Merry Vs Yumeji (Vore)

(And here's what you came here for)

Tried my hand at some teasing and body exploration stuff as a prelude to the vore.
_ _ _

Yumeji stared at a black circle at the end of a cobblestone hall. Torches hung from metal holders on the walls and offered faint lighting. The smell of smoke and burning wood wafted all around him. He took a step forward, his iron bracers clanking together. The metallic squealing of his armor joints echoed through the hall as he advanced. The teen had been tasked by a company of dwarves to embark on a quest for a mythic artifact known as the Arkenstone.

The silvery suit he wore, protecting all but his head, would probably make a subtle approach near impossible. “Damn,” he grumbled, “that dragon will probably hear me coming in all this armor… How am I gonna get that rock if that monster will sniff me out before I can get anywhere near it?” Yumeji groaned as he sallied forth. He felt down near his hip and was relieved to know he was still carrying his magic pouch. The brown sack was about the size of his head but contained a small pocket dimension where he could store almost anything. No such object existed in the original story, but Yumeji wasn’t above adding certain things for the sake of convenience. He was certainly no Hobbit.

The young warrior soon came to the end of the hall- a heavy wooden door- where he stopped in his tracks. “Wait. I never gave myself this armor, I’m supposed to be a thief.” He reached into his pouch, only able to locate an iron short sword. “Where’s my ring? …Must be the Nightmare’s influence. Augh. I don’t have time to study this chapter on another night. Aw well, might as well make the best of this.”

Yumeji pushed the handle and the door creaked open. His eyes lit up as he beheld the enormity of the cavern within. It was easily big enough to contain half of the Tokyo metropolitan area. Yumeji looked up expecting to see the sky, only to instead view the gray cave ceiling. As his eyes drifted back down he beheld a sea of gold and jewels stretching out for what seemed like eternity. Mounds of treasure shot up into the air, some as tall as skyscrapers, others the size of mountains. He could see the shimmering hills trailing off into the ‘edges’ of the room, bordered on all sides by a wavy wall of dark energy. Massive columns of magma descended from the ceiling near the edges, flowing into their respective holes. The radiant orange liquid provided heat and light that caused Yumeji to sweat and the gold to shine bright. Though the hero could see everything in the chamber, he was far more concerned by what was absent. “No dragon, huh? At least I’ve got that going for me,” Yumeji figured, “now where’s that stone…”

Straight ahead of Yumeji’s position, a mysterious blue beacon flashed amidst the overpowering orange. It was seated on the side of the golden mountain, about halfway up its slanted height. “The Arkenstone! And now I just gotta get to it…” Fortunately for Yumeji a stone bridge ran away from his entry point, leading to a staircase that ended at the foot of the artifact’s treasure mound. He carefully descended the shining hillside, iron clanging against gold and silver. The armored youth found a much more difficult time ascending the Arkenstone’s mountain, but before long he was in eyeshot of the Dwarven rock, easily able to see the insignia on its surface.

“Alright… You're coming with me.” Yumeji was almost in arm’s reach of the stone when a deep, burbling growl sounded below him. It sounded like a stream of magma rushing beneath the surface of a volcano, burbling as it gushed between the rocky plates. A tremor rumbled. Yumeji swayed from side to side, desperate to keep his balance. Coins and jewels rolled down the sides of the mound. A pit began to form around the Arkenstone as treasure flowed out from around it. Yumeji fell forward, his armor clanking against the gold. He felt coins and gems tickle his face as they rushed past him. As he stood up on his knee and looked forward, he was shocked to see what the quake had uncovered.

He had expected a sudden overflow of magma at the pit of the coins. Instead a dome of smooth, peachy skin broke the consistency of the golden surroundings. The size of a large pond, it was puffed out, seemingly from an enormous breath. The smooth surface hesitated before exhaling, like a balloon losing air, and settling down. The dome became an organic crater, a lagoon of life in a metal sea. Near the border between and flesh and coin, purple scales showed up on the skin. Yumeji concluded this was the dragon’s soft underbelly. He also noted the dipped shape, the shadowy outlines of pelvic bones near the south, the impressions of ribs toward the north, and the navel wide enough to engulf half his body.

An ominous gurgle, like a raging river of underground magma, was audible just below the soft island of flesh. “I’d hate to end up in there…! Damn,” Yumeji cursed. He might have simply avoided contact with the dragon’s stomach, but a column of cyan light weakly shone from the central pit. The Arkenstone had fallen into the beast’s bellybutton.

