I split it in half

“Well?” Marley’s eye twitched with irritation. Dakota was holding her dramatic pause for ages. “We’re waiting, come on! Who won already?”

“Nah, you don’t have to bother,” Carly said, stretching her arms behind her head and lacing her fingers together. Her massive chest bounced. “I know how this goes enough by now. Been a while since I was the top of any kind of poll.”

Marley winced. She didn’t like the look of resignation in her sister’s eye.

“Hey, come on!” Dani said. “Don’t be like that, Carly! I’m sure you won!”

“Odd that you of all people would be rooting for Carly’s breasts to get smaller,” Vivian noted with an amused chuckle.

Dani turned red. Vivian’s comment had ruffled her feathers in more ways than one. She swallowed and hastily shook her head. “H-hey, come on,” she scoffed, scratching her wrists. “I’m just thinking of Carly’s best interests, that’s all!”

Carly laughed. The way her breasts shook when she did so didn’t go unnoticed by Dani, and the vacant stare on Dani’s face didn’t go unnoticed by anyone else.

“…Yeah, definitely no bias there,” Kim giggled.

“I think it’s really sweet!” Morgana said, nodding in encouragement. “Even though you like Carly with bigger breasts, you still want her to win the flower!”

“Yeah, it really is sweet,” Carly cooed, winking at her girlfriend. Dani turned even redder.

Meanwhile, Marley just sulked. Everyone was rooting for Carly and giving her sister all the attention, but was anyone looking at her?

Story of her life, really.

Then she felt a comforting hand pat her on the arm. Marley turned, and saw Sylvia looking at her with a sweet expression on her face.

“It’s okay,” Sylvia said gently. “I may be rooting for Carly to win the poll, but that’s because I’m rooting for you.”

Marley stared blankly at Sylvia, remembering the strange girl’s general twisted nature. She sighed.

“…Thanks mom.”

“I think that’s enough family bonding time and support, don’t you?” Dakota chirped, clapping her hands together. “Let’s get back to the matter at hand, the vote! Shall we check the results? This one was very, very close, after all! The winner came down to just a small handful of votes!”

Marley’s eyes widened and she turned to the pale host. “Wait, really?”

“It wasn’t a tie, was it?” Sylvia asked. What would Dakota even do in that situation? Split the flower in half? What would that accomplish? Maybe Marley and Carly would each have one breast shrink back down to normal. Sylvia chuckled to herself as she pictured that, much to the confusion of the other girls who just stared at her, Marley included.

“…No, it wasn’t a tie,” Dakota assured her. “Just a very close vote. With a very clear winner nonetheless! And that winner is… Carly!”

“Eh?” Carly’s eyes widened in surprise. “Me? I won?”

Marley’s heart sank and her eyes dropped to the floor. Frankly, she should have seen that coming.

“That’s right,” Dakota nodded encouragingly. “Which means, Carly, you get the flower!” She handed it over to Carly without hesitation. The short-haired girl hesitated though. She looked at the flower clutched between the host’s fingers, holding it away from her like it was a moldy banana peel or something.

For once, the playful smile on Carly’s face was a little less playful. She glanced awkwardly at Marley, who looked back at her, feeling just as awkward.

“Well, I mean… there it is,” Sylvia said, gesturing to the flower. “You won. So… you can eat the flower now, Carly.”

“Yeah, uh… yeah,” Carly nodded, swallowing. Suddenly her mouth felt very dry.

“Look, sis, it’s fine,” Marley said, holding up her hands. A resigned look crossed her face. “I’m not upset. I agreed to the vote in the first place, and hey- it’s fair and square, right?”

“Good point,” Dakota agreed with a nod. “Fair and square. The audience has spoken, after all!”

Marley glared at her. Then her expression softened, and she turned back to her sister. “Hey… look. It’s okay. Like I said, I agreed to the vote, and I’ll abide by it.”

It felt freeing to say that. In fact, as upset as Marley had been about losing the poll in the immediate aftermath, when it happened, a strange sense of relief had washed over her. Like she didn’t have to worry about any of this anymore, and she could just relax and stop freaking out now that the decision had been made.

…Was that weird? Marley felt that was a little weird…

Dakota cleared her throat, seeing that this wasn’t going anywhere. “You know,” she noted, “there’s no reason you have to actually eat the flower, Carly. You get that, right?”

Carly blinked in surprise and looked at the host. “Excuse me, what?”

“Yes please!” Dani blurted out. She turned red again and clamped her hand over her mouth. “That came out wrong!” She squeaked out.

“The poll decided who gets to eat the flower, and you won, so I gave it to you,” Dakota said. “But you could always decide not to eat it, if you want. You can just give it to Marley. Right? If you feel bad for her not getting it. …Or if like having big boobs. That’s always an option.”

