Wohoo, finally got this one finished, and I have to say I'm actually quite proud of how it turned out! Drama and character development in a fat fur story? I can only hope I pulled it off well.

Anyways, Grief is back and fatter than ever, now 75% on his way to immobility. In this chapter, Shiro (played by  Rhoen ) finally admits to intentionally fattening up the drake for a very peculiar reason~

Thank you everyone who has stuck to me while I slowly work through this story. I left the ending ambiguous in case anyone wanted it to end here, but I'll still leave the drive running if anyone wants a followup!

Another $50 and we'll see how Grief reacts to being immobile! Paypal is Mydoghateswater[at]yahoo.com and once again, thank you to everyone who's donated! You have no idea how much I appreciate it! Hopefully I'll be smart with the money so I can keep the food truck running haha.

---

THUMP…THUMP…THUMP…

The tremors persisted throughout the area, alerting many of the wildlife. Birds flew from their trees whenever their perch shuddered, nearby rabbits perked their ears up before scampering away. Even the herd of deer traveling towards their favorite feeding grounds quickly turned tail and fled after sensing the seismic disturbance. In short, no one wanted to get near what they assumed to be a stampede moving in slow motion; little did they know, however, that this stampede actually consisted of only two creatures: a very fat dragon and his canine companion.

“You should pick up your feet, big guy, you’re shaking the whole forest!” Shiro snickered as he laid on his back, sinking comfortably into the dragon’s scaly hide.

Grief snarled at the remark but didn’t respond immediately, mainly due to his heavy panting. However, what the dog on his back didn’t know was that he was lifting his legs as high as he could, even if it wasn’t much due to his interfering belly. “You’re no lightweight yourself, mutt. I’d walk much more quietly if you’d get off me.”

“But Grief, the forest is dangerous for weak and defenseless anthros like myself! I’d get eaten alive if it weren’t for the protection of a massive, ferocious drake like yourself!” Shiro explained, struggling to suppress the grin he made when he knew something Grief didn’t.

The dragon snorted indignantly but continued walking regardless. Lately, Shiro had been acting a little too chummy with him, doing things such as climbing on the drake whenever he laid down or throwing a candy bar into his maw whenever he yawned. In most instances, Grief would have no problem trampling such an imposing anthro to death, but all that would do was inconvenience himself, seeing as how Shiro brought him his food every morning. Besides, he hasn’t been in the trampling mood for ages, the damned humidity making him feel heavy.

What Grief didn’t realize (or at least tried to ignore) was that he had gained a significant amount of weight ever since he encountered the canine. For the past few months, the dragon’s features had expanded slowly and steadily, as if he were a pool toy being pumped up in slow motion. His bloated stomach, filled to the brim with fattening sweets, swung lazily below him like a pendulum in slow motion, blades of grass brushing against it. His thick legs were thicker than most trees as they were starting to form small rolls of their own. Even the drake’s cheeks were starting to encroach on his vision, the pair of grey jiggly orbs now constantly in his peripheral vision. Every movement the drake made caused his body to ripple and wobble all over, particularly around his belly, legs, and face. Not even Grief could ignore his growing body anymore; he really was one fat dragon.

Shiro smiled as he slowly rolled onto his large stomach. Even while laying down, the canine’s line of sight was higher than Grief’s due to the dragon’s broad back. “I really do appreciate you escorting me back, bud. It must be difficult moving around at your size.”

Grief growled at the remark, his chubby cheeks glowing the slightest hint redder. “For your information, mutt, it’s not uncommon for mountain dragons such as myself to gain a little weight during the autumnal season. It’s an evolutionary trait that we share with many mammals as a way to cope with the severe winter.” As he finished speaking, the dragon had to stop for a moment to catch his breath. Walking and talking had became so much difficult to him as of late.

From atop the lethargic drake, Shiro nodded and patted Grief’s mane. “I’m sure it is, bud. Let’s make sure you have enough extra padding to survive the next few winters!”

The dragon halted his panting, trying to look back at the dog. “What are you talking about?”