Yumeji stood up and walked to the edge of the skin. He undid the straps on his metallic boots and was left with bare feet. “I hope it doesn’t feel me,” the young warrior gulped as he walked forward. His feet sank into the warm flesh. The abdominal area jiggled with each step he took. Sweat emerged from pores along the smooth surface. It rose and fell with each of the dragon’s breaths. Yumeji was unnerved by the gurgles underneath his feet. The dragon’s digestive system squeezed mucky digested slop like a water pump. An obvious thought crossed his mind- the idea of his lifeless body joining those liquefied foodstuffs, but he could hardly focus on that. He hunched over in front of the navel and peered inside. The Arkenstone was right there, nestled in a fleshy cranny…

Then it was gone. The abdomen flexed, causing Yumeji to wobble and nearly topple. The Arkenstone’s light became fainter as it slipped deeper into the navel. Yumeji could no longer bend over and pick it up. “Damn,” he grunted, “I have to get closer…” The warrior threw caution to the wind and knelt down. He reached into the pit and fiddled around for a while, eventually getting a grip on the stone. Then the ground beneath him trembled. He heard something echo from the top of the mountain…

“Hehehe… You found me…”

It sounded like a giggling girl, yet it echoed through the entire cavern, as if blasted through a public announcement system. Yumeji was suddenly pelted by a shower of gold as the dragon’s stomach shifted again. He raised an arm in defense. As the storm subsided, he moved his arm aside and looked up. The peak of the golden mountain had disintegrated. It was replaced by the enormous smirking face of a giant lavender-haired girl who Yumeji knew very well.

“That’s no dragon, that’s…. Merry? What the hell is she doing here?”
Merry flashed a toothy grin. Her head, emerging from the top of the gold, loomed over him. Her lively peach skin contrasted the bland gray ceiling, like the glowing moon against a pale sky. Yet this Merry was somewhat different from the one Yumeji was used to. He looked into her eyes and noticed that her pupils were slightly slimmer than normal. They were slits, like those of a reptile. The sclera eyes had a slight yellow tint to them. Yumeji looked closer at her smile and noticed that her teeth were gleaming triangular blades. Spots of purple scales were scattered over her cheeks. Most noticeable was the spiky violet crown rose from her scalp, granting her a rather chaotic, demented visage.

“M-Merry,” Yumeji stuttered, “you’re the one who invaded my dream? And you’re a freakin’ dragon!? Wh-whoa-!” Merry’s belly rumbled beneath Yumeji’s feet, finally throwing him off balance. He tumbled forth and was half-swallowed by the navel.

“Hohoho,” the dragoness bellowed, “what foolish warrior has fallen into my belly button?” The gold pile flanking Merry’s right side exploded as her arm emerged. Her left arm appeared in a shiny fountain soon after. She rocked her body left and right, shaking the rest of the treasure off. Her enormous legs kicked mightily, sending huge amounts of gold clattering through the cave.

Yumeji pushed himself out of the navel, Arkenstone in hand, face drenched in sweat, and sat back. Enormous globs of sweat rolled down from her chest. Yumeji thought about how hot it must have been to be buried in metal while surrounded by molten rock. He didn’t have much time to think as Merry started sitting up. He slid down the surface of her tilted abdomen, finally now afforded a view of her full form. Her creamy skin and modest curves were visible from the waist up. She would have been naked if not for a lavender scale-pattern bra covering her small breasts. Yumeji glanced back and saw panties around her pelvis that matched her bra. Merry now laid back in the gold like she was relaxing on a couch, her knees bent skyward and her legs spread apart. Yumeji couldn’t keep his eyes off the area between her chubby thighs, where a slight bulge rose in her panties…

A gigantic feminine hand slapped the bare flesh behind Yumeji. He looked back and saw Merry’s fingers playfully drumming her stomach. Her fingers then bent as her hand “stood up” on its fingertips. “With my magic I’ve summoned a spider to hunt you down,” she announced. Yumeji couldn’t get over how her voice sounded like it was amplified over a loudspeaker. “You’d better run!” Yumeji held the Arkenstone tight and hopped to his feet. Merry’s hand skittered after him as he ran down her abdomen. The warrior looked back to keep track of his pursuer, but in his inattentiveness he got his foot stuck under the waistband of the panties and tripped. The Arkenstone fell out of Yumeji’s grasp as he yelped and tumbled forward.

Yumeji fell right between Merry’s vertically-facing thighs. Her legs reflexively closed around him, smooshing him between the fleshy towers. He was swamped in her body heat. A mixture of her sweat and his own slid between the joints of his armor. He was inches from slipping and falling onto her crotch. He could have reached out and touched it if his arms weren’t pinned to his sides. The thighs shivered. “Ooh,” Merry squeaked, “Your armor feels so cold on my skin!” The dragon-girl released her pelvic squeeze and let Yumeji fall onto her cloth-covered vagina. He bounced off the soft surface and landed in the gold with a clanking thud. “Ohh! I felt that, you naughty little hero!”

The Arkenstone rolled down the side of the golden hill like lost soccer ball. Yumeji looked up to see what to him looked like a pantyshot straight out of a manga, blown up to the size of multiple billboards. The snug shape of of Merry’s butt cheeks emerged below her underwear while her surprisingly defined cameltoe pushed against the cloth on top. Yumeji stood up, his armor pieces straining against each other. His set had been damaged and loosened from the abuse it had taken. Realizing it would only hinder him, he threw off his chest plate and unstrapped his pauldrons and cuisses.

Yumeji turned around and broke into a run while the rest of his armor fell off. He was left in nothing but his white shirt, brown pants, and his pouch, which he pulled off his breastplate and snapped onto his back. His attention was squarely on the Arkenstone rolling down the gold hill. But a sudden quake rumbled through the coins and momentarily threw Yumeji off balance. The warrior watched as Merry’s thighs and ankles unfolded, her legs reaching outward. Merry planted her feet just ahead of Yumeji’s position, resulting in two explosions of gold. She rose into a crouching position, her knees looming on Yumeji’s horizon while her butt hovered over his head. The warrior kept running and was soon hurrying out from beneath Merry’s legs.

