Full moon in the woods (third and last part)

III. 冬 [hiver]

               “Les nuages couraient sur la lune enflammée

                Comme sur l'incendie on voit fuir la fumée...”

              ("Clouds kept running over the flaming moon

                like smoke flowing around a wild fire...")

Alfred de VIGNY

Les Destinées — “La Mort du loup”

Inside the house — first rays of sunshine

  Tarō and Jirō looked puzzled.

– "Daijōbu desu ka [大丈夫ですか, "Are you okay?"], Kazuō?"

  Sitting on the floor before them, surrounded with piles of cleaned and empty dishes, Kazuō was so busy stuffing his face at full speed that he may have not heard his friends coming home... He was only focused on the food he was devouring, right now.

– "Kazuō?" Jirō repeated, a bit worried.

– "No need to insist... You can see he's not listening..."

– "Kazuō... Kazuō!"

  Tarō placed a hand on his brother's shoulder, then he gently pulled him back for a hug, in an attempt to comfort him.

– "He's stunned. He's lost... Leave him alone for now."

– "Come on! What's happened to him?"

  Taking a closer look at Kazuō, Tarō could only nod.

– "I don't know."

– "Do you think..." Jirō hesitated. "Maybe?"

– "Maybe..."

  The two brothers let out a grunt. They understood each other.

– "What if Kazuō stepped outside, to get some fresh air? He must have heard us, then he may have seen us when we were coming back from our hunt."

– "If he saw us as wolves, he must have been terrified..."

– "I should think so."

  Tarō suddenly patted his brother's shoulders, to wake him up.

– "If you could see yourself, my poor Jirō... You'd be scared too!"

  Jirō couldn't help but laugh, dismayed as he was... The two young men, soaked and cold, were sweaty with traces of shredded leaves and grass stains, earth and blood all over their bodies, even under their light, torn and dishevelled clothes.

– "You're all dirty too..."

– "I bet we both cut a fine figure!" Tarō also laughed heartily. "Let's take a cold shower, Jirō! but, first, we can put the remains of this large boar in the larder. Then, when we're clean and dry, we have work to do..."

  While Jirō was carrying that heavy boar on his back into the kitchen, Tarō took a long look at Kazuō, who hadn't moved from his seat. He was still eating, and he showed no sign of slowing down anytime soon.

– "Yes..." he whispered. "We have some serious work to do."

  Tarō came closer to talk to him softly.

– "Kazuō, can you hear me? Tell me something..."

  With his mouth still dangerously full, the fat boy let down another large empty bowl and grabbed the next bowls of fried fish and rice within his reach. Before he started gobbling again, he whispered.

– "More... More food..."

– "Don't worry, Jirō will cook a lot more for you. So much more!"

  Tarō stood up, towering over him like a professional wrestler.

– "You must have found out that we are Yamainugami [山犬神, literally, "mountain dog spirits"]!" he told him proudly. "It's in our nature to live like this, on the margins, just my brother and me... That's why we were hunted down so much. Wolves like us can only live in the woods, where no man should ever venture."

  Kazuō didn't seem to listen. He was too busy stuffing himself.

– "When you crossed that bridge, you could only meet ghosts or spirits... By nightfall, your body would have been torn to shreds! I found you just in time to bring you to this shelter, but it may have been too late... We couldn't save you. And when you sat down with us, around the cookpot, you behaved just as I suspected... You immediately enjoyed yourself way too much. Jirō only had to invite you to grab a bite, and you started gorging yourself like a pig."

  Tarō came behind him to feel his growing lovehandles.

– "Hmmmph... More food..." Kazuō growled, with his mouth full.

– "Of course, Jirō needs to eat for two. And he loves to eat a lot! You just didn't notice how much you were stuffing yourself... You kept on filling your stomach more and more. You let yourself go, like a prized pig! I didn't see it coming because you were so thin, but I had a hunch that you would grow large and round... It didn't take long. You've grown so much thicker, so much fatter! And now..." Tarō added, licking his lips. "Now you're all meaty, squishy and juicy. And it feels like you've figured out just how much young wolves like us are into red meat!"

  Kazuō stuffed himself at an alarming pace, grunting with pleasure.

– "Eat as much as you want!" Tarō whispered to encourage him. "We're going to feed you so much, and treat you so well... You'll get all the food you can eat, and in a few weeks you'll be ready for our feast!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Good boy! Motto tabe, motto tabe [もっと 食べ, "Eat more"]! Fill your belly to the brim, Kazuō... It's in your nature too. You're a pig, with a big appetite... Good pigs like you want to grow a large, round and sagging paunch, heavy with delicious meat and lard. Keep gorging yourself, as much as you wish! There you go... More, more!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "More!"

– "Hmmmph..."

 

  Jirō was already cooking something tasty and fattening for him.

– "Hurry up!" Tarō shouted. "Or Kazuō will have nothing left to eat!"

– "Just a moment... It should be ready soon."

– "More food for this fat pig! You can't leave him with empty dishes..."

– "I'll bring more fried rice, fried fish, bacon, fritters and omelets."

  Tarō smiled. His brother was genuinely worried that their hungry friend may not get "enough" to eat... Tarō kept rushing him to gulp down faster and go for larger bites.

– "He's eating so fast, he must be hungry! Isn't that right, Kazuō?"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "There you go! Eat as much as you want..." Tarō teased him. "We're going to pump your stomach full, as much as you can gobble... You can have all our food and force it down your throat, we don't mind. Eat some more! Again! More... From now on, you'll be our larder."

■ ■ ■

Under the waterfall — sunrise

  Kazuō was surrounded with about forty platters and forty large bowls overflowing with food, next to long trays of steaming, fragrant skewers, sitting by the fire where a magnificent fatty stew was simmering... There was plenty of beer too, with large pitchers he could grab and drink from. 

  After he had prepared such a large meal in such a haste, Jirō was out of breath before he started his morning exercises with his brother. It had been a rough night for him, and finding Kazuō so changed almost made him forget about their successful hunt or the satisfaction of bringing back such a huge amount of red meat for the three of them.

  Tarō kept a close eye on his brother as he looked after him. He invited Jirō to rest after a refreshing shower, instead of taking another beating... Under the waterfall, the big brother wrapped his arms around his not-so-little brother, to comfort him.

– "Good job... Kazuō has a lot more food to enjoy!"

– "Yes..." Jirō whispered.

– "Let's feed him and stuff him as much as he wants."

– "With everything he's already devoured last night, I wonder... Maybe his belly could actually burst?"

– "I'm not too worried about Kazuō..."

  Tarō hugged his brother tight, pressing his meaty sides to feel them deeply with quite an assertive, manly grip.

– "Just as I thought, my poor, clueless Jirō. Every full moon, when we go hunting in the woods and we turn into wolves, you get lean and slender during the night, then you come back so slim, so terribly... tight!"

– "I know..."

– "When will you finally grow plump like a good boy, chubby and puffy?"

  Jirō lowered his head under the waterfall... Confused and sorry to find himself so muscular, so trim and so hard, he felt his stomach with both hands. It was almost flat and his waistline had shrunk so noticeably that he blushed in shame. The poor dumb, athletic boy felt puny and weak.

– "It's always like this... I don't know why."

– "That's because you don't eat enough meat! I keep telling you, Jirō. You should eat a lot more... voraciously!"

– "I've been stuffing myself so much lately, with juicy steaks, fried fish, fritters and all sorts of tidbits to force my body to grow fatter."

– "That's true... Now you can see that wasn't enough!"

– "I wish I could be hefty, with a round and bouncing belly..."

– "Come on, you've grown a bit fatter, with all the food I've forced down your throat, but I agree... That's not enough. You have to eat more, and more meat... You need meat, and lots of it! Red meat and lard to make your tummy grow!"

  Tarō squeezed his young brother's waist, teasing him about the next meals that were ready for them. He licked his lips as he described those feasts he was so fond of.

  His enthusiasm was not even exaggerated, but he went a little further to comfort his brother and keep him in a good mood. Jirō wasn't just sad that he wasn't so massive and pot-bellied anymore... He coudln't help thinking about their future feast, the only feast that mattered right now, when the two brothers heard Kazuō still busy stuffing himself like a pig in their humble home.

– "He's in such a hurry to eat even more..." Jirō shuddered.

– "That's quite a pig!" Tarō insisted, with a wolf's smile. "When we have devoured him, our bellies will be so full... Then we can finally spend this winter comfortably sheltered on this mountain's side."

– "Do we have to... devour him?"

– "This is our way, Jirō. It's the Law. We found refuge in this forest, we have to protect it. Men who find themselves lost there lose everything. Their beastly nature takes over and they become what they have always been, deep down. You know they are doomed to devour each other or be devoured... We've seen it happen so many times, it's always the same. And we have to play our part in that cycle of Life."

– "Yes, Tarō..."

  Jirō was hugging his brother tight too, nestled against his chest.

– "Come on, Jirō, there's no reason to feel sad about this... You've never killed a man. You've never even hurt anyone! You only feed on the souls of men who got lost in the woods, on a full moon... These tasty roasts and stews you cook wouldn't be so nourishing if they weren't simmering with the spirits of those who didn't follow the Law... The deers we devour are the souls of heartless deceivers, who drove those who loved them to distress and despair. The fish you catch in your paws are fishermen who went rampaging through rivers, lakes and seas... The ducks I shoot with my arrows were false priests, corrupt judges and crooked preachers who didn't live up to any of their pretentious principles. As for the wild boars we caught, I can only guess what kind of men they were... Besides, so many men openly behave like pigs! You and I devour their wicked souls, just as the baku [獏] devours bad dreams."

– "I know, Tarō. I know..."

  The two brothers lived in a spiritual world of fancies like the Chōjū-giga [鳥獣戯画, scroll of "caricatures of animal characters"] where monkeys and lions, rabbits and frogs satirize all kinds of activities from the court and the temple from ancient times.

  Without any education, Tarō and Jirō were not only young wolves who had to keep running away, baited and hunted by men, but they saw into the hearts of men so clearly as if they could open a window for the moon to shine its steely light into the deep.

– "I know all that, Tarō... It's our destiny to be bad wolves."

– "That's what we do best. That's what we must be, because this world is wicked... You've always been too kind, too gentle and too generous. Only bad men get to make decisions, and they have decided that wolves like us are bad!"

– "That's right, Tarō. Then we're bad wolves."

– "Such bad wolves, Jirō..." The two boys nuzzled up against each other, with a light chuckle. "Bad, bad wolves!"

– "I just though... Kazuō is not like any other man."

– "Listen to him. He's eating and enjoying himself like a perfect pig!"

  Kazuō had already gobbled up such an impressive amount of food that Tarō and Jirō were left speechless, when they returned inside the house, dry and clean.

– "Did he just eat all this right away?"

– "Looks like it... Tonde hi ni iru koisuru natsu no mushi [飛んで火にいる恋する夏の虫, Japanese Buddhist proverb: "Like insects in Summer fly to the flame"]. I can hardly believe my eyes!"

– "And he's still eating... with a good appetite."

  Jirō was clearly worried as he saw Kazuō devour the contents of one large bowl after another, hurrying to move on to the next dish that he could bring to his mouth, at arm's length.

– "Well..." Tarō smiled. "Looks like our fat Kazuō is hungry!"

– "I'll get something ready that will really fill his belly."

  Always willing to cook grotesquely oversized meals, much to the delight of his companions, Jirō almost ran into the kitchen to bring back huge dishes of rice, soba [蕎麦], udon [饂飩], and ramen [拉面], along with thick slices of ham and large platters of fried shrimp and roasted meats. Desserts would follow soon enough...

  Kazuō didn't look particularly surprised, puzzled or worried, surrounded as he was with an abundance of new dishes — each one more appetizing than the last. He seemed to be only aware of those within his reach.