Before Shiro could answer, Grief heard the familiar rumble of a vehicle in front of him. Turning back, the dragon’s jaw drop as he saw what looked like a mountain of pastries floating towards him. As it moved closer, Grief was barely able to make out the yellow vehicle behind it, hearing it creak and groan as it carried a load far bigger than it should. Grief was almost intimidated by the sight, stepping back cautiously as the food approached. Once the bulldozer was a mere few feet away, it overturned its load directly before the dragon, who found himself up to his shins in treats.

“M-more food?” Grief stammered as he stepped back, sniffing the sickeningly-sweet pastries cautiously. He had just finished eating today’s payment, as evident by his swollen belly, and wasn’t due for another until tomorrow, and yet here was another shipment of food twice as large as usual!

“Package for Grief?” the dragon heard Shiro chuckle again above him, and soon a nasty thought made its way through his mind. As he glanced between the second food pile and the wolf sitting in the bulldozer, who was looking more and more nervous under the dragon’s gaze, Grief suddenly came to a horrible revelation. “You’re trying to fatten me up!”

“No!” Both canines called out, although realizing the sudden danger he was in, the wolf in the bulldozer quickly made a U-turn in his vehicle and drove off much faster than bulldozers normally moved.

“Shiro!” Grief screamed, his cheeks jiggling with the force of his roar. “Get down here right now and face me before I…” The dragon hesitated. He was going to scream “step on you” but hesitated, realizing he’d only be accepting the point that he was indeed heavier than before.

Grief felt the dog shake slightly as he slowly and awkwardly made his way down, using the dragon’s flabby flanks as footholds. Having nicked much of the food for his own, Shiro had put on a significant amount of weight as well, having grown somewhat greedier in tandem with the dragon. Grief was made aware of that as he got a good luck at the trembling dog walking before him; his ears drooped around his chubby head while his paws timidly squeezed at his exposed tummy.

The two stared at each other for quite some time, Shiro unable to meet the dragon’s gaze. To Grief’s delight, the dog wasn’t smiling for once. Not a sound filled the air, save for Grief’s light panting and the occasional gurgle from the dragon’s overstuffed stomach. Unable to bear the situation anymore, Shiro finally broke the silence. “W-we never wanted to hurt you or anything.”

“Just like your kind hurt my mother?” Grief snarled back, his nostrils flaring. “Of course you never meant to hurt anyone! You anthros are all full of good intentions, but the moment you want something, you’re willing to sacrifice anything to obtain it!” With another roar, the dragon shook his immense belly, feeling it wobble to and fro. “You never cared about what happens to me, you anthros just wanted me occupied while you build your damn houses in my forest! What will you do once the entire forest is yours? Kick me out and leave me to fend for myself like you did all those years ago when you took my mother? Or will you capture me and parade me around in your circuses and zoos as the fat and stupid dragon who thought he could trust anthros!”

Those last few words came out in a harsh scream that Grief didn’t even know he could make. As such, all the color drained from Shiro’s face as he looked at the large dragon with a mixture of fear and sadness, the dog’s eyes growing rather watery. Grief didn’t know if it was his fat legs that prevented him from stepping forward and squishing Shiro or the strange affection he felt with the chubby dog that he had built up over the last few months, but while his emotions and logic told him he should march forward and end the canine’s life, Grief stayed still, panting heavily with rage.

Instead of running away or begging for his life like Grief imagined most anthros would, Shiro continued to stand still, even while his legs shivered violently. “It’s not like that at all,” the dog managed to speak in a very tiny voice. Unable to face the angry drake, Shiro lowered his head before continuing. “I-I admit it, yes, I was aware you were growing… wider, and I’m aware that I may have contributed quite a bit to it as well, but it was never to humiliate you! T-there’s a famine in my hometown, one that’s left us with hardly any food to survive. We needed to move somewhere more bountiful, and this forest, this wonderful forest, has provided us with more than enough food in one week to feed everyone for a month! The soil is so fertile here, and the crops are rich, w-we never have to go hungry again!” Shiro choked up a little as he spoke, struggling to suppress tears.