Merry arched her back forward. Her face peered over her knees as she got a look at Yumeji. She giggled she watched the adorable drama play out before her- a miniscule boy pursuing a tiny blue dot to the base of the valley between two piles of treasure. “Hehehe… What’s this? You’re trying to take the Arkenstone from me? Sorry, you won’t be leaving here alive!” Yumeji skidded to a stop at the bottom of the hill, gasping for breath. He was glad to have his feet on solid stone again. But the momentary peace didn’t last. A shadow was cast over him. He looked up and saw Merry’s open hand descending on him. Yumeji dodged out of the way and grabbed the Arkenstone. He exclusively ran along the stone floor. He hoped he could reach the tight canyon between the shimmering hills and lose the dragoness in there. Then her bare foot slammed down in front of him.

The impact sent Yumeji sailing back onto the stone floor. The Arkenstone rolled out of his grasp as he landed flat on his face. Then he felt another heavy quake to his right. Rolling onto his back he saw Merry standing at her full, imposing height, her face peering down at him partially obscured by her small breasts. “You won’t be getting away that easily, little warrior!” Yumeji tried to rise, but Merry raised her foot and pressed it on top of him. His lower body was buried beneath a mass of sweaty flesh. His eyes watered at the pungent, salty aroma of her foot sweat. She then angled her foot downward, grabbing Yumeji between the toes. Merry brought her foot up and held Yumeji near her midsection, offering him a view of the navel that had half-devoured him earlier. Merry’s fingers descended and accepted the offering from her toes.

At last, the dragoness had seized her intruder. Yumeji was trapped in a cage of fingers with his head poking out of the top. From his perspective, Merry held him a few meters from her face. From her perspective, he was just a few centimeters. Yumeji could do little but stare into Merry’s full, enormous visage, like a sheer cliff rising before him. Her reptilian pupils narrowed as she brought Yumeji before her nostrils and gave him a good sniff. Merry then returned him to his previous position.

“Heh, I’m surprised. You’re a nice-smelling thief, even after getting pinned by my feet!”

“Merry, please let me go,” Yumeji protested as squirmed in her grip, “I thought you said you were gonna protect me in my dreams?” Merry cocked her head and arched her brows. She then smirked and scoffed. “Hah! I am Dwarf-Eater Merry, Dragon Guardian of this treasure horde! And you will not leave here with even one small piece!”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

Merry tilted her head back and laid her free hand on her lips. “Hohoho,” she
chuckled as deeply as her voice would allow, “Perhaps a demonstration is in order!”

Merry’s free hand appeared from below. It was pinching the Arkenstone
between its thumb and index finger, showing it off in front of Yumeji. He grunted, desperate to reach and grab the old rock. Merry smirked, her eyes narrowing condescendingly. “Ooh,” she waved the stone a few feet from Yumeji’s face, “you want this?” She tilted her head back slightly and opened her mouth. “Ahhh…” Merry rolled out her pointed tongue and set the stone upon the squishy surface. She slurped the Arkenstone inside her mouth and suckled on it like candy, effortlessly swallowing it with a wet gulp.

Yumeji watched Merry’s neck in amazement. The stone’s blue radiance shone through the flexing muscle. Merry traced the cyan dot with her finger as it passed under her collarbone and hurried through her chest. Yumeji peered over Merry’s thumb and watched as the magical sheen suddenly settled near her navel. “Ah,” Merry sighed in delight, patting her midsection, “how tasty, and it feels so warm in my belly! I should’ve eaten this dumb old
rock ages ago!”

The disheartened warrior reached toward the dragon’s taut tummy, wishing the Arkenstone could simply fly back into his hands. Merry childishly poked her stomach. “Ooh,” she gasped, “it’s making me a little quea-“Uurrraack! The dragoness was interrupted by her own uproarious belch. A puff of hot flame escaped her jaws. The residual smoke blew past Yumeji’s face. He waved at the air. She giggled as she watched him struggling against even her burps. She felt so powerful. “I can’t believe you just did that,” Yumeji groaned, “I just needed to get that rock out of here.”

“Y’know, if you want it so bad,” Merry winked, bringing Yumeji before her mouth and gnashing her teeth, “I can give you the full tour…”

Merry’s teeth slowly parted, revealing her mouth’s salivating depths. Those razor-sharp fangs formed two rows of flat stalactites in the organic cave. The pearly points glinted, reflecting the magma falls outside and terminating at her gaping gullet. Around the central void a ring of muscle contracted, sucking in saliva from all over the maw. Rivulets ran between her gums and teeth, rushing over her tongue before emptying into the back of the throat like a biological drain. Her tongue twitched in her lower jaw and rolled over her lip like a pink carpet. Merry slowly conveyed Yumeji toward the oily pink organ.

