your backyard?"
"What does it matter, either way you get a bite to eat, and I promise you won't find a more delicious plum across the safari." Simeon forced the ripe fruit into Geoffrey's hands, smiling all the while, that disarming grin where somebody clearly has more information then they are letting on. "Just go straight left from my place, and you should be back into town after ten minutes." Simeon got to his feet, putting a hand down on the smaller feline's shoulder and giving it a squeeze that caused Geoffrey to wince. "If nothing happens, just come back here and you'll find me waiting. Now, it's late, and a lion needs his beauty rest." It wasn't so much a shove, but Geoffrey definitely felt a strong enough push from the lion that signified the conversation - and consequently his stay - had ended. The door was shut and locked with a slight click.
Sure enough, ten minutes later, Geoffrey found himself back in the city. Something about the directions seemed a little odd to him - his house was fifteen minutes from the pond by foot, and he'd never seen the shack before. Granted, where he was now was a few blocks from his abode, but in broad daylight the wooden hut should have been visible. The leopard rubbed his eyes: the whole day was making his head hurt, and his body's ache from the earlier near drowning was returning once more. He had another ten minutes to go before he'd be able to just sit down and relax. The fruit in his paw felt heavy, the right half of his body limping to the side.
Because of the drag in his step, it took closer to fifteen minuets for him to reach his doorstep. Inside, he dropped down on the blue suede arm chair in the living room, heaving for breath. Exhaustion helped him sink into the soft cushion. His eyes fell on the purple fruit. In decent electric light, the skin was darker than he had originally thought. It was almost a black, with just a hint of that purplish hue. His stomach rumbled, hunger awakening now that the rest of him was ready to go to sleep. What could be the worst that happens, he figured, bringing it up and taking a small bite, breaking into the fruit's juicy flesh.
One bite led to the next, his appetite hitting him in full force. He had a hard time comparing the plum to anything else he'd tasted before. It was sweet, to be sure, but the kind of sweet one expects from spoiled fruit. And something salty lingered on his taste buds that refused to get washed down by the over abundance of juice. Combined with the slight earthy undertones, no doubt because it grew close to the ground, Geoffrey found himself enjoying his evening snack far more than he would have expected in his physical condition, and with a voraciousness he did not think he possessed. Within two minutes, the entirety of the fruit was devoured, seeds and all.
While he patted his flat stomach, content with his feeding, Geoffrey noticed odd pin pricks of stimulation spreading from his gut outwards. He assumed that it was his overtired state causing his body to ache in a way unfamiliar to him, and so shrugged it off. Or at least tried to. His movement came sluggish, and before he was even half way through the gesture he gave up, panting. Where there should have been panic, there was only exhaustion. He wanted so much just to sleep suddenly, to ignore the spreading tingle through out his system. It was concentrating in his chest, his water filled lungs burning painfully for a brief instance, before he passed out.
With his head tilted back against the supporting cushion of the recliner, and his mouth hanging open, Geoffrey looked every bit the picture of a college student who'd just passed out after spending a week studying without sleep. Only the way his chest moved, the abnormal rise and fall that was out of sync with his breathing, betrayed that image. Without any rhyme or rhythm, his chest would flex, the miniscule muscles bunching together to try and make it look bigger than it actually was. Only each spasmodic flex would appear just a smidgen larger, as if his chest were in fact inflating with the muscle it pretended to have. His shirt was starting to strain, pushing away from his torso and getting pulled up from the bottom to expose a small amount of stomach.
Geoffrey's spindly arms hung over the sides of the armrests, dangling to and fro as his body jerked with the twitching of his chest. The growth spread from his pecs to his arms, causing the sleeves of his abused shirt to constrict around suddenly muscular biceps and triceps. Unlike his chest, the leopard's arms thickened in mere moments, ballooning to what competing bodybuilders would dream about if they could reach it. In his sleep, he clenched his hands, bringing his biceps slightly upwards. That was the end of the sleeves on his shirt, as they ripped just enough to expose the swell of his biceps, but kept his newly acquired delts concealed.