– "Is he still lost in the mist?" Jirō asked from the kitchen.

– "His spirit is lying on the sand..." Tarō corrected. "He's comfortably set in the desert of his conscience, and he's growing fatter and fatter like a greedy pig... In a few weeks, he'll be perfectly chubby, plump and juicy!"

■ ■ ■

In the house and in the garden — foggy day

  Kazuō stuffed himself so much that Jirō had to spend more and more time inside the kitchen, from dawn till dusk... The handsome blonde boy kept carrying dishes overloaded with food, washing the dirty dishes and cooking more rich stew and delicious desserts for his friend, whom he surrounded with cushions, soft linen, hugs and belly rubs... He did his best to please Kazuō, who didn't even notice — as he was fully occupied with filling his own stomach.

  By the end of the day, Jirō was exhausted. He could hardly keep up... The poor boy felt helpless, but in awe of Kazuō's insatiable appetite and size, as he kept growing constantly larger.

  Luckily, Tarō watched over his brother. He had to force him to train and wrestle against him. Jirō, who was already working hard, could barely hold a candle to his athletic big brother, with his killer wrestling moves. He wasn't sharp enough... Every night, after a hearty meal and one last mug of beer, he almost tumbled down and fell asleep.

– "There you go, Jirō! You're going to sleep like a baby."

– "I feel so... clumsy, next to you."

– "That's because you want to help me and cushion the blow, as I keep training harder." Tarō whispered to comfort him. "You eat well and sleep well, so you grow really heavy... and clumsy like a thick, fluffy pillow for this winter. You have to eat more than this! A lot more food..."

– "Yes, Tarō."

– "And drink beer! Come on, drink another mug."

  Jirō gulped down, always docile, then he let out a long, booming belch.

– "BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRP!"

  Every day, Tarō also looked after their small house — repairing and reinforcing the roof, which was threatened by the weather, and making sure that the foundations he had laid with Jirō remained momoshiki [百敷, strong, solid "like foundations of unmovable stones"].

  Sure, Kazuō weighed heavily on the dining room floor, where he stuffed himself all day long — but the two brothers weren't exactly lightweights either, and they kept pouncing on each other!

  There was no shortage of food... The three of them ate like beasts and Tarō had gone back to force-feeding Jirō like a goose, by the end of each meal. He was ruthless about it.

– "Eat, my little Jirō! More meat! More rice... Eat!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "More... More bacon, lots of bacon..."

– "Hmmmph..."

– "Have another banana, now... Another... Another..."

– "Hmmmph..."

– "That's good, Jirō! One more... Open wide!"

– "Hmmmph..."

– "And more fried fish... Come on, have some more! And pasta..."

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Hurry up and swallow, Jirō! More!"

– "Hmmmph..."

– "And a good crispy, creamy doughnut! Eat, Jirō..."

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "You have to eat, or you'll lose weight again!"

– "Hmmmph..."

– "Stuff yourself and keep eating! You have to get really fat, Jirō. You're too thin, you're almost frail! You don't want to go through another winter like the one we had, three years ago."

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

  Thanks to Tarō's repeated efforts, Jirō had already gained back some of his lost weight, and his belly was slowly growing rounder... The poor boy had tears in his eyes after such forceful meals, but he was going for it with all his heart.

  As he carried and pulled his own weight so well, Jirō felt portly, thick and meaty, almost fit to face his brother in the wrestling ring. One night, at last, Kazuō found himself so full and satiated that he raised his head, and Jirō heard him calling his name instead of his usual, impatient grunt.

– "Kazuō... How do you feel?"

  His heart was beating faster in his chest than if he had been running all night in the forest... And it was only natural that he looked a bit red in the face, with all the beer he had guzzled during the night.

– "I feel... totally sated, Jirō. You keep cooking such delicious meals for me! I'm enjoying myself way too much, I couldn't eat one more bite..."

– "Kazuō..." Jirō whispered, holding him tenderly in his big, well-muscled arms, covering him with kisses and tears of joy. "Kazuō..."

– "BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRP!"

– "My poor Kazuō, your enormous belly is going to burst..."

– "Don't worry about my belly. It's only going to grow bigger!"

– "And don't you care, Kazuō?"

– "Nope... Just the opposite, I feel the need to eat more. As soon as I'm done sleeping, I'll have to start eating again... a lot! I need to gobble up as much food as I can!"

– "As much as you want, Kazuō."

– "I don't know why... I can't help but feast and stuff myself, as soon as I find something appetizing and fattening in front of me. All those dainty dishes you cook so well, so spicy and so tasty to make us all get fat!"

– "That's right..." Jirō blushed with a coy smile. "For the past few days, I've been going for all my favorite recipes to whet your appetite."

– "I couldn't wish for anything more. Keep feeding me like this!"

– "Kazuō... Are you no longer worried about eating "too much"? What happened to you forcing your belly to grow "too much", like a big ball of lard? Your belly is so round and soft..."

– "Please! I want to eat more... More, more, more! a lot more! and gain as much weight as I can... Make my belly swell until it's really huge!"

– "Kazuō..."

  Jirō didn't know what to say. His heart was pounding like a taiko drum. 

– "You know..." Kazuō whispered. "I heard you and your brother when you were calling me, when you tried to talk to me and everything."

– "But you didn't say a word... Why didn't you answer us?"

– "I was too busy eating. That's what matters, I have to eat more!"

– "Okay... Yes, Kazuō."

– "I feel nicely bloated, right now. I'm going to get some sleep... Bring me more food! I'll be so hungry when I wake up..."

– "Yes, Kazuō."

  Jirō felt him doze off, as he gently pressed him against him... When Kazuō began to snore, deeper and deeper, he kissed him on the cheeks. The handsome boy's eyes were still shining with tears of joy.

– "I'll treat you so well, Kazuō... You're going to eat until you burst!"

■ ■ ■

Inside the house — afternoon

  Tarō was coming back from the village, carrying vast provisions of fresh vegetables, pasta, rice, sugar and spices on his back and in his arms, with enough beer for the next few days... He did not expect to find his brother so busy in the kitchen, and in such a cheerful mood: all the pots were singing, oil and butter simmering on hot plates, all the stoves red hot! Jirō welcomed him with a hug and a kiss but he didn't have time to tell him how Kazuō had come back to his senses, momentarily — before going back to stuffing himself silly, as soon as his nap was over.

  A few loving words exchanged with him, that was more than enough to motivate Jirō to cook a lot, eat more and push even more food down his friend's throat... until Kazuō would be able to speak again — even if he could hardly breathe at that point, right before his belly should burst...

  Tarō had more important news to share.

– "How about those wild boars that we have hunted in the forest? Have they provided enough red meat, lard, bacon and sausages?"

– "We've barely started the second quarter of our first boar... They were truly large beasts, and so heavy, so very meaty! We'll have a lot more to roast for quite some time..."

– "And it's all lardy meat, isn't it?"

– "Definitely. My cookpots are all greasy..."

– "Well!" Tarō put down his last basket of vegetables, with his brother's help. "I think I can tell you something about the first two boars."

– "What about them?"

– "People in the village kept talking about them, but it was pretty much like whispers. They were so chatty, I didn't have to look curious. It came up as a surprise for me but those boars must have lost their way in the forest, a few days after Kazuō."

– "How so?"

– "These two boars were none other than the main client of his former employer, a real estate developer who had planned to change the land registry so he could build some sort of housing in the mountain."

– "On this side ? On such slopes? It's too dangerous! Besides..."

– "Besides, the forest would not be destroyed without a fight. He didn't know that. I understand now why he was so furious when we chased him, so hard to fight, and why his carcass is thick with rich, tasty meat!"

– "That's right. It's only natural..."

– "We're going to feast on it, Jirō! Think about it... So much delicious red meat, so viciously lardy, that will really stick to our bones. We can finally grow the way we've always wanted. You can finally get fat!"

– "How about the second boar?"

– "They were supposed to meet by the small bridge, I think, after Kazuō was gone for a few days. Or maybe that was a coincidence, but it would be such a strange coincidence... Then that other big, fat boar must have been the banker who is now wanted by the police."

– "The police?"

– "Yes, his employees called some investigators, but when those guys took a closer look at the bank's accounts, they claimed that they had enough evidence to send their boss to prison for the rest of his life."

– "What did they find?"

– "Honestly? I didn't really understand... Everyone kept talking about it. Everyone seemed to understand, but I didn't." Tarō scratched the back of his head. "I only caught up a few words, like misuse of the company's assets, insider dealing, embezzlement..."

– "Huh... You'd think he was a thief."

– "He was a banker..." Tarō shrugged. "Then, of course, he was a thief. The only thing I get now is why he was so monstrously fat!"

– "Right. When I take a look at it, in the pantry, it's like... sweating oil."

  Tarō took his brother in his arms and whispered softly, close to him.

– "We're going to feed you all this meat and lard, Jirō. I want to see you feast on it voraciously, go for it every night and stuff yourself until your stomach is about to burst!"

– "Yes, Tarō."

– "At this rate, you'll finally turn into a proud, fat boy!"

  It was Jirō's dream to grow huge and obscenely obese, although Kazuō was the hero in his dreams now — Kazuō was always eating and growing fatter, frantically. The young man let his brother lead him by the hand to their bedroom, where Tarō fed him quite forcefully: pot roast, thick slices of red meat and sausages wrapped in bacon, fritters, bananas, ice cream and so much beer that he poured down his throat with a deep funnel...

– "There you go, Jirō! Eat more and more meat!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Again! More bacon for you..."

– "Hmmmph..."

– "One more sausage... Another sausage... And another..."

– "Hmmmph..."

– "That's good, Jirō... Eat faster, faster! Just swallow!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Again! Here's a big doughnut for you now... Again, again!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "More meat! More! Tasty, spicy red meat..."

– "Hmmmph..."

– "Enjoy, Jirō! Feast on this to fatten yourself up!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Eat like you mean it! You need more bacon around your waist. More!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

  By the soft light of their paper lamps, the handsome blonde boy could see his belly growing rounder and rounder... Tarō finally presented him with the funnel to complete his stuffing, with an Alpha male smile.

– "Last ditch effort before you burst, Jirō! You're going to drink a full vat of beer, then you're going to sleep so well to digest... so much better."

■ ■ ■

In the wrestling room — sunny morning

  Jirō couldn't find a spare moment to tell his brother that Kazuō wasn't always unconscious — only focusing on the staggering amounts of food around him... He could keep a secret anyway. Tarō would come back with more wood for the fire.

– "Jirō? I have news about our last wild boar."

– "Huh... Another businessman?"

– "Nope, even worse. It sure helped turning him into such a grotesquely fat pig, and so fierce for us to hunt!"

– "He was really monstrously greasy..." Jirō remembered with a shiver.

– "Of course! He was a politician. I don't know what he was up to with the others in the forest, but everyone kept talking about him today..."

– "Why?"

– "They say he had ambitions and connections at the highest levels of government. Outrageous ambitions, for sure. They wrote about him as a potential prime minister, in the local newspapers. Now the whole sitation has taken a turn to the worse..."

– "Of course, since he's gone."

– "Or rather, since the investigation that had barely started for the other two kept revealing new scandals."

– "Huh... What scandals?"

– "You know how it goes... I didn't understand half of what they said. Weird words like collusion, fraud, tax fraud, electoral fraud, corruption of minors and so on..."

– "...sounds like a lot, already."

– "It was more than enough for the police to stop their investigation... Everyone is convinced that those three wild boars — I mean, those three crooks — ended up in the woods for some kind of reckoning, then the situation went wrong somehow, and now their corpses are somewhere in some rock fall or landslide."