“W-wait,” the boy cried in horror, “Merry! What are you doing!? Please stop!”
Merry closed her mouth and moved Yumeji back to his previous position. Her once demented expression was replaced by one of concern. She sat down on the gold hill and opened her hand, allowing Yumeji to stand in her palm. “Hey,” she began, “what’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong!? You were about to eat me! How- how can you even question that!?”

“It’s okay, Yumeji. Neither of us are in any real danger. This is just a shared dreamscape.”

“B-but to come in so suddenly and without warning!”

Merry’s gaze drifted away. “I’m sorry… I wanted this to be a surprise.”

“A… surprise?”

“Yeah, I thought it’d be more fun for you if I was ‘in-character’ the whole time.”

“In… character?” Yumeji was brought a little closer to Merry's left eye. The pupil dilated as it drank in the details of his body. “Yumeji," she gently asked, "are you alright?” Yumeji rubbed his temple and sighed. “Merry, I thought you had turned on me for a sec there.” Merry’s mouth opened, but no sound came out. “Um, so earlier I saw I had a black aura… Which means I was gonna get invaded by a Dream Demon. But I never thought it would be you with a surprise party in my head.”

Merry returned Yumeji to “talking distance” with her face and scratched the back of her head. She closed her eyes and giggled with an innocent smile. “Ehehehe… Sorry. I guess I see why you were confused. It’s just that you’ve worked so hard to help me find my way home, and I almost never do anything to repay you.”

“But… wait, you were gonna repay me by… by…” Merry watched as color drained from Yumeji’s tiny face. “What’s the matter?”
Yumeji squeaked. “By… eating me?” Merry shrugged. “Yeah! That’s what you want, isn’t it?” Yumeji stared blankly. Merry pointed at her mouth with an arched brow. “Didn’t you like watching me eat those Candy Demons?” Yumeji’s hand twitched. Merry snapped her gigantic fingers in front of his face, causing him to wince. “Hey! Say something!”

“Merry, look, that part of me is…” Yumeji sighed. He was going to hate himself for this one. “It’s private, okay? It’s not something I want anyone else to know about. The fact that you know is just… uncomfortable.”

Merry felt the light flee from her eyes. After everything she had done to set up this scenario, Yumeji rejected her? After giving him his ultimate fantasy?

“I’m sorry,” Yumeji continued, “I hope you’ll understand…”

She huffed and glanced at a lava pillar in the background. “Okay… I guess I’ll get out of here then.” Merry stood up and walked over to Yumeji’s entry point. She set him on the stone path from whence he came. “I hope you enjoy the rest of your dream, Yumeji.” Merry turned and began stomping toward the shadowy void at the edges of the cavern chamber. Yumeji avoided staring at Merry’s rear and instead looked up at the curve in her back. Two small bat-like wings were folded beneath her shoulder blades. Yumeji couldn’t get over how endearing they were. They seemed to droop with disappointment. Yumeji sighed.

A thousand thoughts ran through his mind. But ultimately he came to one conclusion. He reached for his friend and shouted, “Merry, wait!”
The dragon-girl turned her head, her countenance blank. “Yumeji?”

His arm fell to his side. “I changed my mind.”

Her eyes lit up.

He breathed deeply and nodded. “Let’s… let’s do this.”

A smile crossed her face slowly. She turned to face Yumeji with all her being. The boy nodded and winked. His expression turned into one of fake disdain as he got back “into character.” “The Arkenstone,” the warrior recoiled in horror, “Damn… How will I retrieve it if it’s in a dragon’s stomach!?”

Merry tapped finger against her chin and giggled. “Like I said, if you want a trip into my belly, I can give you a one-way ticket!” The dragoness got onto all fours and crawled toward Yumeji. As she neared the stone bridge she reared up, her chest looming over the boy. Yumeji tried to run toward the doorway he had entered from. Merry’s right hand slammed onto the path, cutting him off from his exit. He tried going the opposite way, back down the stairs, but Merry’s other hand blocked him there as well. Yumeji looked up at her condescendingly smirking face. She licked her lips. “Looks like you’re trapped, my little morsel! You’re gonna feel sooooo good squirming on the way down!”

As Merry’s warm, sweet-smelling breath washed over Yumeji, he almost considered letting her eat him right there. He was standing right at the edge of the stone bridge. Her maw opened before him, saliva rolling over her lip, uvula quivering in excitement. Yumeji realized he could simply become her snack, like one of the donuts she craved. He could just slip right down her throat, wiggling for her pleasure, dipping into her warm, wet belly…
But where would the fun be in that?

As Merry’s maw descended, Yumeji jumped forward, narrowly avoiding her snapping jaws. He fell onto a slope of gold directly below Merry’s chin and began skidding down under her chest. “If you wanna make a snack of me,” he called, “you’ll have to catch me first!” Merry looked down and caught a brief glimpse of Yumeji sliding out of view. She planted her knees on the floor and knelt upright. Scanning her surroundings, Merry realized she had lost track of her prey. “Hmph, no fair! Food shouldn’t get up and run away! Show yourself, little hero!”