With his fully loaded guns, and blossoming chest, the sleeping leopard looked positively ridiculous - all top heavy, without any of the sort of balance that he would need to function. Fortunately, the fruit still had more to give him. Like his arms, the legs practically exploded with size and girth, quickly giving him a pair of quadriceps that would make a cannon look thin. Supporting the new fire power, Geoffrey's calves formed into perfect tear drop shapes, a bit flat on the back, but hard enough that were somebody to knock on them, no dent would form in the muscle. The leopard's body visibly rose on the recliner, as his butt grew firmer and larger beneath him, filling the now tight shorts to the breaking point.
Though largely hidden by the fabric still clinging to the burgeoning leopard, the bottom row of abs could still be seen as it took shape, presumably along with six other bricks to accompany them. While the definition was not ideal, it was still enough that nobody would be able to deny the leopard's eight pack. In contrast, the obliques were sharply defined, two lines on either side of the leopard's torso that angled towards the centre, hinting towards the promise of something still hidden below.
Where before his body had been forced upwards by his rear, now he was being pushed forward by his back, causing his head to slump forward and giving him a slouching position as he dozed. The traumatized shirt, soaked, stretched, and ripped once already, would have no more of this torture. As Geoffrey's back took shape, giving him that coveted downward arrow that pointed to his ass, the collar on his t-shirt ripped, quickly fracturing down both front and back.
The shirt was not the only thing to rip apart. His shorts too had split in several locations: at the hems around his quads, along the seam of the crotch, and down the area that was trapped in between the muscular glutes. Nothing feel in tatters, but rather clung to the leopard, and if anything only made him seem bigger for all the damage. Were his clothing to have fluttered to the floor, he would simply look large. Sleeping in the chair, muscular enough that he could easily win a competition were he to enter one, and covered in ripped clothing, he looked too large.
Geoffrey slept like that well into the morning, unaware of his physical transformation entirely. The rays of light poking through his window could not disturb him, nor could the faint sound of an alarm from upstairs. It took not one, but three phone calls one after the other to finally rouse the slumbering leopard, who swatted at the air blindly, as if that would end the nuisance that the ringing phone was making of itself. When the answering machine kicked in, Geoffrey was just awake enough that it would be more difficult to go back to sleep rather than get up and face the day. He mumbled under his breath about never getting a good nights rest as a college student before actually placing his hands on the armrests and pushing himself into a standing position.
Despite the increase in size and strength unbeknownst to its possessor, Geoffrey's instincts were sharp enough to keep him from exerting too much force, which would have caused him to propel himself forward to the point that he would have fallen on his face. As it was, he still used a bit too much power behind his lift off, and ended up stumbling into a coffee table, banging his leg just under his knee. He yelped from the sudden hit, the shock bringing him to full awareness. As he looked down to see the damage done to his leg, he was quick to notice that there was a sizable amount of pectoral that should not have been there. All thoughts of the pain in his knee were forgotten as he quickly did a once over of himself to see what exactly had changed.
The leopard was practically salivating as he started to feel the bumps and curves of his body, checking to make sure that no part was devoid of the new found muscles. He could see the top of his chest, see how his arms mounded as he moved them over what felt like an eight pack, how his quads bunched together when he took a step forward. But it wasn't the full picture. Geoffrey ran towards the stairs, jumping them three at a time, his heavier form making the stairs creak as he bounded up them. He dashed into what used to be his parents' bedroom - and which he generally avoided entering out of respect - to use the full length mirror beside the credenza.
His reflection was everything he'd hoped it would be: beautiful, stunning, muscular. Everything he dreamed of having, of being able to enjoy on another man, and it was all his. He yelped with elation, pumping his fists and hopping up and down in place like a child who just got the best birthday present possible. The lion's miraculous fruit has actually worked, and Geoffrey almost felt guilty for having doubted it. He would have to go back and thank the man personally, as well as show off some of the results. Maybe that stud would be interested in feeling the results, Geoffrey began to wonder with a smile, his shredded shorts tenting slightly. The sensation of blood rushing to his member made the leopard realize there was still one place that had gone unchecked. With a grin, he pulled at the tatters, ripping them off his legs, eager to see what he would reveal.
