There was one thing he always wanted to do. Above everything else, he just couldn't help but admire all these big guys with painted bellies, as if the belly itself was a canvas. They had such a vast expanse of skin to paint on, so it was prime for painting!

But what?

He almost knew immediately when he saw the calendar. It was September -- the end of the summer was near. Halloween was coming!

Oh goodness, this was exciting!

Enlisting a friend's help, the werewolf got one of his wishes done -- something to knock off his bucket list, at least.

Staring down at the expanse of orange below him, he put his hands under it and lifted it up, immediately feeling the weight of all his eating and experience as the orange marshmallow jiggled under his weight. His belly was now painted like a pumpkin.

"Oh, thank you!" He exclaimed happily with a tail wagging and his tongue sticking out. "You have no idea how much I've wanted to do this."

"A lot... actually." The friend remarked with an exhausted smirk. He had spent the past thirty minutes painting through all that fluff and fat. Getting it properly coated took a lot more paint than he dared to admit. "You kept saying your belly wasn't 'big enough' to be a pumpkin belly... but now you've REALLY let yourself go and it's big, if not bigger, than it needs to be for the proper," he lifted his hands in air quotes, "'pumpkin belly', that you wanted."

The werewolf stuck his tongue back in his mouth and frowned. "You don't like it?" His ears drooped and his eyes widened, glistening like a sad puppy wanting attention.

"Oh jeez, no, Sarge." The friend backed up a bit.

The werewolf's eyes grew bigger and they began to water, "but you spent 30 minutes on it!"

"Gah!" The friend slapped a hand to his face. "That's not what I meant!" Taking a deep breath, he continued. "I don't like that it took thirty minutes to do... but, since it has made you so happy, I'll love it anyway."

Sarge's eyes returned to their normal, excited state and his tongue lolled out of his mouth again. He looked back down at his belly, admiring the plump, round, orange marshmallow in front of him yet again.

The friend sighed with a casual head shake. "Cute when you're sad, but even cuter when you're happy." The friend lifted a hand to Sarge's head and gave it a pat.

The werewolf closed his eyes and smiled. "It's a curse."

~~~~~

Art/Sergeant Wolf (C)  pikminpedia Me