– "In the end, it's pretty good detective work... And now their souls, so juicy and squishy, so heavy, so sour and creamy, are in our pantry."

  Jirō was looking after the fire in the kitchen, almost naked as always, in his loose kimono. Tarō took off his clothes for their shower and work-out. He wanted to get his hands on his clueless brother, and shake him up like a fluffy pillow...

– "Their only way out now is through our stomachs!" He said, stretching out his arms. "By the way, how is Kazuō?"

– "What do you think? He's stuffing himself. You can hardly ignore him."

– "He keeps eating so voraciously he barely even breathes... It's like a rumor of broken branches in the forest. I've gotten used to it."

– "With everything I've cooked, he should be quite busy all morning."

– "Good! Time for a good shower now, Jirō! Then some exercise, a lot of food and some well-deserved rest will do you good!"

  Tarō had never been in such great physical shape. Quick as lightning, he clearly dominated the fight, even when Jirō was able to lift him up in the air like a tree trunk. The young, plump and heavily muscled younger brother always fell into the sand, like he was doomed to fail.

  After about fifty fights, swift but ferocious, poor Jirō couldn't take it anymore... Sweaty and panting, out of breath, he felt so clumsy that he couldn't even get up — especially since his brother made him grab a bite of ham by the end of each fight, and drink beer in long, loud gulps... It felt better than biting the dust time and again, but the handsome blonde boy was naturally dazed and sloshing a bit, weighed down like this.

– "Well done!" Tarō almost roared. "I'm proud of you."

– "Proud?" Jirō slowly stretched out his arms, sore and sad. "I'm still so bad, it's a shame. I have no talent for this. I'm no wrestler."

– "It doesn't come naturally to you but you're doing fine... If you didn't make any progress, I couldn't progress either!"

– "I've made progress? Me?"

– "Yes! For starters, I've never seen you fight like such a heavy weight. You've always been well-built, with a thick and stocky frame, but now... With all this muscle mass, you're finally growing rounder and fatter! Are you ready to grow into a perfect ball of lard? Be a good lump of plump, meaty dough?"

  Jirō was almost drooling at the mere thought of it... In the bathroom, Tarō was still having fun teasing his young brother.

– "You're pulling my leg..." Jirō protested with a smile, but still red in the face. "I'm not fat enough. Not yet."

– "Of course not, but you've packed on some serious weight since our last hunt... I don't remember watching you gain so quickly and so easily! That's why I'm proud of you."

– "I guess you're right. I can feel the weight in my belly... and I feel fat."

  Tarō lifted another thick slice of ham up to his brother's lips, for him to devour with a renewed, voracious appetite — Jirō was just so insatiable with food as he was about sex — then he made him gulp down another large, tall glass of beer.

– "Eat, Jirō! Eat some more, and drink even more..."

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Again... Again!"

– "Hmmmph..."

– "Come on, feel free to eat like a ferocious beast!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Such tasty red meat, that's what you truly crave. This diet is good for you, Jirō! You keep working so hard, day and night... You need to drink more beer and eat a lot more meat! Come on, go for it!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

  While Tarō spent most of his time outside, in the garden, in the woods or around the house, Jirō was quite the homemaker, working inside and around the kitchen so he could serve an abundance of rich food, every day — always in a light and inebriated mood that kept him smiling like a meathead.

  With huge bowls overflowing with treats and tidbits in each hand, he kept repeating his brother's words... Tarō had to remind him about their deep, dark nature somehow.

– "I'm a wolf... I'm a wolf, a bad wolf. Nobody likes us, big bad wolves... And no one loves me, because I'm such a bad, bad wolf..."

  As soon as he entered Kazuō's room, Jirō let his kimono slide down and fall on the floor, slowly caressing his supple, athletic and delicously curvy body, with an irresistible smile and sparkles in his eyes.

■ ■ ■

In the feeding room — Sunset

  Kazuō was still stuffing himself... In a desperate attempt to distract him, or to make himself noticed, Jirō told him the "Tale of the hunter and the bodhisattva" while dancing in front of him, stark naked.

– "Mukashi mukashi [昔, "Once upon a time"]..."

  A long time ago — when ghosts, demons and enchanted animals still haunted the mountains and forests — a very old priest lived in a small hermitage where he devoted all his time to meditation, study and teaching the sacred books, with only one young disciple to keep him company.

  It was said that the old man, wise and educated, became a little more blind day after day, and that he had to be assisted in reading and singing prayers. The little temple where he lived was far from any village. In this solitude it was impossible to procure for oneself the means of subsistence. However, a large number of pious and respectful peasants from the surrounding area came to his aid by regularly offering him food to replenish his supplies of rice and vegetables.

  Among the good people who ventured sometimes into the mountains, a hunter named Hiroshi Tsurumaru [鶴丸弘] would come and drop off a basket containing all kinds of good things to eat, simple but healthy and welcome. The old priest treated him as a friend.

  Hiroshi was a rather rough, withdrawn young fellow. He didn't talk much, but he was aiming... Hunting and nights spent watching in the woods had made him a little wild. The priest was sometimes amused by his answers, mumbled between his teeth, but he also appreciated his rough good nature and his common sense.

"Actually, my young friend..." he told him. "Your mind is altogether sharp and round, like a butter knife!"

  Hiroshi didn't understand, but soon he didn't think about it anymore.

  One day when he had come to deposit his alms in the temple, the priest summoned him to the room where he was praying. "My friend..." he told her. "I would like to let you know about the wonderful events that have happened here recently. As you know, for years and years I have recited the sutras and meditated day and night. Perhaps this favor done me is due to the graces that such ardent and sincere devotions could have earned me. I wouldn't dare say that. What is indisputable, however, is that Fugen Bosatsu has come to visit this temple, three times already, mounted on his white elephant and radiant with light!"

"Aha?" Hiroshi replied. "Wonderful, indeed..."

"With my feeble eyes I saw it! I, so worn, shrivelled and torn like the pages of a book too often read and re-read, I was able to contemplate the bodhisattva Samantabhadra, the virtuous, the auspicious... Yes! His Universal Excellency, Fugen Bosatsu [普賢菩薩, Japanese translation of this bodhisattva's name in Sanskrit, literally the "wise man in action"] who announced to me in glowing terms the ascent to Nirvāṇa..."

"Aha?" Hiroshi repeated in a whisper. "Aha..."

"Stay here for tonight, my friend. Add your prayer to ours, and you will be able to see and worship the Buddha."

"Really?" The hunter replied. "Huh, sure, it would be a rare privilege to witness such a holy apparition... I would be too happy and honored to stay with you for the night."

  After greeting the old priest with gratitude, Hiroshi took a closer look at the inside of the shrine. He had listened politely, without interrupting his host's story, but he wondered if this miracle he had just been promised was possible. The more he thought about it, the less convinced he was...

  There was a young boy in the temple, who attended the ceremonies, but the hunter had never met him. When he saw him for the first time, he was surprised to find himself in the presence of a fifteen year old boy, sitting and yawning in the kitchen next to the room dedicated to prayer.

  This boy's name was Kenji [謙次]. He was remarkably chunky, looking like a baby with his chubby cheeks and his large potbelly. His worn-out kimono could no longer get closed around his growing waist... There he was, sitting in front of so many small bowls of rice and a huge cauldron full of creamy broth, thick with vegetables, noodles and large chunks of fried fish, fried chicken and lard.

  The boy's stomach looked so round, so heavy — and Hiroshi saw him feast like a real glutton. It was too easy to guess where all this abundant food came from... When the Gods had approved all those offerings from the peasants, the old priest let his assistant clear the altar. Since he ate very little and often practiced fasting during his long meditations, his young companion could help himself to cook large and succulent meals with plenty of sauce, washed down with jars of saké!

  His only occupations were to cook then eat, drink and sleep... Hiroshi saw him gobble food in a rush, fast enough for him to push as much as possible down his throat and into his stomach before the next prayer would start, then he would yawn and suppress another deep belch while the priest recited the sutras. It was like nap time for him — then it was no surprise to see this boy, who must have been puny and skinny when he had been taken to the temple, grow just so plump as he was lazy... The hunter took a moment to question him.

"The priest tells me that Fugen Bosatsu comes down to visit your temple during the night, mounted on his elephant?"

"Yup... He does..." Kenji nodded, yawning again, but he looked serious.

"Have you seen him too?"

"Three times, already..." the boy confirmed. "And his white elephant."

  Hiroshi retreated to a corner of the hall, with his arms crossed. He did not question the sincerity of the priest and his assistant — they had not failed to see what they claimed to have seen... Yet, their testimonies left the hunter in doubt.

  A few minutes before midnight, the old priest announced that it was time to pray for the arrival of Fugen Bosatsu. The wooden panels of the temple were opened before the night sky — and everyone knelt down, waiting for the god... Hiroshi was still standing, silent, in the back.

  A star began to shine brighter than the others. The spark of white light began to grow, and seemed to advance softly towards the temple, soon illuminating the whole slope of the mountain. It had already assumed a more precise form, that of a divine being mounted on an elephant, immaculate like snow. In an instant, the elephant and his radiant rider stopped before the priest and his assistant, lost in amazement, parading and saluting them in a glory of shooting stars.

  The old hermit, with his face on the floor, began to recite the sacred invocation with delirious fervour. His eyes were shining with tears...

  Hiroshi suddenly jumped from behind him, bow in hand — an arrow was shot, hissing towards the luminous bodhisattva and disappeared in his chest, down to its tailplane. The white glow immediately dissolved into thin air and the vision vanished in a flash of lightning, with a quake more frigthening than thunder. There was nothing left in front of them but pitch dark night...

"Oh, wretch..." The priest cried, weeping in horror and despair. "You are the most criminal, heartless man. Shame on you! What have you done?"

  The hunter listened the old man's protests and insults patiently, without showing any regret or anger. Then he answered him softly.

"Most reverent lord, grave, wise and holy, please hear me... You believed that some grace you earned with all your recitations of the sutras and your long hours of meditations may have granted you the honor of contemplating Fugen Bosatsu, face to face... Should he not only appear for you, then, instead of putting on such a show for me and this young man? No matter how benevolent and hallow you may be, you have been fooled so easily... Feel this boy's belly with your hands! He's never cared about anything but filling his stomach to the brim... He's already turned himself into such a butter ball! You wanted to nourish and enrich his mind, when he was only growing fatter and fatter... How could he be worthy of worshipping this noble and divine apparition? Oh! You're right, of course... I'm the worst. I'm a hunter, rude and ignorant... I make a living killing unfortunate beasts for their meat. Doesn't the Buddha abhor everything that harms even the most humble form of life?"

"Indeed..." The priest stammered. "Indeed..."

"What appeared to us couldn't be Fugen Bosatsu, but some elaborate magic trick destined to lead you astray, perhaps even to destroy both of you... So, first of all, I beg you to wait for dawn. We'll go into the woods together, and I should prove that I've told you the truth."

  As the sun rose, the hunter and the priest ventured into the forest together... They found the spot where the bodhisattva had appeared before them. After a moment, they found a thin trickle of blood. They followed that trail for about a hundred steps — it led them to the corpse of a big kyūbi no kitsune [九尾の狐, a "nine-tailed fox"]: Hiroshi's arrow had gone right through it.

  Wise, learned and pious, the old priest had been fooled and fascinated by the spells of a powerful yōko [妖狐, a magical vixen] while the young hunter, ignorant and skeptical but endowed with some solid common sense, had immediately seen through those tricks and he had put an end to that dreadful illusion with a single arrow.

■ ■ ■

In the wrestling room — quiet morning

  Kazuō didn't need to be encouraged to stuff himself. Tarō focused all his efforts and attention on his little brother... For some time, Jirō had been on a strict diet, with four large meals and six force-feedings a day — no matter how much fried fish, vegetables and shrimp, rice and pasta, huge omelets with lots of sauces, creamy soups, fritters, bananas and glazed fruits he devoured, it was never enough...