Despite his anger, Grief suddenly felt a painful memory pop up in his head, one of him fleeing down the mountain where he was born, a small and pathetic looking hatchling unable to even gallop without stumbling over himself. He remembered being skin and bone, and the fear that came with it that he may never eat again, that he may simply waste away until nothing was left. Looking back at such a terrible moment in his life, Grief was actually rather grateful for his abundant figure.

As if reading his mind, Shiro looked up at the dragon’s eyes, tear’s streaking down the canine’s face. “W-what those hunters did to you and your m-mother was cruel and unforgivable, but please don’t assume every anthro is horrible and greedy just because they were! We have no desire at all to hurt or trouble you, really. If anything, you give us hope that we might prosper as a village!”

“I thought you said you didn’t want me around your building site because I brought fear to the builders,” Grief muttered.

“Well, it’s kinda hard not to be afraid of someone who can obliterate a tractor just by breathing on it,” Shiro chuckled dryly, rubbing at his moist eyes. “But I’m telling the truth! We actually like seeing you get fatter, not to make fun of you, but to praise you! You’re like our symbol of hope that none of us will ever have to endure starvation again. I know I certainly won’t anytime soon,” the dog smiled, patting his protruding paunch. “And besides, the villagers feel really put at ease knowing that we have a dragon on our side! No one would want to attack us if we had a big, strong, well-fed drake to defend us! But,” he sighed, “if you want, I can start bringing you less food and leaving you alone more often, but… is it alright if I can still come by and visit, just once in a while? You’re a great companion, Grief, and I really enjoy spending time with you.”

For the first time in his life, Grief found himself too stunned to make any sort of retort. An anthro, who enjoys spending time with him, a dragon? He was supposed to be the scourge of humanity, their inevitable downfall! And yet, he felt something stir within him, buried deep beneath several layers of lard and repressed emotions. At first he assumed the mutt was simply lying to him, like any anthro would, and yet the look Shiro gave him was unlike anything Grief had ever seen before. It was… pure.

Shiro’s ears folded, taking the dragon’s silence as a no. “I understand… I just, I didn’t… I’m sorry, I’ll help clean up this food,” the canine whimpered softly as he turned to the small hill of pastries.

“…That won’t be necessary.”

Shiro looked back and, to his absolute surprise and delight, watched as Grief waddled forward to the food pile, planted his fat rump on the ground with a loud thump, and dug his face into the pastries. Wagging with excitement, the white and black dog skipped over to the dragon’s head. “Y-you don’t have to e-eat anymore, you know!” The dog exclaimed, remembering the massive meal the drake had moments ago.

With a hasty gulp, Grief swallowed a large mouthful of food and sighed. “You’re right, I certainly brrp don’t have to, not unless you get your fat and lazy self down to my gut and start massaging!” And with that, he slowly rolled his colossal form onto his side, exposing his gigantic furry gut in all its glory while remaining within reach of the food.

Shiro yelped excitedly as he dashed towards the dragon’s belly like a child on Christmas rushing to open his presents. Soon, Grief heard a loud plop as he felt the dog plant himself on his exposed stomach, kneading and rubbing as much of squishy blubber as he could reach. Grief growled with pleasure as he continued to gorge himself on his favorite treats, feeling the dog sink into his considerable gut while burying his limbs into the expansive flab. “I hope you don’t plan on slowing down any time soon, mutt. It’s only gonna grow bigger from here on out!” Grief called out as the strange and unfamiliar sensation of a smile spread across his muzzle.

And so, the two friends remained there for the entirety of the evening, Grief constantly eating from the pastry pile (despite his stomach’s complaints) and Shiro doing his best to knead, rub, massage, and stroke as much of the dragon’s growing belly as he can, taking breaks occasionally to eat some of food Grief set aside specifically for him. As the sun set and the food pile gradually diminished, the bloated couple decided they were too full to waddle back home, and as such spent the night nursing their overstuffed tummies together, Shiro using Grief as a water bed, before falling asleep to the sounds of their stomachs churning.

The next day, Grief woke up to see that his stomach now rubbed against the ground even when he was standing up, and he couldn’t be any prouder.