Little did Merry know, Yumeji had done more than simply hopping off the bridge. He had also grabbed one of the torches from the stone structure and was now sneaking past her folded leg. A bead of Merry’s sweat, like an enormous raindrop, dripped off her thigh and splashed over Yumeji’s head. The salty taste infiltrated his mouth. His torch was doused, which was just what he wanted. He dried the torch with his shirt and put it in his pouch. Since watching Merry’s explosive belch earlier, Yumeji had begun to engineer a plan to extract the Arkenstone from her belly. With a torch collected he could put the second part of his plan into motion… but he would need some flint. Fortunately, while on the stone bridge he had seen an old Dwarven workshop half-buried under gold. He could even see the rectangular structure peering out behind Merry’s foot.
Unfortunately, it was 200 meters away.

Yumeji knew what would happen the moment he moved, but he had no other option. The young warrior began a mad dash for the workshop, and Merry’s ears quickly picked up his hurried footfalls. “There you are,” she called, her head turning to see the boy scampering across the stone expanse, “you won’t get away from me this time!” Merry got back on all fours and scurried after him. He stuck to the area between the gold mounds, which made it somewhat awkward for her to crawl as she could not easily remain level. She reached out as far as she could, almost closing her hand around Yumeji, only for him to hop to his left and dodge her grasp. Merry realized he was heading for a small rectangular building for shelter and was already a quarter of the way there. “Gah, you think you’re clever!? I’ll show you!”

Merry returned to her full height and began walking at a far quicker pace. Yumeji paid no mind as her right foot stomped in front of him. He circumvented the foot and pressed onward, now about halfway to his destination. Merry’s shadow eclipsed Yumeji as her left leg stretched ahead. He wondered if she had lost track of him for a second time. Then her right leg swung over him to join its twin numerous meters ahead. Merry’s butt, crown, and wings were now suspended like features on a curvy colossus. She simply stood there as Yumeji continued to run through her immobile shadow. Yumeji started to wonder what her gambit was. Then her purple-scaled face turned to him with a cocky smile.

“Hey Yumeji,” Merry said, “ready for a blast from the past?”

“Huh,” Yumeji replied, nearing the middle of the shadow, “what do you mean?”

“Hehe,” she giggled, patting her butt, “remember how we first met?”

Yumeji screeched to a halt. He looked to his left and right. The gold mountains were too steep to climb. He looked down. The shadow of Merry’s hips spread around him, just where she wanted him. He looked up. Merry’s butt was plummeting like a pair of purple meteors. Yumeji had no time to act. “Ngh,” Merry grunted, her rear end slamming into the ground, “looks like I fell on you again, Yumeji! Hehehehe!” The impact caused Merry’s butt to jiggle while Yumeji bounced up into her narrow crack. Yumeji was instantly wedged between her cheeks. The fleshy, cloth-covered masses settled, smothering the young boy in smooth, unyielding flesh.

“Mm,” the girl rubbed the base of her spine, “now what are you gonna do, hero? My butt is the ultimate holding cell for little intruders like you…” Merry playfully grinded her rear against the stone. “No escape now! I’ll save you for a snack and pull you out later… Hehehe!”

Engulfed in amorphous, cloth-covered flesh, Yumeji punched and kicked with all his might. Even without direct contact with Merry’s skin the heat was unbearable and the smell was less than pleasant. He had never been much of an ass man anyway. The pillowy walls absorbed all his struggles, but eventually he managed to free one of his arms. His hand emerged from Merry’s crack and touched the cool ground. Then he ceased all movement, banking on chance. “Hey, why’d you stop squirming? C’mon! Struggle or I’ll eat you right now!” Merry tried reaching under her butt, yet she clenched her cheeks too tightly for her fingers to enter. She began standing, firmly squeezing her butt around Yumeji. This was exactly what the flesh-smothered warrior wanted.

Slowly and without irritating Merry’s glutes, Yumeji worked his way out, using his arm as leverage against the squishy surface. Soon his torso was popping out of the constricting canyon. He dug his fingers into the cloth, careful not to tickle Merry’s underlying skin, and began climbing up her backside. “Huh,” the dragoness said, her hand swooping over toward her butt, “I don’t feel Yumeji anymore… Where’d you go?” Yumeji looked and spotted Merry’s hand coming down on him. He clambered left to avoid the prying fingers. Merry spun around, staring at the floor in search of her prey. Yumeji clung desperately to her panties, almost flinging off, as she rotated. The whole situation reminded him of Shadow of the Colossus, one of his favorite video games.

“Hmm… Where could he have gone?” Merry stopped and gazed into the golden fields. “I wonder if he slipped even further into my butt?” Like a gnat on the girl’s rear, Yumeji saw that she had her back turned to the workshop. But he knew he would be heard if he dropped and ran there now. She’d be quick enough to catch and eat him before he got his flint. He needed a distraction. Reaching into his pouch and feeling around, he soon found one. Yumeji clambered up the cloth, soon at the base of her spine and the waistband of her panties. He peered down into the dark, damp depths of Merry’s derriere. Yumeji pulled out his iron sword and dropped it into her crack.

“Eep,” Merry yelped, “That’s so cold!” She shoved her hand beneath her panties and began feeling around for the metal toothpick tickling her anus.