It wasn't anything special, however. Crestfallen, Geoffrey could tell quite plainly that his pride was just as average as it had always been. Looking in the mirror, holding it in his larger hands, it in fact looked smaller by comparison. He gave it a squeeze, and moaned. It may not have grown, but it was just as enjoyable to play with as it had always been. As he lazy stroked himself while rubbing his pecs, the leopard wondered what should be the first thing he did with his new body. Jacking off was the obvious thing that came to his mind, but he wasn't entirely convinced he wanted to be the one to get himself off. With his body, he knew he could get somebody else to do it. And there was one person he really wanted to do just that.
Geoffrey didn't even stop to consider how many flaws there were with his logic. His confidence was at an all time high, and he wasn't going to let a little issue like interest get in his way. With this body, he was bound to be noticed, especially by another musclebound college student. The zebra would be begging for more once Geoffrey got a hold of him, even if the equine was straight. Not that that possibility even occurred to Geoffrey, who was busy trying to keep his hands off himself long enough for his erection to go down. He'd found the biggest pair of shorts he'd owned, and those just barely fit, hugging his bubble butt and cupping his package in the front. Looking at himself shirtless in the mirror got him riled up again.
Fully dressed in clothing that was obviously meant for somebody of a smaller build, Geoffrey bolted out of his house towards the university, eager to get into the gym he'd been too intimidated to enter in the past. He didn't have class until much later in the day, but he figured that hanging around the facilities would be his best chance at getting to see the zebra again before the coming Monday. After all, people have to work hard to get a body that amazing, Geoffrey rationalized, laughing to himself while thinking it. As he jogged along, he noticed heads turning, and some cheetah girls rather obviously checking him out. He grinned to them, causing one of the girls to swoon. His tail swished as he continued along - this was definitely the only way to be, large and attractive.
When Geoffrey strode into the gym, more than a few heads turned to see who it was and check out the size on the new guy. There were a few people of equal size already lifting, and they barely gave any notice to the leopard, their individual workouts far more important. The smaller ones, the fatter ones - those were the people who ogled Geoffrey as he made his way through the gym, his nose catching the scent of so many males and wrinkling slightly. It wasn't unpleasant to him, but it was stronger than he was used to. A quick look around the floor revealed that his guess had been correct - the zebra was just finishing up a set of squats, his rump looking plenty plump to the excited leopard. He sauntered over to his target, leaning against the mirrored wall beside the squat rack and grinned.
"Say there, stud, you're looking fine. But you think you can match my size?" The zebra looked towards Geoffery, the equine's mouth falling open at the sight before his eyes. Geoffrey flexed his pecs, making them bounce and jump. The zebra looked towards Geoffrey's face, and stammered. "Like what you see then, clearly?" The arm leaning against the wall mounded, bicep peaking in an impressive display of size and power. But still the zebra just looked at Geoffrey's face.
It went on for almost five minutes, the zebra like some stunned cattle. Geoffrey would flex, goad, tease, flirt, but the zebra wouldn't respond. The equine's face was just that of shock, starting into the leopard's, an almost indiscernible blush on his white-black cheeks. Geoffrey, realizing he wasn't getting anywhere, was starting to get frustrated. "Why are you just starting at my face?" he eventually asked, with more growl than intended. The zebra looked ashamed, even hurt. Geoffrey felt horrible instantaneously. "I'm sorry, you just seem preoccupied with my face, when all the interesting stuff is below that."
"Geoffrey..." the zebra whispered, "you ran into Simeon after I saved you in the pond, didn't you?"
Geoffrey's jaw dropped. He had not been expecting the zebra to know his name, for one thing. That the equine also knew about the lion just blew the leopard's mind. Slowly, pieces of the conversation with Simeon came back to him. "He wasn't any bigger than you when he walked in here".