  All that extremely nutritious food had to be washed down with plenty of beer. Jirō drank almost excessively, urged on by his brother who often fed him with both hands or forced him to drink from the funnel, when he was done kicking his ass in the wrestling room.

– "That's good!" Tarō gushed. "There you go again... Eat!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "More food, Jirō! More food! Open wide and swallow!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Very good! And more beer to fill your belly, big boy..."

– "Hmmmph..."

  Tarō never hesitated to tease his brother, so he could encourage him to stuff himself silly and grow even larger and rounder.

– "How's your little tummy, Jirō?" he squeezed. "Such a long way to go... See how easy it is for me to lift you up in the air like a keg with arms and legs! I could just grab your waist and throw you like a basket of wet clothes... You need to gain weight! You're so not heavy enough for me!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "More meat for you! More fried fish! More fritters! Eat!"

– "Hmmmph..."

– "More sausages and more bacon! Eat, eat!"

– "Hmmmph..."

– "You should already feel thicker than frozen butter... Eat up!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Stuff your face and grow FAT!"

  Jirō swallowed so much food so eagerly, he ate like such a relentless glutton that the skin around his tight belly often looked on the verge of bursting, when the two brothers were supposed to go to bed.

– "BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRP!"

  When their meal was gobbled down, Tarō took his little brother in his arms and gently massaged his back and shoulders to comfort him.

– "I'm really proud of you, Jirō!"

– "You've never called me "big boy"... not until tonight."

– "You deserved this. You're growing soft and obese!"

– "Yes..." Jirō felt a bit dreamy under his soft touch. "Tarō?"

– "Yes, my fat Jirō?"

– "I like you calling me "fat Jirō" but, you know..."

– "Yes?"

– "You've packed on a lot of weight too. You've packed on muscle mass, for sure, and you've made some great progress but I think you're also growing thicker..."

– "I don't get to eat as much as you do, but you're right... I've never devoured so much meat and so much rich food in my life! And yeah, I also feel heavier and stockier."

– "We really do have a wolf's appetite... A ferocious appetite!"

– "Of course!" Tarō laughed heartily. "Let's face it, we've never eaten so well, or so much... We've never had it so good, you and me. It's strange, considering our pantry has never been so stuffed with all kinds of tasty and fattening food, and we have such an enormous greedy hog inside the house to get rid of it!"

  The two brothers could hear Kazuō, still stuffing himself at an alarming pace in the next room — more obese and more gluttonous than ever... Jirō guessed that Tarō was picturing this helpless fat boy as their most important feast for the coming winter. On the other hand, Tarō knew that the mere suggestion was painful for Jirō, who shuddered in his embrace.

– "That's right, food has never been so abundant or so rich in our home! And we've never enjoyed it so shamelessly until Kazuō joined us here..."

■ ■ ■

In the feeding room — dark night

  Kazuō was still stuffing himself mindlessly. Jirō brought him something else to whet his appetite and feast on to his heart's content. He had already proved more daring and more creative than anything they could read in the Kāmasūtra [कामसूत्र, the treatise on "aphorisms of desire"], since the sun had set.

– "I've had too much beer again tonight..." he sighed, with yet another large jug in his hand.

  Proud to be naked, obese and bouncing in front of Kazuō, Jirō told and danced for him the "Tale of the rikishi and the maiden in the water". He needed to exert himself physically, and warm up a little more before pouncing — like a tiger — on his excessively fleshy prey.

– "Mukashi mukashi [昔, "Once upon a time"]..."

  Not so long ago, when ghosts, demons and animal sorcerers had faded away, falling into oblivion, an oyakata [親方, a sumō wrestling master] had founded a new school, in a poor neighborhood of the capital.

  His name was Gorōji Gondazaemon [権太左衛門五郎次]. Tall and strong, heavily built, with a harmoniously rounded, thick muscular body, black eyes and a look as gentle as his grip was firm, he immediately inspired confidence.

  With good taste and good instinct, he recruited his first  his first disciples — four fifteen year old teenagers — and he made them progress very quickly by means of an iron discipline, severe but never brutal. In a short time, the four rookie wrestlers in this heya [部屋, sumō wrestler's stable, literally the room where they fight] had become quite imposing and fierce. He helped them move up the rankings, from their first tournament on.

  By the beginning of his fourth year as wrestling master, Gorōji's stable attracted many young boys, eager to learn and improve their skills from a trainer everyone praised in the profession. The number of his wrestlers doubled, and doubled again in the following year... Their reputation as a team was well established then.

  Master Gondazaemon's success was based on strict discipline and being attentive to the needs and expectations of each disciple. His wrestlers were treated better than in any other school or stable, but they had to follow the rules without question, as a way to show their motivation and their determination.

  It was considered most important that they should have an enormous appetite, for instance, the more insatiable the better.

  The master's rules, written on every wall of their wrestling room, had to be learned by heart. Even small cases of misconduct or recklessness were severely punished... The worst punishment, of course, was to drop out or get kicked out of school.

  The other secret element for these hardened but docile and deserving young men was the quality of life provided by Gorōji, on a daily basis. Unlike other stables, where the wrestlers were required to live as a bunch and follow the same program from dawn to dusk, these boys could sleep in a single room and enjoy some time off to have fun in the evening — according to everyone's tastes... They got up early, took a shower and trained together as fierce competitors but in a good spirit, with no need to be overly aggressive... At noon, instead of sharing a huge meal together, fighting for the best cuts of meat or fish, each boy was given his own enormous ration of chankonabe [ちゃんこ鍋, a highly nutritious stew for sumō wrestlers]. And, if one of the boys wasn't eating enough on his own, he was meant to be fed like a pig at the farm...

  One of the rules set by Gorōji was that wrestlers would not have to eat or feed each other — they would be forcefully fed at noon and in the evening. After he had trained and fattened a few disciples himself, it had become customary in their school to nominate the flunkie of the year as "cook", temporarily or permanently. It would be his new duty, if he was up to the task. They didn't want to put the blame on anyone.

  When Gorōji Gondazaemon passed away, his students wept for a long time then they decided to follow his teaching, pay tribute to his visionary ideas and train new generations of sumo wrestlers according to his strict but generous principles.

  Their discipline, however, had to get a little lax...

  One day, a new young man showed up. His name was Tsuzuki [都筑]. He was welcomed with interest. The boy was obviously poor, with no relatives in the Capital. He looked rather thin but not frail. He was taller than average, well-built and strikingly handsome. He was polite but not submissive, and he looked sincere, determined to win — maybe a little too secretive. One could only guess how smart he was.

"Let's take him to the test!" They concluded. "We'll see when he's grown thicker, heavier, rounder and stronger."

  For Tsuzuki, it was an honor to be admitted as rikishi [力士, literally "noble strongman"]. On his first few days at school, he proved to be a fair-playing wrestler and a good comrade, always in a good mood... His natural charm made him an even more formidable opponent. The other wrestlers were reluctant to hit him too hard... In the many fights that he lost, Tsuzuki was mostly grabbed by the waist to be lifted up in the air or pushed out of the circle.

  Early on, he had become best friends with Akira [明], a sekitori [関取, an already established wrestler, rather well placed in the rankings of the competition] who had received so many blows in his short career that he had given up, discouraged after a series of rigged fights... He had been appointed as cook in Gondazaemon stable, then. It was up to him to get everyone's meals right for lunch and dinner, and force-feed the forty-four rikishi under his watch. Akira was most dedicated to his new role.

  Like most of the top wrestlers trained in this stable, Akira was just so imposing as he was obese. Almost 6' tall but already over 330lbs when his career had reached its peak, he had grown lazy and tubby as a cook, so he had already gained more than 100lbs.

  From the first day they crossed paths, Akira and Tsuzuki felt great affection for each other... Of course, force-feeding this first-year wrestler had been entrusted to the cook — who could hardly believe his luck. On the other hand, Tsuzuki listened to his comrades' advice. Akira took him under his wings to help him move up the leaderboard faster.

  Tsuzuki had done very well. After a few months, the poor thin boy had already gained about sixty pounds. His whole body was beginning to fill out remarkably well. Akira insisted on the importance of these force-feedings for his fattening, but he hardly had to push him or force him: the handsome boy showed a ferocious appetite, and he let himself be fed with pleasure!

  When the morning training and fights were over, Akira would call him "O-kamo-chan" [お鴨ちゃん, "my little duck"].

"Follow me into the kitchen, my little duckling... Let's fatten you up!"

  Disciplined and strong-willed, Tsuzuki struggled in the wrestling room, he devoured his food and his progress was a matter of great satisfaction for the master and his comrades, who encouraged him as he kept growing. Tsuzuki's cheeks were almost puffed out from such overeating, and he was becoming nicely chubby...

  At the beginning of his second year, he was weighed in with the other wrestlers of his class: they had answered a questionnaire, on their first day, in order to set goals in terms of strength and weight, performance and discipline... The school wanted to make sure that the promises made by these young rikishi, timid or reckless as they were, would be kept or at least closely monitored.

  Among his comrades, Tsuzuki was the only one who had exceeded all the goals they had set, and those goals were not modest. Within a year, he had only been growing heavier and stronger — bigger and rounder. Akira was fattening him up well! When he smiled, with his baby face and his round belly, this young wrestler was more attractive than ever... Everyone around him praised him in advance for the brilliant career ahead of him, with so many victories, titles and trophies.

  For the next two years, Tsuzuki was the champion and the living idol of the whole school. When he turned seventeen, he was a very promising sekiwake [関脇, the third highest rank in sumō wrestling]. Towering at about 6'4", he looked great and he weighed no less than 420lbs. Akira worked hard to keep him in good shape, force-feeding him twice a day, better than a fat duck.

  As Tsuzuki grew into an increasingly attractive and charming young man, the cook had come to praise him for a lot more than his fine appetite. Ambitious and voracious, the young wrestler did not hesitate to beg his friend to feed him "just a little more" than his older comrades, so he could "make weight"...

  Throughout the spring before his eighteenth birthday, the handsome boy began to stuff himself with plenty of rice and carbs, in an attempt to lower his center of gravity further down, grow rounder and get more difficult to grab in a fight. "Just a little more, good little duckling..." Akira encouraged him. "If you keep this going, you'll weigh 500lbs soon!"

  As the days became hotter with the approach of summer, the wrestlers from Gondazaemon stable enjoyed some well-deserved nights of rest... They were even allowed some time out of school, when they were not busy training for their next fight.

  Tsuzuki would take a walk through the quiet streets in the heart of the capital to the naka no hashi [中の橋, the "inside bridge"].

  He enjoyed the freshness of the river after his evening meals, which were always more abundant. Akira wished he could force-feed his friend all night, like a real piglet. Without thinking about it, or only thinking about his friend, the young cook had slowly increased the size of his own late meals, eat a little bit more, later and later into the night, and it was beginning to show on his larger frame!

  One morning, a few wrestlers came to talk to him... They looked worried about Tsuzuki since they had noticed that, instead of coming home a few minutes before midnight, as they all did, he had extended his nights in the city much later, and he did not return to his room until shortly before the morning bell rang.

"Aha?" Akira nodded, no less surprised than they were.

  The younger wrestlers only whispered about Tsuzuki's nights out, but there was something suspicious about it. After his evening force-feeding, the handsome boy ventured through the streets around the school, like most of his classmates. He should have returned as soon as possible to go to bed, sleep and digest well until dawn. This was important for his fattening process.

  His behavior felt strange, and out of character... Tsuzuki's friends also had some lovely girl or boy they would spend time with, in the city. It was only natural. The school's somewhat more flexible discipline during the summer period invited them to be lenient. There were no comments about it. These romantic flirts and love affairs were well-known, but no one had ever seen Tsuzuki dating anyone.