“Wh-what’s poking my butt!?” She bent over to try and help herself locate the thing. “Yumeji! Are you behind this?” Yumeji rolled down Merry’s newly angled rear. He slid off the edge, landing on a nearby gold pile. Merry heard Yumeji’s impact but was slow to turn with a sword up her ass. “Yumeji! I can’t believe you would do that!”

“We’re both playing dirty,” Yumeji laughed, running over to the entrance of the workshop, “if you don’t like it, find your food somewhere else!”

“Hmph,” she grunted, finally digging into her butt with her hand, pulling out the toothpick-sized sword, and flicking it away. “Sorry, but the Yumeji Special just looks so appetizing! How could I possibly resist such a delectable, exotic dish?” Merry laid her head down next to the workshop just as Yumeji entered through the front door. She peered through the tight, rectangular entryway and saw Yumeji vanish into the dusty, cobweb-filled darkness. “Oh, mister waiter! It seems I haven’t been properly served yet. Couldn’t you come out of the kitchen with my meal? Please? You wouldn’t want to leave a girl hungry, would you~”

Yumeji ignored her taunting and rifled through the ancient cabinets and crates in the central room. Sweat formed on his brow. He threw shelves from tables as he found them empty. “How hard is it to find some damn flint,” he cursed. Things only became worse as he heard a ghastly wind howl through the workshop. It whooshed past him and scorched his body. The room’s temperature was rising. Yumeji realized that the “hot wind” must be Merry’s breath. There were only two ways into the workshop, front and back, so her smoky dragon breath was getting trapped without much ventilation. “I heard my meal wasn’t properly cooked,” Merry giggled, “Feel that? Nyaahhh~” Another scorching gust swept through the workshop. “I thought I’d turn up the heat to prepare my little meat-snack… But you’d better hurry out of the oven! Once my fire starts, there’s no putting it out!”

Yumeji realized he was running out of time and needed to pick up the pace.

“Five…” Another cabinet, no luck. “Four…” Two empty drawers. “Three…” Hey, that almost looks like… “Two…” It is! Now to-“One!”

“RUN!” Yumeji shoved the flint into his pouch and dashed out of the workshop. He saw the light of Merry’s flame glowing ominously behind him.

No matter what happened, he couldn’t let the inferno burn his pouch. Yumeji dashed out of the doorway and threw himself onto the ground. A column of flame shot out behind him, nearly incinerating his prone body as it passed over him. As it dissipated Yumeji flipped onto his back and saw Merry’s hands grabbing onto the edge of the workshop roof. Her head rose like the sun on the horizon as she towered over ancient structure. Coins showered around Yumeji as Merry brushed them aside with her hands. She brought her knees up onto the platform. Then she threw her legs over the edge, splaying them onto the ground below, her feet falling on either side of Yumeji. The dragoness’s butt was now planted on a suitable perch. It was here that the proud predator would claim her meal.

Yumeji got back on his feet but was immediately broadsided by Merry’s big sweaty soles. She held him between her feet and carried him to her open palm, where she deposited the young warrior. Grinning devilishly, she brought Yumeji before her face. Her heart was beating so fast that Yumeji shuddered when he felt her pulse. Merry couldn’t remember the last time a dream had been so much fun. “It appears that our game is over, my little hero sandwich,” Merry chortled, “but I must thank you, for you certainly made the hunt intriguing!”

The “hero sandwich” laughed at Merry’s inability to pick a speech pattern and stick with it. “The pleasure was all mine, she-beast,” Yumeji proclaimed, puffing out his chest, “But I must warn you- eating me will produce quite the uncomfortable belly ache! I’m sure you’ve taken many living meals, but I’ll fight your stomach with more strength than all of them combined!”
Merry’s tongue, like a fat, perspirating worm, popped out of her lips and smeared her chin with saliva. She held Yumeji near her dementedly grinning mouth. “I’m counting on it,” she whispered, almost seductively. Yumeji felt the dragoness’s hand rise up like an elevator. For a moment he was only in view of her hair, forehead, and crown. Then her hand tilted down while her head tilted up. “I tire of these theatrics,” Merry smugly admitted, “down the hatch with you, my yummy little hero~” Yumeji lied on his back and watched the show begin right under his feet.

Merry’s lips parted like the gates of hell, unleashing a fiery gale upon the hero. He bore the brunt of the storm with sheer fortitude, but the gooey interior of her maw was just beginning to reveal itself. The gates continued to open. Saliva dripped from the curved roof of the sweltering pink cavern and flowed straight into the yawning gullet. The tongue did its best to stay in place and serve as a chute to lubricate prey and send it rocketing through the gullet. Yet it couldn’t help itself. It twitched, flipped, and twirled in its salivary shower.

Yumeji almost jumped right inside. At this point it would’ve been “in-character,” but perhaps such willingness received with suspicion by his opponent. The boy remained stationary, though it mattered little. Merry angled her hand so that he slid right off the tip of her middle and index fingers. Yumeji plummeted past her dagger-like teeth, landing on her tongue with a squishy plop. Immediately he began the slide toward the back of the throat. He awaited the slippery embrace of Merry’s esophagus, but she wasn’t done with sampling him. The tongue abruptly shot up and pinned Yumeji to the roof. It slid back and forth beneath him, wringing his flavor. “Mmmmmh…” Merry’s moans vibrated the infrastructure of her maw, shaking Yumeji to the bone. He pushed back against the roof but Merry’s tongue was in complete control of his destiny.

