By the time Max emerged fully from the kitchen all the creatures left in the bar had gathered around the teensy deer and were looming over her in stages of disbelief, amusement, or uncomfortable terror. She hunched down with all the eyes lingering on her tiny form and gulped.
“Please change me back?” She whimpered, putting her hands in her lap and staring at Sam in particular with pleading little doe eyes. “This is really scary.”
“How did you do this?” The big horse guy blinked several times. “Is she okay?”
“Perfectly fine.” Marcus said triumphantly. “My device is absolutely safe. We’ve just made our lovely deer a bit more compact, that’s all. Isn’t it amazing?”
“I-I don’t understand!” Trish whimpered, sympathetically patting the tiny deer on the head with her feathers and trying to keep her calm.
Max leaned down and observed Brooke with fascination. “Did it hurt?” He whispered. “A-Are you okay, boss?”
“Uh, sure.” The shrugged. “I mean, it felt weird. But yeah, I guess I’m more or less intact.” She stood up on the bar and the group watched her get to her feet and walk around. “Actually, I mean... this is really weird. But... kind... kind of cool.” She squeaked. “Look at how big everything is.”
“Everything isn’t bigger, silly.” Sam laughed. “You’re just smaller.”
“I’m aware of that.” Brooke squeaked, tapping a hoof on the bar. “Thanks.”
“Well, uh...” Max looked on in sudden confusion. “What now? Are we... we keeping her like this? I mean, you can make her grow back with that thing, right?”
Sam handed the device back to Marcus, knowing that Brooke’s entire existance was literally in the palm of her hand, and gulped sheepishly.
“Chicken.” Marcus needled the lizard, bumping her side. “Yeah, sure, I guess our little experiment is over.”
“Oh thank God.” Brooke sighed in relief.
“Might wanna step back, folks.”
The assembled party took a few quick steps back as Brooke suddenly jolted again and surged up to her normal size, standing in the middle of her bar top with a bewildered expression on her face, head near the overhead lights.
“Okay.” The deer said in startled surprise. She carefully, sat down on the counter again and Max took her hand, helping her back onto the floor. They all stared at her in amazement.
“So that’s TFD.” Trish said with unease, trembling. “Can you really... do anything with that stuff?”
“Theorhetically, yes.” Marcus nodded.
“Not sure I like that anything part.” Max grimaced. “I mean... what if you wanted to really hurt somebody? I can’t even imagine.”
“Uh, well, yeah.” Marcus scratched the back of his head in discomfort, setting the device down on the bar. “I guess that’s true.”
The big horse was more concerned about Brooke. He took her aside gently and looked her over in alarm. “A-Are you all right, miss?”
“Y-Yeah.” She whimpered. “I think so. Why, do I look okay? Am I different? Oh dear God, am I shorter or something?”
“No, no, you look fine!” The horse gulped. “Sorry, I just... well, that must have been so... so strange. That was really shocking, you know?”
“Hey...” Brooke touched the big draftie’s neck and looked at him with sympathy. “Thanks, man. It really was, I appreciate the concern. I’m... I’m sorry about your ex, you know?”
“Huh?” The horse blinked. “Oh yeah. Um. Yeah, sure.” He looked down at the floor and kicked it nervously.
“What’s your name, big guy?”
“E-Eddie.” The horse stammered, blushing a little under the pink of his nose.
“I’m Brooke.” She smiled warmly. “I went through a bad break up, too. You ever need to talk, here’s my number, okay?”
The horse’s eyes widened as the deer quickly scrawled her digits onto a scrap of paper and handed it over to him.
“Uh, sure, Brooke. That’d be... nice.”
He looked back to Marcus and the device nervously. “Look, um, I’m gonna... gonna square up and go back to my apartment, yeah?”
“Sure, buddy. What a weird night, huh?”
“Uh... y-yeah.” He proceeded to turn and pay his bill with a still obviously shocked Trish and turned back and nodded politely to the deer, clearly weirded out and still a little drunk.
As the horse exited, Sam locked up the front doors and turned back to the rest of the group.
“Um... so...” She put her hands behind her back and whistled innocently. “Sorry for shrinking you, Brooke.”
“Uh huh.” The deer crossed her arms. “Because that didn’t traumatize me forever or anything. Being teefed against my will is probably my biggest fear. You know that.”
“Oh my God, really?” Marcus turned bright red. “I’m s...”
“And you!” Brooke pointed her finger at Marcus accusingly. “Bringing that shit into my bar! Don’t you ever do that again!”
“Hey,” Max motioned to the back. “Everything is off. Let’s get out of here.”
The group dispersed out the back door and huddled around in the parking lot smoking.
“Seriously, dude.” Brooke pointed to Marcus. “Never again. I mean it.”
“Yeah, sure. Sure.” Marcus gulped in shame. “I feel really bad, Brooke, I’m sorry.”
“Just... no. The idea of having my body warped is just... no. And that was absolutely scary. I’m probably going to have nightmares about getting stepped on or something.”
“I’m gonna get going, then. I’m really sorry.”
“It’s cool.” Brooke motioned. “Just... never again, okay?”
They waited until Marcus shuffled off to his car and the remaining four stared at each other.
“Hey, I get that too.” Max sighed, taking a drag on his smoke and tossing the butt away. “Like, imagine somebody who hates you using that thing. It seriously creeps me out.”
“Or... or... what if somebody who wasn’t your friend shrank you and just... like walked off with you, you know?” Trish visibly recoiled at the idea.
“I don’t know.” Sam shrugged. “Could be fun in the right hands, too.”
“Says the lizard who fucking shrank my body.” Brooke said testily.
“Anyway, yeah. That was... something.” Max shook his head and picked up his backpack off the ground. “I’m out of here. You guys have a good night, I guess.”
“Uh huh.” Brooke responded, as the old dog wandered off down the street.
“Are you really okay, though?” Trish leaned in worriedly. “Like, you’re... you?”
“I think so.” Brooke looked herself over, examining every inch of her body. “I guess nothing permenant was done.”
“Okay. Well, just phone me if something happens, okay?” Trish sighed and started towards her hover bike. “I’m not going to sleep much. That freaked me the fuck out. I can’t imagine how you feel.”
“Yeah, I’m gonna go with Sammy.” Brooke shrugged.
“Okay. Take care, sweetie.”
The blue jay fired up the bike and jetted off down the road.
“Well.” Sam giggled.
“What?” The deer turned, annoyed.
The iguana reached into her pocket and held out the PTFD.
“SAM!” Brooke gasped, reeling back. “You didn’t!”
“I did.” The iguana said proudly. “So, I guess it’s only fair that you get to change me back, right?”
Brooke stared in shock and whimpered. “What? Noooo.”
The lizard giggled and put the device in Brooke’s hand. She looked down at it in disgust.
“Come on, let’s think about it on the way home, shrinkie.”
“Not funny.” The deer frowned.