  These nocturnal wanderings were definitely mysterious, with surprising and disturbing consequences. Over the course of a few days, Tsuzuki looked paler and paler, listless and less enduring in the wrestling room. Even more surprising, despite his healthy and gluttonous appetite, the handsome boy was no longer gaining weight — it looked to them like he was losing weight...

  Akira had many questions but he could only get vague answers from him, which made him worry even more.

  Without hesitation, Tsuzuki's friends grabbed him before dawn and led him to the scales, where they wanted to make sure that his weight had dropped significantly. Indeed, the poor boy only weighed in at 320lbs!

"Oh..." Tzuzuki whispered, also surprised but in such a strangely calm voice that his friends shook him up. "It is serious... and I'm hungry."

"That's not the point!" Akira protested, angry at him.

  He decided to take his friend aside, and he invited the other wrestlers to go to the training room to start their day.

"Tsuzuki, we understand that you've been going out every night for the past week or two, only to come back right before dawn... Now you look sick and feverish. I feel like you're wasting away. I would understand it if love made you lose a few pounds of lard, but you have lost more than a hundred! This is horrible... I'm really concerned."

"Love?" whispered Tsuzuki, dreamily.

"Yes... If that's not a love story, what is it?"

  The young man looked really embarrassed. After a moment of silence, he went out into the school's garden, followed by his friend... When they were out of earshot, he finally confided in him.

"I'll tell you all about it, Akira, but I have to insist that you promise me the utmost secrecy about it."

"If you insist..."

"You were right. It is a love affair... I'm in love like you wouldn't believe. During my walks, since the beginning of spring, I would sometimes come across a woman who was leaning over the naka no hashi. She wore a costume of brocade richly embroidered with silver, murasaki [紫, purple, noble and luxurious], like a lady of high society... I thought it strange that a person so well dressed should linger in our neighborhood at such a late hour. However, I didn't think I had the right to approach or question him. She stood without worry. I could only see her from behind, and I was just passing by. One evening, as I was about to pass on my way, I felt myself grabbed by the sleeve — it was the sleeve that was clinging to me. Then I turned round, and saw that she was young and beautiful. "Will you accompany me under this bridge?" she said. His voice was pleasant and sweet. She was smiling at me. It was impossible to resist his smile. So I walked by her side, and then followed her to the river's edge. She told me that she had noticed me, going back and forth in the area. "I want you to become my husband... If you love me, we will be very happy together." Then she took me by the hand and invited me to dive with her under the waters."

  Akira held his breath, listening to his friend's story.

"I didn't know how to answer her, but she was so seductive that she dragged me into the water. "You have nothing to fear, as long as you stay with me..." I don't know how, I felt weaker than a child. I was like those who, in their dreams, strive to run or even fly without moving an arm or leg under the sheets. She entered the dark waters, and I followed her into the depths. I could no longer see, I could no longer hear, I felt only a vague sense of well-being in this bewilderment, until I found myself walking by his side again. We were standing on the threshold of a huge palace, bathed in light. I wasn't cold. I wasn't soaking wet, I wasn't wet... We passed through empty but richly furnished rooms, ceremonial rooms with a thousand tatami mats, to the bridal chamber. Everything around us seemed wonderfully welcoming and comfortable. At last she invited me to sit down before her, and told me of her intentions. For my part, I didn't dare ask him any questions... At a sign of his hand, the maids presented me with a sumptuous meal."

  Increasingly worried, Akira listened in silence.

"First, she invited me to eat. In fact, she invited me to eat a lot. "You are a most promising rikishi, Tsuzuki. I didn't get to see any of your fights, but I've heard of you. You are big and strong. You're nicely plump... but you must grow much fatter for me." I asked her if she wanted to see me progress as a wrestler. She gave a charming little laugh, and then beckoned to her maids, who took their places around me, and began to feed me. I don't know how long this huge meal lasted. Since you're the one in charge of force-feeding the wrestlers in this school, you know I'm used to it, but I have to say... The way I was force-fed surprised me. I felt like I was swallowing a whole tuna in one long gulp, or a whole beef! with bowls of rice larger than the roof over a temple. I swear, they would make me burst like a bubble... Then, when they found me full enough, they looked pleased and satisfied with my new swollen size, I was ready for our wedding night. Very early in the morning, my love woke me up. She said "You really are my husband now. We have been united for a term of seven times seven lives, but it is essential that our marriage should be kept secret. If you stay with me during the day, it will mean death for both of us! I'm begging you, come back tonight but don't say a word about our union to anyone. You'll see me by that deck in the evening... You'll never have to wait for me and we'll be happy together all night, every night." I promised her that I wouldn't say a word. When I got back to my room, the bell was only about to ring. Since that night, I have met her and left her in the same way. It's... a bit strange, isn't it?"

  Akira had no intention of lecturing his comrade.

"Tsuzuki, my poor Tsuzuki..." he said, taking him closely in his arms. "I didn't believe such horrors were possible. Don't worry. I won't say anything about what you've told me, but you must understand that you're the victim of some cruel, dark spell. How did this woman and her maids make you lose so much weight, when you tell me they forcefeed you all night, every night?"

"I don't know. I don't understand..." Tsuzuki, still dreamy, looked lost in his lack of thoughts. "I assure you that my wife is very attentive to my being well fed. She keeps insisting that I should eat more and be force-fed. She welcomes me in her bedroom when I am stuffed, but she also encourages me to continue my training at school and my professional career as a rikishi."

"Is it so important to her that you're... fat?"

"Oh! Yes... She cares a lot about me, and she wants to see me grow."

"But it's most important to her that you are growing fatter"

"Oh! Yes... A lot! She encourages me to gain a lot of weight, and lard."

"Did she tell you that much about it?"

"To be honest, that's pretty much everything she ever spoke to me about... I can still hear her whispering to my ear, "Eat some more, my handsome Tsuzuki! You're not plump enough for my taste yet..." And "Tsuzuki! stuff yourself a little faster... You have to grow soft and round like a butter ball!" That's how much she loves me."

  Akira only nodded. He had no doubt that his young friend's story was true. Tsuzuki had never lied to anyone, ever since he had joined the Gondazaemon stable. He had obviously told him the truth, but that truth implied some grim prospects... His adventure was probably an illusion caused by some evil power for its dark purpose. It made the obese man shudder.

  For starters, as a cook, he reminded the wrestler of his duties: Against all odds, he had lost weight instead of getting fat! It was his top priority to forcefeed him, then he should find a way to save him... Akira dragged Tsuzuki to the kitchen. He made him drink a lot of beer and a lot of sake, and he forced him to swallow as much fresh fish, fried fish and rice as the poor boy could stand, for several hours...

  Filled to the brim, Tsuzuki naturally fell asleep. Akira stayed next to him in his bedroom to watch over his sleep. When he woke up, he dragged him by the hand, into the kitchen again, where he made him sit down to stuff him heavily with cakes and pastries. By nightfall, the handsome rikishi was dizzy. Akira was very tired, too.

  The next morning, it was discovered that Tsuzuki had, inexplicably, spent the night outside once again! He had just come back through the little schoolyard, and he was paler than ever. Akira, furious, grabbed him by the shoulders and carried him to his room: the handsome boy had just fainted.

  A doctor was called. Tsuzuki had to drink something.

"You've spent the night again... near the bridge?"

"Yes..." Tzuzuki replied, very weak. "She was waiting for me..."

"Say no more."

  Akira invited all their comrades to come out, announcing that Tsuzuki needed some peace and quiet. The doctor who often dealt with the minor injuries and health problems of the wrestlers of the Gondazaemon stable soon joined them. He was an old doctor, very learned and caring.

"It's curious..." He mumbled. "This boy looked perfectly healthy, at a comfortable weight and size, the last time I saw him."

"This happened quite recently..."

"But..." The doctor claimed, after examining him carefully. "This young man has almost no blood left! It's like clear water running through his veins... I understand why he is so pale and weak."

  Horrified, Akira told him about his friend's supernatural weight loss.

"This handsome boy still seems to be well muscled, but noticeably less meaty and lardy, indeed... His condition is critical! It will be quite a challenge to save him. He's freezing to death, right now, as if he had spent the whole night in the water."

"Well..." Akira didn't hesitate for long. "There's some truth in that..."

  Despite the promise he had made to her, he told everything Tsuzuki had told him. The school administration was informed at once, and all his classmates came to see him while he was convalescing.

  The old doctor recommended absolute rest and a diet as rich as possible, with red meat, oily fish, eggs and brown rice. It was essential to give some colour back to this unfortunate boy's cheeks... Akira rolled up his sleeves and forced his friend to eat eight times a day, then his voracious appetite came back, then his cheeks got rosy again, with appealing dimples, then his body started filling out again in a rush. Tsuzuki enjoyed growing fatter and fatter, as his friends kept cheering him on. Stout, round and chunky, the young man smiled contentedly.

  When autumn finished scattering the last red leaves on the river, Tsuzuki was able to get up. He was a little less roughly muscular, but still vigorous and supple. He had grown magnificently fatter, much to the delight of his comrades, and he weighed more than 380lbs.

  As he was now considered safe, the school administration told him that he would be severely punished for his night walks. His adventure was only too well known... The rumors couldn't be stopped, and Tsuzuki's career was shattered just as he was about to rise in the rankings. The reputation of the Gondazaemon team was at stake, so they showed no mercy towards him. They had to make an example.

  However, when Tsuzuki's exclusion was declared and published, the administration summoned him and offered him to stay at the school, as a second cook, to relieve Akira of some of his workload, and to show his gratitude to them at the same time... Tsuzuki eagerly accepted the offer.

  Smiling, the ancient rikishi still had a secret to hide. During his recovery, he and Akira had become closer and closer. The cook had made him promise to grow up to 400lbs again, then 500lbs, maybe even more...

  As cooks at the Gondazaemon stable, they had to share the same workspaces and sleep in the same room. This point of the rules suited them perfectly since they slept in the same bed, which they had made by gathering several futons, cushions and blankets. Immediately next to the kitchens, they had only a few steps to go for another feast where they would gorge on good food and stuff each other full, all night long.

  One winter morning the old doctor came to visit them. He was really pleased to find Tsuzuki so healthy and obese, so meaty with a lot of lard on his frame... The handsome boy confirmed that he had more appetite than ever and that he was determined to grow fatter, rounder and comfortably more pillowy for his friend. He and Akira had taken him into their confidence. They knew that the doctor, benevolent and professional, would encourage them to be happy together.

"Above all, no unnecessary exercise..."

"I need more rest and feeding sessions... That's all I'm looking for."

"And no more night walks?" said the doctor, winking.

"Certainly not!" Tsuzuki replied with a hearty laugh. "My nights are already busy... I need to sleep to gain weight, and wake up chubbier next to my Akira."

  However, thinking about his previous dangerous encounter by the deck had piqued the curiosity of his companion.

"I've been asking myself for some time... Who was she?"

"I couldn't say..." The doctor took his time to answer. "Besides, it doesn't matter anymore because she's dead. Maybe you should ask me what she was."

"Is she dead?"

"She is. There's no doubt about it. I will even tell you that I saw her corpse by the river, near the naka no hashi."

"Did someone call you to save her?"

"Oh! no... No one saw anything. Besides, who would care about her? Only when I thought about what you had told me, I went to look a little closer. Then I knew..."

"So it was a fantastic creature?"

"Fantastic? If you will, young man! She was some creature, indeed. You were not his first victim too, I am sad to say!"

"That's horrible..."

