"Wow!" Carie's eye's were wide with amazement. "She...she just floated up, like, like..."
"Like a balloon!" laughed the vendor, turning towards her. He was a short, playfully faced man, cropped dark hair and pale blue eyes, offset by a single gold ear-ring. He wore deep purple, baggy pants, and a bright red jacket festooned with dazzling sequins. "Relax, that can happen to cute girls here in cartoon world." He patted the bulbous cylinder of helium next to him.
"But that's helium... I mean... people don't float if you.." Carrie blinked uncertain at the mix of curiousity, excitment and wonder.
The vendor laughed, the sunlight sparkling from his waistcoat, augmenting a mischevious glint in his eyes. "You must be new here, or you'd know the laws of cartoon physics being what they are, you don't even need heliuum. ANY gas, even your own breath, becomes magically, delightfully, bouyant if you put it in a balloon."
"But...how will she get down?" asked Carrie, looking at the departing, bobbing, woman as she floated off. A secret part of her began to wonder what it felt like to be so bouyant, so free. Her sensible self reproached her for such dreams, but...
"Who knows? Who cares?" The balloon vendor twirled on the spot, a rainbow of vibrant bubbles rotating above him "Better hope she can burp her way down though, or she'll float to the moon if he lets go!" He laughed, and then paused suddenly, as if struck by a thought.
"But I'm being rude to my new visitors" And this time his smile was dazzling to match his wares. His hands flicked out, and spread in his palms lay a selection of large deflated latex sleeves. Balloons, arrayed before her in a bright spectrum of playful colours .
"Carrie!" called out John, running his partner "maybe you should..."
The balloon salesman ignored him, his gaze fastened on Carrie.
"Now, how would YOU like a few balloons?" he asked "I've got plenty of helium here, or if you're curious, you can blow it up yourself..."