In his excitement over his own body, Geoffrey had completely overlooked the fact that this zebra must have also undergone the same sudden transformation from the plums. The leopard could only nod.
"Those plums were really good, right?" the zebra said with a weak smile.
"The best I've eaten," Geoffrey agreed, still dazed from the turn of events.
"You've got such a great face,"the zebra admitted, that subtle blush returning. "I always wanted to talk to you, but didn't think you'd like me. When I was wandering around outside of town by the pond, Simeon found me, and for some reason I just told him everything. I figured if I was muscular, you would be interested in me, and Simeon gave me the fruit. But then you always left before I could talk to you."
Geoffrey was having a hard time believing what he was hearing, it seemed out of line with what he'd seen for the last month. "You always had those girls fawning over you after class, I figured you were straight." Geoffrey paused. "Which makes me wonder why I thought I could hit on you just now." He paused again. "Wait, you wanted to talk to me? Why?"
The zebra shook his head and shrugged. "You have a great face, like I said. I love your eyes, so bright and blue. And you're ears..." he reached out and lightly stroked the leopard's right ear, making the big cat mewl softly with pleasure. "I've got a soft spot for feline ears, and yours are some of the best I've seen." the zebra admitted, amused by Geoffrey's response.
"But what about all those girls, still? You're bi then?"
"No, I never wanted to talk to them, but they wouldn't leave me alone. I'd always try to go straight to you after class, but they would swarm me, and by the time I could get them off, you were always long gone. I've just wanted to talk to you, Geoffrey." The zebra smiled. "I want to get to know you, and maybe see if we're compatible." The zebra lightly shoved at Geoffrey's pecs. "And you didn't need to get buff to get my attention, you always had it."
Geoffrey wilted slightly. "So you would have preferred me to be smaller still?"
Before the leopard knew exactly what was happening, he was lip locked with the zebra, the equine's strong hands brushing through Geoffrey's hair. It was a brief, momentary kiss, halted when somebody in the gym let out a cat-call, followed by some cheers. When the two broke apart and looked around, they found all eyes on them, and more than a few grinning faces. Three people were walking out, a wolf among them turning back one last time to sneer and give the finger to the couple.
"You look even better as a hunk. You're face is so gorgeous when you're happy, so if being big makes you happy, I want you to be as big as you can get."
Geoffrey laughed, and gave his new lover a kiss on the cheek. "I'll do what I can for you..." the leopard's expression went blank. How could he not know the name of his month long crush? He didn't want to admit it, the zebra had clearly known his. They were in the same class, after all. When no name followed suit, the zebra laughed as he ruffled Geoffrey's hair.
"It's Doug, and don't you forget it ever again if you want this to work."
"A stud like you?" Geoffrey grinned, leaning in close to the man he planned to call boyfriend now. "How could I ever forget?" A nearby chameleon heard this comment and laughed. Geoffery was about to turn on the interloper and make a witty comment, but was stopped when he felt a hand on his crotch. It wasn't grabbing him, or tugging, or squeezing. It was just there, a soft and warm presence over his genitals. It made him tingle with anticipation.
"You okay there, Jeff?" Doug asked. "You're visibly shaking." The zebra removed his hand and took a step back, watching with wide eyes how the leopard trembled, but seemed to be smiling all the same.
"I feel fantastic," Geoffrey said. "Like I could run forever and never lose my breath. Or like I could just do an endless workout. I feel..." he paused, looking for the right word, as Doug stared open mouthed, "like my world is expanding."
"That might be because you are..." Doug said, completely disbelieving. "You're getting bigger again!" If the people in the gym hadn't already been watching, they would have started after that outburst. It was plain for all to see - the leopard was growing, and not just more muscular. Where he had been as tall as the zebra moments before, now Geoffrey was noticeably a head taller. His clothing, already tight, was ripping apart rapidly, unable to stretch anymore to accommodate the size of its wearer.