"She has haunted the river for such a long time... I understood at once, when I was considering your symptoms. That kind of creatures feasts on the flesh of handsome young boys like you, especially when they happen to be fat. It must have tasted like sweets to her, as she was drinking your blood. The fatter, the better."

"So she was a snake woman?"

"A dragon woman?"

"No, no... If you got to see her, as I did, under that bridge, in the light of day, she would seem so contemptible to you, so repulsive."

"What kind of creature was she?"

"A frog, young men. A lumpy, squishy, ugly frog..."

  To complete his tale, Jirō drank a large mug of beer, in one long sloppy gulp... Finally, all shiny and glistening with sweat after such a great and sustained effort, the mischievous blonde boy let out a loud, proud and booming belch to suggest the croaking of a giant toad.

– "BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRP..."

■ ■ ■

Inside the house — sunset

  Tarō had been observing the sky well, working in the forest.

– "The weather is threatening... The snow will fall soon."

  Jirō listened to him without answering.

– "You're shivering under the waterfall. I wish your belly was thicker and rounder. You haven't grown fat enough yet." Tarō didn't need to insist. "Winter is almost upon us... and tonight comes with a full moon."

– "I know, Tarō."

– "How about Kazuō?"

– "He's busy gorging himself, you know..."

– "Kazuō is quite obese. He is really tubby and meaty now."

  Tarō's voice remained low and soft... He acted gently and cautiously, as he could see that his little brother was heartbroken. Jirō was nodding politely, but he kept looking away for some reason.

– "I'm going to make some tea..." he whispered, focused on his duty.

– "...Tarō?"

– "I know what you're going to tell me, Jirō. I'm just so unhappy as you are about this... Now we have to set him free and start chasing him. We have to do this. You know it's true, you can feel it in your bones... and that's what we're going to do. Don't waste your time feeling sorry for Kazuō. He's been enjoying himself only too well, with everything you've cooked for him. Let's be honest, you're a very generous cook."

– "Tarō..."

– "You've even entertained him with your stories, your little poems, your drunk dances, your kisses... and everything else you did to please him, all night long."

– "So you know about my feelings for him."

– "My poor little Jirō, I'm not so stupid... I understood right away that you spent the whole night feeding him so much that you could get him out of his stupor, somehow, then you got to share a moment of intimacy and some pillow talk with him. I could only guess why you were smiling sometimes, why you were always so cheerful... It couldn't just be all that beer I made you drink."

  Jirō looked quite embarrassed. Tarō took him tenderly in his arms.

– "It's just as well... You've fattened him up better than I would ever dream of fattening you up. Kazuō is very meaty now, so very lardy. He's enormously pot-bellied, puffy and chubby... Oh! we're in for a treat!"

– "Tarō? Please..."

– "Listen to me, Jirō... Now matter how plump you've grown, you know as well as I do that you are not fat enough to survive this winter. You've been feeding Kazuō too much, when you should have spent all your days eating and napping. It's too late for us, now... The snow will fall in big flakes, with sweeping gusts of wind. The lake and bridge will be covered in frost. The waterfall will be nothing but a column of ice... And you, my poor brother, you're already shivering!"

– "It's not the cold that makes me shiver."

  Tarō was ready to let out a long wolf cry on the threshold to announce their night of Inoshishigari [猪狩り, the "wild boar hunt"] with unbound pleasure, but he was sensitive to his younger brother's distress.

– "Be reasonable, Jirō... Kazuō has already drawn way too heavily on our supplies! If we let him go away, we'll have nothing left to eat. You know we won't survive without food... Then, with his insatiable appetite, if we let him stay alive for a few more weeks, Kazuō will devour what we have kept in our personal reserve in a few hours."

– "That's right..."

– "You can't live this long with a pig, you know that."

– "Yes, Tarō..." Jirō sighed deeply. "You're right."

– "Besides..." You're hungry, Jirō! I can tell. You need to sink your sharp, white fangs in a nice piece of red meat, thick, tender and juicy..."

  The big handsome blonde boy didn't answer, but he let his tongue run all over his lips. As he did, they curled up into a smile.

– "That's right..."

– "I should think so!" Tarō whispered, with a carnivorous grin. "It's been days and weeks since you've eaten anything but fish, shrimp, eggs and vegetables, while I feasted on all the meat I could get... I was wondering if you were going to ask for some."

– "Oh? no..." Jirō patted his plump belly. "I was pretty full."

– "But now that I'm telling you about it, you're hungry!"

– "Yes, Tarō..."

– "You don't want to hurt our delicious Kazuō. I know... That's why I've prepared some black tea for you, to wake up your inner wolf, the hungry bad wolf deep inside you... But I've prepared this special blend, that will make you sleepy. Just in case."

– "Why?"

– "Because you're stronger than me..." Tarō didn't hesitate to tell him. "When we're wrestling, you're a little slow and a little clumsy, but you could knock me out with a single punch! You never go for it, because you fight a fair fight, but what if it was to protect Kazuō? And when we turn into wolves, you're even less sprightly than I am but you get so bulky, that makes you more imposing than ever... In any case, I don't want you to stop me from pouncing on our prey tonight. You understand."

– "Yes..."

– "I don't want to force you to follow me either, if you don't want to..."

– "Don't be silly, Tarō... I've never let you hunt alone."

– "That's right... You always worry about me when I'm out."

– "You're worried about me too..."

– "Of course. You're my brother, Jirō. I care about you, and I love you."

  Tarō handed him a tall mug of tea.

– "Drink this cup of darkness, then sleep..."

■ ■ ■

In the forest — full moon, stormy night

  Under the trees, the shadows were so thick and the fog was so dense that Kazuō didn't know which way to turn. He also felt so round and thick that he found it hard to stand and walk, trying to find his balance, even more so as he was desperately trying to find a way through those mysterious woods.

  He had not crossed paths with spirits or ghosts — not yet...

  When he was finally conscious, he was so grotesquely overfed and so heavy that his belly felt like a large ball of stone. He understood just how soft he was, all doughy and blubbery, when Tarō and Jirō helped him get to his feet and gently led him to the threshold of their house, slow and careful, then to the small bridge that creaked so ominously, groaning in protest under his daunting weight.

  The night was filled with the distant sounds of a storm. Every now and then, a flash of lightning tore the sky apart and thunder roared along the mountain, like a rough caress on the spine of a wild beast.

  Kazuō moved slowly, ponderously, step by step. He felt exhausted and already out of breath... His bare feet sank deep into the earth, the moss and roots, rotting dead wood and rain-soaked leaves. With each step, he could feel his enormous belly bouncing and wobbling with all its mass.

– "What should I do? I'm way too large and too heavy to wander alone in the dark like this..." Kazuō sighed. "Jirō has made me balloon up all too well! I've grown so chubby... so lazy, and so clumsy..."

  He didn't have a moment to lose. While he was walking up or down this slope of the mountain, two wild wolves — or rather two arrows of lean muscles, fangs and claws, a blonde one and a darker brown one — were whistling through the air like shooting stars or bullets, fired at him... to devour him!

  The full moon over his head was his only set point. There it was, round and shining closer as he moved towards it, trying not to stumble so he wouldn't fall over and roll like a huge ball of lard down the slope and into the valley... Kazuō must have reached some clear meadow.

– "It's curious..." he thought. "Where are all those big trees that scared me so much? All I can see now are shrubs and bushes..."

  The clean, fresh night air helped him catch his breath. The rain stroke his hair and his cheeks, running in long strokes over his face and his whole body.

  Kazuō took a deep breath. He felt so immensely obese, so bulky and so heavy, like a mountain on top of a mountain — but this made him calm down and enjoy some perfect, strange serenity, something he had never experienced until now. He couldn't explain this, considering his current situation, preyed upon as he was by two young, hungry wolves...

  The storm had also moved closer to the top of the mountain. He could see the lightning bolts around him, dancing, suddenly freezing in tense, dramatic poses...

  Laughing like a child at this sparkly sight, Kazuō pricked up his ears. He had just heard twigs and branches cracking... He felt the presence that surrounded him vaguely, like a tawny breath. It was a steady and effortless breath, as he should expect from a mighty wild beast... It was enough to make anyone shiver with fear.

  Yet Kazuō wasn't afraid... He could not explain why, as he felt the wild creatures come to him, supernatural as they should be, huge and with fur bristlling like spikes, he found himself ready to defend himself in a fierce fight.

  Trying to guess where the wolves could come from, he took a long gaze into the darkness of the woods, whose gnarled trees stretched out at his feet — Kazuō was so fat, he had not seen his feet or knees for quite some time...

  He felt that his belly, still comfortably stuffed but dangerously weighed down with so much meat and blubber, invited him to let out another long, loud and proud burp.

– "GRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWRRRRRRRRRRRRRR !!!"

  The whole forest shuddered, and seemed to waver around him... The mountain rumbled, echoing Kazuō's beastly night call, but the whole forest was dumbstruck, astonished. He was also surprised to hear such a loud, hoarse and low-pitched growl. He didn't know what his world had become, the old world set under the sun. Everything felt small now, so small and so fragile for a thick, fat boy like him — with his vast build, his ample belly that bounced against his knees with every step like a water balloon, brushing the top of the tallest trees... The moon was within his reach, like a fruit. If he weren't so clumsy, he could grab a bolt of lightning like a rope, but they looked finer around him than threads from a spider's web. He towered over the whole mountain with his figure, so round and so obese that he plunged more than half of it into his shadow!

  It was becoming painful for Kazuō to take another step down this slope, as he kept huffing and puffing heavily, full to the point of bursting.

  Looking down, he finally saw two wolves running in the forest — they looked no more threatening than pet ferrets... Yet Kazuō had seen them before, so dangerously big and strong, so vigorous and voracious.

  He saw them now as they had stopped running, overwhelmed. There was no more hunt or chase. As a matter of fact, the wolves were already on their way back. They fled before him, in a state of pure panic. All the beasts in the mountain were howling or crying with the same shudder of terror... Then silence fell like a veil over the world.

  Kazuō hesitated for a moment, sitting down on that high clearing. He looked at the horizon... The dark blue shades were gradually reciding in the sky, as he waited for the sun to rise.

– "I was stuffed full and happy, back home... Now I'm hungry!"

■ ■ ■

In front of the house — sunrise

  Still a little out of breath, slow and ponderous, Kazuō stood in front of the small bridge. The house didn't look empty but sleepy, in his absence. It almost looked like a doll house to him now... He grunted to clear his voice, then he called rudely.

– "Kaimon [開門, ancient Japanese word for: "Open the gate"]!"

  The planks of wood groaned under his feet. Too chunky and too heavy for that modest bridge, Kazuō entered the house. As soon as he opened the doors and crossed the threshold, he saw the two brothers kneeling before him. Tarō and Jirō were still weeping bitterly. They welcomed him with a tight group hug.

– "How could we be so wrong?..." Tarō cried out. "How could we mistake you for the most common of manly beasts and treat you like a fat pig!"

– "How could we take you for a pig..." Jirō added with a desperate sigh. "You're a bear!"

– "I will never forgive myself for this..."

– "We aren't just the most wicked wolves ever! We are the beastliest and dumbest of all beasts!"

  The two wolf brothers had never been through a worse night... Kazuō saw them bursting into tears again, as if they had committed a crime and they were about to be punished by some cruel and vicious judge.

– "Kazuō, Kazuō... Can you forgive us?"

– "What can we do for you?"

  Considering how they kept kissing himpassionately, Kazuō understood that he had come back changed — maybe more mature somehow, after that night in the woods on a full moon. He was still enormously obese, fatter than a pile of butter but also taller than ever... He was not just a bit taller than Tarō: he towered over him like a wrestling champion!

  As for Jirō, the poor boy was still suffering from the after-effects of his metamorphosis into a wolf, which made him almost slender again, lean and feline... His deliciously round paunch had melted before sunrise. He looked more roughly cut and even more tightly muscled than his brother.