The powerful muscle lowered and flicked Yumeji back toward the throat. He looked back to see a small slit of light entering between Merry’s lips as he glided over her frictionless tongue, her dangling uvula passing over his head. Her tongue undulated like a pink wave, blocking his small glimpse of the outside. His feet bumped against a dense bundle of muscle. The fleshy ring dilated and Yumeji’s legs were quickly engulfed in the slimy pit. A deep, wet glugging sound echoed around him, almost bursting his eardrums. “Gluummph,“ Merry’s throat squelched as it opened wide to permit what remained Yumeji’s body to slide inside. The fluid flesh engulfed him. He looked up and watched as the faintly-lit molars and uvula were slowly obscured by a circle of flesh. The red muscle closed over his face, sealing him in darkness. Yumeji was utterly immersed in the slimy tube.

Yumeji wiggled around in the tight, squishy space. Just to see if he could, he tried to force his arms up through the gullet. Above him the flesh was firmer than steel and refused to budge. “Guuullup” was the digestive system’s only response to his short-lived rebellion. The muscle directly below Yumeji’s feet seemed to soften while the muscle above seemed to harden and tighten. The warrior was plunged deeper into the slippery tunnel. He then felt a very different pressure that pushed into his chest from the side. It seemed Merry was laying a finger on her neck to trace Yumeji’s descent. He had wondered why she was swallowing him so slowly when her monstrous throat could easily finish him off in one swig.

“Mmmuuh…” Strong vibrations shot through Yumeji’s body and answered his question. “Guollp.” He was pushed down at a swifter rate than before. More of Merry’s muffled moans sounded somewhere above, mixing with heavy throbbing of her heart and the slushy flow of liquid through her healthy young body. Yumeji felt increasingly lightheaded. The further he descended into the dark, gurgling realm, the more separated he felt from reality. He almost felt like he was passing from one dream into another.

Outside, Merry caressed her throat and sighed. She fell back into the gold mound behind her, causing a landslide on the other side of the pile. Her head tilted backward and formed a depression in the coins. Her hand caressed her neck while her body twisted back and forth to settle into the coins. That same hand descended the length of her body, following Yumeji’s brief journey into her stomach. She shivered with pleasure when she felt the boy plop into the hollow space. “Ahhh… Thank you, Yumeji,” she cooed, patting her midriff, “your taste was exquisite!”

Inside Merry’s belly, Yumeji heard her taunting. He sat in a puddle of viscous liquid, awash in humidity. Yumeji spotted the Arkenstone lying in a nook in the curve of the creased stomach wall. Its blue light dimly illuminated Yumeji’s pulsating red surroundings, making them appear purple. Aside from his devourer’s muffled voice, Yumeji’s ears were bombarded by the gurgles and squelches of Merry’s gastrointestinal system and the occasional throb of her heart. The smell was not entirely pleasant, but Yumeji got used to it quickly. He was in heaven. His greatest and most perverse desire- to be swallowed whole by a girl- was satisfied. Still, he had a battle to win, and he intended to win it.

He managed to stand on the fluctuating floor, knee-deep in gastric juices. His lips were curled into a sly smile. Waddling over toward the wrinkly stomach lining, he laid his hand on the slimy surface. He considered rubbing it for Merry’s pleasure, but he was a warrior. Yumeji figured it was tradition for the hero to try his weaker options before switching to his trump card. He curled his hand into a fist and threw a soft punch. Merry didn’t even react. Yumeji sighed. He was tired from wrestling with the dragoness’s tongue and was now in the belly of the beast. Already the muggy atmosphere had made him lightheaded. He threw out a kick. The attack was deflected so easily that Yumeji fell backward into the digestive fluid. Yumeji felt the entire chamber tremble as Merry patted her stomach and laughed. Her distorted voice echoed all around him, “Nyahaha! Is that all you’ve got? You’re gonna go through my system easier than a donut! So much for a bellyache, ya little wimp~”

“Looks like I’m out of time,” Yumeji sighed in near-unconsciousness. Turning to his left, his spotted to the familiar glow of the Arkenstone. He sat up and crawled over to it. Cradling the stone in his arms, he realized that he had won the battle with the dragon. “Sorry Merry, but you can be kind of an idiot… Swallowing me and putting me in just the right spot to turn the tables.” Rifling through his pouch, Yumeji pulled out his torch and his pack of flint. “Heh, get ready…”

Back outside, Merry was slouched back into her throne of gold. She held her chin in her hand, reclining and rubbing her taut belly. “Ahhm… It’s good being Queen Under the Mountain. But I’m disappointed with how weak that warrior ended up being… Hm?” A moderate warmth welled up within her. “What’s this?” It increased in potency until it transformed into a sharp burning. Merry winced as her flat stomach began to expand, containing a ball of flame. “Ah! What is this… Heat!?”

Back inside, Yumeji had pulled out his torch and used his flint to start a fire. He waved his torch around, igniting the flammable gas in Merry’s belly. Blazing orange trails shot out like a fireworks display. Flames and smoke rose to the dripping roof and began dispersing across the stomach. Yumeji clutched the Arkenstone tightly. Its light flickered, engulfing his body protectively.