Geoffrey moaned, his head lolling to the side as he experienced a form of bliss he'd never known before. Had he been awake, he could have compared it to his first growth, and said that this current growth was like that, just magnified ten fold. Finding any words was becoming more and more difficult for him. Every moment that went by he could feel how much bigger he was, see how much smaller the room was getting. He wanted to share this with somebody, to have somebody else know how incredible this felt. He groped blindly, his hands searching for Doug, and finding a handhold on the zebra's crotch, eliciting a groan from the equine. Geoffrey couldn't see it, his eyes were closed from the pleasure, but he could feel Doug's body starting to swell.
People were evacuating the gym, the leopard and zebra growing steadily bigger by the second. His clothing in tatters, Geoffrey's erection bounced proudly, pointing towards Doug's chubby. They had to duck their heads to avoid hitting the ceiling, but even that didn't last long, as their backs and shoulders pushed up against the padded gym roof. Benches and weights were brushed aside by their legs, the room filled with the sounds of metal banging against metal, of bones creaking, and strangely something that sounded similar to a balloon being inflated.
As the pair filled the limited space in the room, the equipment bending and breaking to their superior strength, they found themselves holding on to each other, pec to pec, groin to groin. In between moans, they attempted to have a conversation, to describe to the other just how wonderful this felt, how much they loved sharing it with somebody else they liked.
"What caused this though?" Doug asked eventually, his tail tucked under his legs and his butt up against the wall. "Why are we growing again?"
"Maybe..." Geoffrey paused to groan, his cock was getting pushed into something warm and hard, "the fruit only reaches full potential when you find love."
"This isn't a fairy tale, you dumb jock," the zebra laughed, a rumble that shook the building even as the walls finally began to come down around them, freeing the two titans from the confines of the structure. As they stood up, brushing debris and dust out of their coats, they got a good sense of just how large they were. Whereas before they had trouble seeing over their chest, now it was strictly impossible. Doug flexed his biceps, and Geoffrey could measure them up against the zebra's head to see that those two swells of brawn were bigger. The university buildings barely reached up to their waists, that distance growing smaller as they laughed and touched each other.
"Let's just find Simeon and ask him, it shouldn't be too hard to find his shack" Geoffery suggested.
"About as hard as you, I bet." The zebra grabbed on to the feline's cock, and was rewarded with a drop of precum and sigh of pleasure from that member's owner.
The giant leopard blushed at the sudden forwardness of his partner. "Shouldn't we do this somewhere a bit more private? There's this valley past the pond I've always wanted to visit. I bet it would make a great spot for a little..." Geoffery whispered something that managed to make the zebra blush. To those below, the whisper was a low rumble, the words completely unclear.
"Just be careful we don't crush anything on the way out," Doug said, grabbing on to Geoffrey's hand. They looked at each other, exchange smiles, and began to stride through town, watching the buildings seemingly shrink around them. When the road cracked under their weight, or a building got kicked over, or they accidentally crushed a car, they would shout an apology, making people cover their ears and wince from the sudden booms of noise. Though they felt bad about the destruction they were inadvertently causing, they couldn't deny the thrill of being so large that their very movement made cities quake.
Geoffrey kept stealing glances towards Doug's bobbing dick. To somebody else, it might look huge, but for the two colossi, it just seemed perfectly average, no bigger proportionally then it would if they hadn't grown at all. The leopard licked his lips in anticipation for his first feeding.
As they made their way towards the valley, a lion sitting on a wooden chair outside of his shack watched while he sipped on a deep purple beverage. Another couple successfully united, how many did that make now? He'd lost track over the years. Every time seemed like the first, each time more rewarding than the last. He put down his drink, picking up the natal plum on the folding stand beside his chair. One day he'd let it happen to himself again. Simeon crushed the fruit with his hand, the juices gushing over his fingers, dripping into the cup.
"Kids these days," the lion mumbled, his tail twitching along the ground, "they've got no idea how to hold their big." He took a slow, long sip from his glass, put his hands behind his head, and smiled as the giants disappeared behind the mountains. No doubt the suppliers of ear plugs in the city would find their wares in great demand.