  Kazuō went back to his spot in the dining room, which always felt so welcoming. He was so tall that his forehead would bump against the top of the door-frames, if he wasn't careful, and he was so much rounder that he blocked the whole space in front of the hearth. 

  Surrounded by large, soft cushions, he looked like a king on his throne, with all his fat mass.

– "You'll have to tell me, first... What should I forgive you for? If I understand correctly, I was doomed when I got lost in the forest. You saved me from a certain and monstrous death, as you invited me inside your house. You always work so hard to keep yourselves warm, well-fed and barely clothed — but you immediately surrounded me with cushions, comfortable blankets, fine linen and delicious food. People have been rejecting you, baiting you and throwing you away — you opened your arms and you invited me to share your games, your simple pleasures... No one showed you any affection — you showered me with attentions, love and sensual delights..."

– "But we've been fattening you up like such a pig!" protested Tarō.

– "I don't think so. You invited me to eat well, and I enjoyed myself... I had no idea then what it meant for me, and how important it was for me to eat a lot. I should have stuffed myself even more!"

  With tears still shining in their eyes, Tarō and Jirō came closer to their friend. They hugged him and rubbed his belly as they listened to him.

– "I had a big appetite for life, and I wasn't even living. Something in me was crying out for fresh air, and to breathe deeply, immensely, but I remained trapped in narrow, shrinking frames. The world around me was so small, so petty, so stingy that I had to be thin and puny... With you, I've learned how big and beautiful the world could be, so much that it has encouraged me to grow stronger, bigger and more imposing, thicker, larger and fatter — and comfortable in my own skin."

– "Yes, Kazuō..."

– "You didn't treat me like a fat pig. I only stuffed myself to grow fatter... like a bear. I understand now why I was always hungry for all kinds of tasty, wholesome foods. Winter will fall upon us, soon, and I was getting ready to hibernate with you in this cozy little cabin."

– "So, Kazuō... Would you like to stay here with us? For good?"

– "Of course."

  He suddenly felt squeezed like a sponge between the two brothers.

– "But if you want to be forgiven, I know what you boys have to do. Jirō? You're going to cook huge feasts for us, tastier and more fattening than ever... I want to eat a lot more of your generous food!"

– "As much as you want, Kazuō!"

– "And Tarō? You will take care of me, and you will take care of your brother. He is way too thin! You have to force-feed him like a real piglet, every day, more than eight times a day. It must be your top priority to fatten him up properly."

– "Count me in, Kazuō!"

■ ■ ■

In the living room — light rain

  Lying on thick blankets and cushions after a long steamy bath, Kazuō could hardly swallow another bite. For several days and nights, Tarō and Jirō had kept stuffing his face, pushing more food down his throat, with such huge amounts of meat, sausages and bacon at hand, watering him with beer and inviting him to feast even more on fritters, pastries and honey-glazed fruits.

  While they fed him quite forcefully, the two brothers also worshipped him as a living idol, as a bear who towered over them so magnificently with his vast abundance of meat and lard. They showered him with too many treats and so many kisses, in a frenzy — whispering sweet words in his ear, teasing and licking his huge belly and making love to him all night long, passionately, like the wild beasts they truly were...

  Kazuō let himself be carried away, lazily, stuffed like a pig and rocked against their well-fed, thick and athletic bodies... Late in the evening, he asked them why they both treated him so well.

– "Because we love you as you are, Kazuō..." Jirō whispered.

– "We just do. It's in our nature."

– "But I don't do anything inside the house."

– "What do you mean, you're not doing anything?" Tarō suddenly stood up. "Kazuō... You have done everything for us. Without you, we wouldn't even have a home!"

– "Huh? How?"

– "Without you, there would be no forest? Maybe more mountains."

– "I don't understand..."

– "You're a bear, Kazuō! A huge bear, round and doughy... Just the way we wished you to be, and just what we so desperately needed. Don't you understand?"

– "Huh... No."

  The brothers exchanged a puzzled look.

– "You didn't ask yourself why we were so stunned to find out that you were a bear on that full moon night?"

– "Not really."

– "Why we took you for a pig, at first, and treated you like a pig..."

– "Nuh huh..."

– "Bears have pretty much disappeared from this island. It's been ages since our mountain has been the host to a bear so imposing as you are!"

– "Bear spirits are meant to be huge like you..."

– "And gluttons like you!"

– "And sloppy and sleepy like you!"

– "Bears are such rare spirits, in their perfect form. Mountains worship them. They protect everything a bear touches. Everyone must have seen you, last night, when you stood higher than its summit... Thanks to you, the whole mountain and the forests are sacred again, out of reach!"

– "Now all the spirits are begging you to protect them."

– "Huh... How?" Kazuō asked, feeling the weight of such responsibility.

– "Like a bear, of course."

– "Like a perfect bear!"

– "What should I do, then?"

– "Just what you do... Eat, drink beer, sleep. Eat more. Eat a lot! Let us take care of you. Stuff yourself full, enjoy yourself and enjoy Life... And, of course, gain more weight, put more meat on your frame, get fatter and keep growing like the bear of our childhood dreams!"

  Kazuō smiled. Comfortably numbed and stuffed after his hearty dinner, he felt a warm wave run through his entire body, which gave him even more appetite for the next tasty, massive feast that was almost ready.

– "Let's get to work, Jirō! I want you to get my belly full to the brim with your delicious pineapple fritters, your butter cakes and cookies, and so many ripe bananas as you can feed me with lots of cream..."

  The handsome blonde wolf boy never kept him waiting to delight him beyond all expectations... A few minutes later, Kazuō was surrounded with dishes and bowls overflowing with treats he couldn't resist. While he was stuffing himself too, Tarō didn't forget his homework. He forced his young brother to eat more pastries and drink more milk.

– "Eat faster, Jirō! You've got to grow fat again..."

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph... Yes, Tarō."

  Quite docile, Jirō swallowed and grabbed large, greedy bites.

  Kazuō always enjoyed seeing them like this, just as he was enjoying himself. An idea suddenly popped into his head, as Tarō was forcing Jirō to drink another full mug of whole milk.

– "You feed your brother so well, Tarō. It almost looks like you also want to see him grow fat and round like a bear!"

– "Well, Kazuō! You've finally seen right through me, right now."

  Jirō paused and turned to his brother.

– "What do you mean?" He asked, with his mouth full.

  Tarō let out a deep sigh, and stood up. Looking at Kazuō with a slice of pie in each hand, and Jirō handing him another big doughnut, while he was ready to devour a thick slice of caramelized pork, he smiled.

– "I should have told you the truth a long time ago, my dear Jirō."

– "What truth?"

– "The one and only. The reason why we were able to live, or at least survive, in this little house. Before Kazuō joined us..."

– "I don't understand."

– "You have no memories of our parents, Jirō... Of course, you were just a cub when our mother died. She was a beautiful strong, independent, proud and wild wolf. And she was the best and most faithful partner for a fierce, masculine mountain wolf... I have often told you about them, but I had almost no recollection of my father, because he died so soon after I was born."

– "Tarō..."

– "I should tell you now. I can explain. When our mother found herself alone, wandering with me, she met a young man from the North who defended us against assailants. He invited us to live with him, and she immediately fell in love... He was the strongest and most imposing, but also the most generous and the most devoted man I have ever met. He was your father, Jirō. He was a big, tall polar bear, and you remind me of him in so many ways."

– "Then I would be... Am I a bear?"

– "Not quite." Tarō nodded. "You can't be a bad wolf like me... You're too generous, too warm and too cuddly to be a wolf."

– "Does this mean that... I am not your brother?"

– "Don't even think about it, Jirō. We're brothers. Let no one ever tell you otherwise. You'll always be my little brother, and I love you."

– "What then? Am I like... half bear?"

– "I don't know, but it would make sense. The mountain must have seen it in you, the living memory of the magnificent polar bear who was your father... That's how we got to settle down. I mean, maybe? That's why we were able to build this house, against all odds."

  Jirō looked lost in some sort of dream. It was a lot for him to process.

– "I understand why I felt the need to sleep so much, as soon as the Fall threatened us with cold weather and rainy days, why I always wanted to eat until my tummy would burst and make it grow rounder than a balloon... I had to get myself prepared to hibernate. But why is it always so hard for me to get fat? I should be chubby, soft and squishy like a ball of cookie dough..."

– "I guess you're still a wolf cub, too. You can devour red meat just like me, and burn it all, turn it into muscle mass even better than I do. The only difference between us is how sensitive you are, my poor Jirō. You feel so strongly about everything. Hard and soft, hot and cold..." Tarō whispered, comforting him. "You have all the fine qualities of a lean young wolf, but you wish you were thick and clumsy like a big bear."

– "You're right! That's what I want. That's what I should be."

  Kazuō watched them hug, his hands folded over his huge belly.

– "Tarō is right," He said. "You are too heavily muscular, too meaty and too plump to be considered a wolf... But, as a bear, you are way too thin, too active and too agile! It makes me sad whIn I see you always so... dreadfully svelte."

– "I know... I hate being slender. I should keep stuffing my face until I look like a pile of butter! How much more can I possibly eat?"

– "Eating more won't change your nature. It will improve it."

– "What kind of beast am I, then?"

  The handsome blonde boy smiled — Kazuō found him more seductive, more appetizing and more irresistible than ever...

– "It's no mystery to me, Jirō..." Kazuō suggested, after a long sigh that sounded like a moan. "You're a teddy bear. Don't ask about it, just follow your instinct. Let yourself go, like a bad boy... Just grow a bit fatter, and larger, then you'll become a perfect bear."

– "Just a bit? Kazuō, I want to grow much, much fatter!"

  Jirō threw himself into his brother's arms again.

– "Feed me again, please? A lot more! Like a growing bear cub..."

– "Of course!"  Tarō replied immediately, with a hearty laugh.

– "Kazuō is going to teach us what it means to be a bear, a really huge bear! And soon, you'll be able to fight against a mighty big bear, with a smaller but growing bear, every morning, to help you with your wrestling skills..."

– "It's a deal, Jirō! If you let your inner bear growl and grow, you'll turn into such a perfect wrestler too, magnificently strong and obese!"

– "Count me in, Tarō! Then... what are we going to do with Kazuō?"

  The lazy overfed boy felt the two brothers devour him with their eyes.

– "Even for a perfect bear, we are going to make him grow fatter and fatter until he's such a chubby giant he barely fits in our humble home!" Tarō whispered playfully.

– "Yes, we want to turn him into a giant, a mountain of meat..."

  Jirō came to and take Kazuō in his arms — vigorously, with that personal mix of tenderness and raw energy that turned hugs into the promise of something infinitely more arousing... The handsome blonde boy was glistening with sweat. His green eyes sparkled like lightning in a stormy night.

  He whispered softly in Kazuō's ear:

   kokoro no tsuki wa       心の月は           "In my heart, there were

   kumorazarikeri             雲らざりけり      no clouds around the moon..."

■ ■ ■

In the house — sunset

  In a few days, left alone with Kazuō while Tarō was out to bring home the bacon, going from one village to the next, Jirō learned a few of the secrets that make man turn into a bear as a way to explore his own true nature... The main difference with Kazuō was that Jirō was the exact opposite of lazy! The handsome boy was bursting with energy when he should be bursting with too many pastries. He kept that flow going like a fool who would throw coins in the street by the handful because he knows it is paved with gold. From the kitchen to the bedroom and back, he behaved like the exuberant teddy bear he was meant to become. His only purpose was clearly to enjoy every moment so fully and so wildly as possible! At any moment, by day or by night, Kazuō could expect new orgies of gluttony and lust, more unpredictable games and rewards that brought him to tears of laughter or long moments of priceless intimacy and unfathomable sweetness.