Merry clutched her aching tummy. “Ack! So… The little hero has a little- augh- fight left after all…” Her belly was swelling into a sphere. She patted the featureless peachy bloat, enduring the pain from having a fireball grow inside her. Plumes of smoke filled her stomach like a balloon. Her belly could distend a great deal, but Merry was still concerned with discomfort and the possibility of her snack’s escape. Gritting her teeth, she wondered how Yumeji could manage all this damage without incinerating himself. Her pupils dilated up as a packet of exploding air rocketed up her gullet. She shut her teeth tight and caught the fiery cloud in her mouth. Her cheeks puffed into a ridiculous pair of bulging orbs. She also felt a pair of feet touch down on her tongue. The taste was recognizable. It was Yumeji.

Merry could not allow this. No one escaped her belly! Sweat poured down from the dragoness’s crown as she denied her body’s order to let the gas escape with her treat. “Gluuuooorrrmp.” She instead swallowed the cloud, her throat expanding profusely as a sickening bulge slithered back into her belly. Merry marveled at her own power. A mere gulp of hers produced a sound echoed through the underground world. “Hah,” Merry panted, “you call that a tummy ache? I’ve eaten carrots that gave me worse indigestion.”
Yumeji tumbled back down into her belly, but he had not given up. His body was surrounded by a layer of cyan light. With the protection of the Arkenstone, he was safe in the hostile digestive conditions and against his own flames. Yumeji chuckled as he rose back to his feet. He knew that by increasing the concentration of gas Merry was sealing her own fate. Yumeji lit his torch again, ignited more gas, and again rode the exploding current up the throat. He passed through the fleshy tunnel, between the tonsils and beneath the jiggling uvula, only to stop and fall flat on the tongue. He felt the tug of Merry swallowing once again and was jerked back into the darkness. As he fell back into her stomach, now a gas-filled dome, he remarked on how strength as a dragon was truly astounding. But he knew the third time would be the charm in this case.

Merry knew there was a fire in her belly. Her stomach was half the size of her head and the blazing cloud wanted to escape. “Uhn… So queasy….” She shook her head. “Damn… I can’t let him get out!... I can’t- hurrphh…”

Whether Merry liked it or not, a storm brewing within her and was headed up her throat. A firm, gas-filled bulge knocked against the base of her chin. She felt like a volcano that was ready to explode. Grrooouuum. The pressure built stronger and stronger. Merry struggled to keep her teeth shut. She tilted her head back. Gul…up. She desperately swallowed, but the gas would not go any lower. Tears welled up in her eyes. The cloud took advantage of her flexing throat sphincter, forcing it open and whooshing through her mouth. The gates of hell swung apart, letting lose a jet of hot white flame.

Buuuaaaaaaaarrrrppphh!

A long, thunderous belch echoed through the cavern. The flaming explosion thrust Merry backward, forcing her through the golden mound and toppling it over. The dragoness tumbled into another gold pile. Her impact caused it to collapse as well. As two of the glittering titans fell, the fireball freed from Merry’s stomach careened across the room like a comet. Gravity seized it and it flew in a downward arc. At the core of the white streak a blue sphere glowed. Yumeji was soaring through the air, protected by a magical barrier formed by the Arkenstone. The comet impacted against the floor back near Yumeji’s starting point with a furious, fiery explosion.

The dust and fire took a few moments to settle, but when they did Yumeji carefully stood up. His body was coated in a mucky mix of soot and spit. He rubbed it from his face and saw that he was right in front of the stairway to salvation. He began climbing the stone ascent, only to stop as he heard a chilling sound. “Raaaaugh,” Merry roared, rising up to her full height. Coins rained from her sweaty form as she glared at Yumeji with a sadistic smirk. “It’s not over yet! I’m still hungry!” With that, Merry charged at Yumeji full-sprint. Every footfall produced an earthquake, rising in intensity as she grew closer.

Yumeji hurried up the stairs. He managed to sprint across the bridge in a few seconds and grab onto the door. Something swooped in from above and seized him by his pouch. “No you don’t,” Merry shouted, her fingers pulling against Yumeji. The boy rose from the floor as Merry attempted to pick him up. But Yumeji held onto the door and pulled. The door opened, his pouch was torn off, and he fell back to the floor. He slipped through the door, offered Merry a wave, and ran through.

“Yumeji!!!!!”
_ _ _

Merry’s eyes shot open and beheld darkness. She squirmed in her sleeping bag as her eyes softly closed. When she opened them again and allowed her vision to adjust, she spotted Yumeji’s window. It was still dark outside. She sat up and looked toward Yumeji’s bed. On his nightstand sat the book that he and she had just bastardized. His clock read “2:00am.” Merry twisted and rubbed her legs. Something slick and slippery, a liquid of some sort, soaked her panties. She felt as though something had been released from her, something she would need to wait for before releasing it again. Yumeji turned over in his bed, revealing he was awake. “Yumeji…?”

Yumeji nodded. He shut his eyes and turned away. “Yeah. Let’s do this again sometime.”