  In every way, Kazuō felt fully pleased. Even more so, he felt that this perfect teddy bear was thriving by his side, so happy to follow his moves and turn into a huge bear... Jirō was eating like such a glutton, it was more impressive than ever. Jirō drank more beer, more whole milk, then he kept dancing naked when he was stuffed and tipsy. Last but not least, he looked so happy to get fatter, and his belly grew rounder and rounder by the hour! Within a few days, he had gained all his lost weight back, and he was comfortably obese.

– "And when our surroundings are covered with frost, I should be more than stuffed... I should be really fat!"

– "Yes, Jirō. Fat like a real, good teddy bear..."

  The blonde boy growled and purred as he snuggled up to Kazuō.

– "Bring those pastries closer... I want to be able to reach them."

– "Are you still hungry?"

– "Of course, Jirō. Always! But you should gorge too... Now, eat!"

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "I can't let you go hungry either."

– "Hmmmph... Hmmmph..."

– "Come on! A little effort, teddy bear... Eat faster!"

– "Hmmmph..."

– "I want to see your belly grow and almost burst, Jirō. You have so much more to eat,so much more, if you want to be a big bear like me..."

– "Hmmmph... Kazuō..."

– "Yes?"

  Jirō held him in his arms, trying to breathe with his mouth so full.

– "We're going to get scolded... Tarō had warned us. We'll have nothing left to eat in the kitchen, soon. And since he's gone out, we've done nothing but stuff ourselves and each other like greedy bears!"

  They heard footsteps on the bridge, then the door was opened. Tarō was coming back from the village with more food. He called them out.

– "Jirō? Kazuō? I have such great news! We are saved!"

– "You brought us something to... BUUUURRRRP... eat?"

– "Better than food! We're saved. We are rich!"

– "What could be better than food?" Jirō asked.

– "Rich? How?"

  Tarō had just taken off his coat, all covered with snow — and his clothes, all soaked in sweat. He stood in front of his companions, almost naked, by the fire. He had to catch his breath.

  The handsome young wolf, athletic but so heavy, carried a large bamboo bucket with a light wood lid. He poured its contents at Kazuō's feet. Handfuls of gold coins rolled all over the tatami mats..

– "Take a look at this. We're rich, this gold is ours!"

– "How is that possible?"

– "It's all thanks to Kazuō."

– "Thanks to me?"

– "Yes! I've never seen the offering boxes so stuffed. Everyone saw you in the forest last night, just as Jirō and I thought... Or rather, everyone saw you on top of the mountain! That's all they keep talking about in the village. The newspapers keep trying to explain the phenomenon, but they get lost in their own comments section."

– "The phenomenon?"

– "That's what they call it..." Tarō laughed when he saw Kazuō's face. "The reporters must have asked the weather man, because it's just another stormy night of unprecedented magnitude... They don't know what they've seen. They don't understand, when it's been confirmed by so many testimonies. A huge dark cloud, with two stars like blue eyes, brighter than the full moon, with fangs and claws..."

  The three of them burst out laughing.

– "Fangs? And claws?"

– "They thought I was a... cloud?"

– "A heavy storm cloud, then!"

– "Why not a fur-covered cloud, then?"

– "A cloud of milk in a cup of black tea..."

– "In any case, the old folks of all the villages nearby were not mistaken. The forest was full of rumours, and the mountain didn't just rumble: it growled! Nature has taken over the surroundings... All the bridges near that little temple in ruins are already covered with thorns and brambles."

  Kazuō was playing with a gold coin that Jirō had handed him.

– "All the same, how can such offerings be collected?"

– "Nazoraeru [擬える, literally "imitate"]..." The brothers said together.

– "Huh.... What's that?"

– "But, Kazuō... This is the very principle of any offering. A poor peasant can't give more than a bowl of rice or a few vegetables. A girl who longs to be free can only give a small coin when she can't negotiate her freedom. A wandering priest can only offer a simple prayer... It's all the same. What matters is that, by expressing one's sincere wish to raise a temple to the spirits, the temple gets built. It rises from the people's will and needs. Struggling to get free, with a small offering, the young girl gets her own free will and the spirits grant her riches after her own mind. The peasant who willingly offers a few samples of his harvest is rewarded with an abundance of goods and a peaceful life..."

– "So all this gold comes to us from small change and wishes?"

– "It doesn't matter. The people who went to offer this to us really wanted you to feel immensely rich, comfortable and happy. As for them, in good faith, it is most important to keep the great bear spirit of the mountain pleased and well-fed!"

– "Well, I guess I should be pleased..." Kazuō suppressed a light belch. "And grateful. I just don't feel like such a big bear. I must be a bear they want to keep feeding so he grows... fatter."

– "That's the spirit." Jirō smiled. "Besides, offerings and gifts like gold are good, but they don't make you fat. You can't eat gold."

– "That's right!" Tarō added with a knowing wink. "Why don't you go and check what we have left in the kitchen and in our stores?"

  Jirō was not away for long. His companions heard him cry out from inside the kitchen, astonished. He kept jumping up and down as he came back into the dining-room, with such strength and agility that was quite unexpected from a boy of his weight and size.

– "You're right, Tarō! We are immensely wealthy... All the stoves and pots are almost bursting with tasty, rich meals, all simmering over the fire... The shed is overflowing with so much groceries that I can't get the doors closed. And if we don't drink all our beer tanks empty very quickly, they will blow like geysers!"

– "What are you waiting for to stuff yourself silly, Jirō? Time to EAT!"

– "I want to gobble and guzzle until I can no longer chow or chug... or move!" The handsome blonde teddy bear growled, with both hands on his deliciously soft belly.

  While he was cramming a huge amount of food into dishes, his brother sat down behind Kazuō to gently massage his back and shoulders.

– "Jirō has grown quite a bit rounder, while I was away."

– "He has such a healthy appetite!" replied Kazuō, laughing. "He's bigger and stronger too, just like you... At this rate, it won't take long for him to become a perfect big bear."

– "Round, large and chubby, like the bear of his dreams?"

– "Maybe even fatter than his dream! He's such a good bear cub."

– "He's only just joined the cub club!" Tarō joked. "You know, Kazuō..."

– "Yes?"

– "I've put on a lot of weight, too. I don't know if I've grown that much bigger, but my waist is wider today than my shoulders were when we first met."

– "It's impressive, and you're absolutely right. I've noticed..."

– "That's all thanks to you. Its was my dream to grow athletic, large and strong like a truly mighty beast! When we were children, Jirō was always so sad that he couldn't get fat and I was desperately trying to grow massive. I wanted to grow up and turn into a fierce wolf, a big bad wolf with a heavy frame and thick muscles... Jirō always did his best to feed me copious amounts of food and binge with me. What was missing in our lives was the presence of a bear like you, then all the food we ate was bound to make our bodies grow, and our bellies were doomed to get so full that we could no longer swallow another bite. With you, we've finally started to put on weight and grow like we were meant to! We're pretty heavy right now..."

– "And it's a good thing that you've both grown so chunky!"

  Tarō snuggled up against his back and whispered.

– "Take good care of my little brother... He's not a wolf, but he's not a bear. I also believe that Jirō is a teddy bear... He's much more sensitive than you and me. He just wants to love. You have to be kind to him and help him grow bigger, rounder and fatter. That's his purpose in Life."

– "We'll make a big teddy bear out of him, a perfect meatball..."

– "You'll be rewarded for this too, you know. With a young bear devoted to cook all the fattening meals you enjoy so much... and cook with love for you in the kitchen, as you know he will, that food will benefit you so much that you will soon burst like a balloon! Like a jar full of oil!"

– "Do you really think so?"

– "You can trust me, when it comes to my brother... Don't tell me you haven't noticed how Jirō devours you with his eyes, even when he's forcing himself to gobble so much food that it brings him to tears?"

– "That's right..."

  Kazuō was still red in the face and somewhat troubled when Jirō came to surround him with large dishes and platters — for some new feast of sausages and roasted meats that made everyone's mouth water.

– "Kazuō?"

  Jirō also brought a tray with a small bowl of rice and a glass of beer, just to whet his appetite... The two brothers stood in front of their idol.

– "Well, Kazuō? It looks like you're dreaming..."

– "What can we do for you, big boy?"

– "What can you boys do for me?"

– "Yes, Kazuō. Please tell us."

– "Whatever you want."

  Kazuō let out a sigh, and smiled mischievously.

– "I want you to be two niō [仁王] for me, two kongō-rikishi [金剛力士, guardian deities of temples or shrines, represented in the form of very muscular and imposing giants] next to me."

– "Yes, Kazuō!" the two brothers replied, enthusiastic.

– "I want to see you grow very heavy and very meaty, both of you. You should look impressive, according to your own nature... Keep surprising me, you wild beasts! Pull yourselves together and start packing on some serious weight!"

– "Yes, Kazuō."

– "This is only the beginning of our journey. We have a lot to learn from each other. And we have a lot to eat..."

– "Yes, Kazuō!"

– "You'll eat and get fat with me, and I mean fat! But you have to fatten me up more than you'll ever grow!" he concluded with a smile.

– "Oh! yes, Kazuō..."

  The two brothers couldn't wish for anything more.

  The snowstorm lasted for several days and nights... When the darkness finally lifted, Tarō opened the panels in front of the balcony. The lake was completely frozen. All that turmoil had turned to peaceful silence, and the sun made the pine needles sparkle in their branches.

  Jirō had already prepared a mountain of scrambled eggs and bacon to get their breakfast started, and towers of thick pancakes all drenched in butter and honey... Tarō helped Kazuō roll to the balcony to enjoy some fresh air. Then they would stuff his belly with more pastries and meat.

– "It's cold, out there... We should stay under the covers."

– "And gorge on all this food!" Jirō added.

  Sitting in front of the snowy landscape, Kazuō recited an ancient poem.

   yuki fureba                  雪ふれば               "With snow falling

   fuyugomori seru         冬ごもりせる          in the heart of Winter,

   kusa mo ki mo             草も木も                herbs and trees

   haru ni shirarenu        春にしられぬ          are covered with flowers

   hana zo sakikeru        花ぞさきける          unknown in Springtime...”

  And the three large boys went back to sleep, heroically overfed.

  Tarō and Jirō were still snuggled on either side of Kazuō's gigantic belly, under the blankets — rubbing, patting, teasing, squeezing and covering his torso with kisses that felt hotter than smoldering embers.

  It kept snowing around the house, day and night... When the sun rose again, the side of the mountain and the top of the trees, the frozen water of the waterfall and the surface of the lake were all shining the same immaculate white, like so many mirrors under a sky full of mist, so smooth and peaceful that the landscape disappeared — as if it had been sketched in a single brush stroke and immediately erased from the page.

終わり [The End]

Notes: In Japanese, a name like Kurokumasaki (黒熊崎) means "the tip of the black bear". Then Kazuō is a true "bear" spirit, just as Tarō is a pure "wolf" spirit.

  The Chōjū-giga [鳥獣戯画, "Animal Caricatures"] is a collection of drawings depicting, among other things, rabbits and foxes, frogs and monkeys in everyday situations or parodies of the ceremonies in the temple and at the Japanese court in the twelfth century.

  The poem from which Jirō quotes the last two lines is by the Buddhist monk and historian Jien (慈円). It is included in the Shin kokin wakashū [新古今和歌集, the "New Collection of Japanese Poems of Yesterday and Today", anthology compiled in 1205].

  The poem quoted by Kazuō is by Ki no Tsurayuki (紀貫之). It is included in the Kokin wakashū [古今和歌集, the "Collection of Japanese Poems of Yesterday and Today", an anthology of 1111 poems compiled in 905.