“Err…” Carly got flustered for a second and turned to her sister. Marley’s eyes widened in surprise. She hadn’t actually considered that.

Carly scratched her head, flinching a little at the pleasure surging through her hair. “I mean… I wasn’t ever really taking this all too seriously anyway,” she stammered sheepishly. “So yeah, it’s not like I mind having these for another couple days. I was just playing around.”

She’d agreed to the poll because she thought it sounded fun, but she didn’t think she’d actually win. Taking the flower away from her sister had never been her intention.

Marley’s eyes were nearly as large and round as her enhanced breasts. “W-well, I mean… that’s- that would be very sweet of you, sis,” she stammered, turning red. Her eyes dropped down to her sister’s massive breasts, which were straining against her pajama top. “I didn’t think… I mean… I assumed I was going to lose, too, so… and I already did, um…”

She had made peace with the fact that she’d be carrying these around for another couple of days. Like Carly, she had expected her own loss in the polls- because she always lost out to her sister when it came to stuff like this, unfortunately.

“…I just… um… look, I lost fair and square,” Marley stammered. “So you don’t have to show pity on me, okay? I don’t need it.”

A strange, awkward silence fell over the room as Marley’s words sank in for everyone. Dakota leaned back on her cane and covered her smirk with her gloved hand. That was pretty much exactly what she’d anticipated.

Carly was the one who figured it out first, because she knew her sister so well. She understood Marley maybe even better than Marley understood herself. Her eyes widened, and a crooked smile stretched up her lips.

“I see… you’re happy you lost, aren’t you, sis?”

Marley’s jaw dropped, and the color drained from her face. “…Huh!?”

“Wait, seriously?” Dawn looked at Marley in surprise. “Happy?”

“She doesn’t look that happy,” Kim observed. Ella nodded in agreement.

“Marley?” Sylvia looked at the flustered brunette with an expression that was a strange mixture of confusion and hopefulness. “What is she talking about?”

“I-I don’t know!” Marley stammered, shaking her head quickly. “My sister is just being delusional! Of-of course I’m not happy that I lost the poll! Since that means I have to keep these… inconvenient meat melons!” She grabbed her massive breasts and gave them a shake of defiance.

“Yeah, I know, and that’s frustrating,” Carly said, nodding. “Believe me, I’ve gotta deal with them, too.” She gestured to her own expanded boobs. “Real uncomfortable. But I mean… maybe just a part of you really, really wanted to lose deep down, maybe.”

Marley’s mouth snapped shut and her eyes dropped sheepishly.

Carly wasn’t right… was she? Had she really wanted to lose the poll deep down? Why would that be? No, the relief Marley had felt when she lost, it was just because the issue had been decided, and she didn’t have to worry about it! That was it!

It definitely wasn’t because for a fraction of a second the idea that she’d be the bigger twin for a couple of days had occurred to her, and she liked that! No, no way!

…Right?

Marley’s cheeks reddened as she felt the pressure of Carly’s stare on her. A sly smile crept up her sister’s lips and she closed the ten foot distance between the two of them. Before Marley could react, Carly took her by the wrist, turned her hand over, and dropped the flower into her palm.

“I’ve decided,” she said cheerfully. “I think you should eat the flower after all, Marley. I can handle the weight. But you’ve been ‘waiting’ long enough.”

Marley blinked, feeling the tingle of the flower on her hand. She stared at her sister as Carly’s words sank in.

“B-but…” she mumbled out.

“It’s okay, right?” Carly looked back at Dakota for the host’s approval. “I can give it to Marley? Even though the audience wanted me to have it?”

Dakota shrugged, a wide smirk breaking her mouth in half. “I’m not going to stop you,” she said, shaking her head. “This is amusing.”

“Isn’t that great, Marley? You get the flower after all!” Sylvia said. She would have liked Marley’s breasts to stay massive, but she wanted to support her cute little girl no matter what!

But Marley was shrinking under all this praise. She looked down at the flower, which stared back at her like an accusation.

“It’s what you wanted, right?” Dakota’s sneering voice echoed in Marley’s ears. “There’s not a reason you’re turning down the flower, is there?”

Marley reddened. She had been trying to get the flower for days, so she could reverse what was done to her. It was inconvenient and annoying, and made her look like some floozy!

But now that she’d been given the option… now that it was right in front of her…

Her thoughts on the subject were a lot more complicated.

“…But I didn’t win the poll,” she said lamely.

“But I want you to have it!” Carly encouraged. The playful look in her eye… Marley recognized it.

She froze as her sister’s amused smile sank in.

“…Carly…”

“Just be honest, sis,” Carly said, patting her sister on the shoulder. “It’s better that way. No one’s going to think less of you.”

Marley looked over at the other girls, who were all in various states of confusion and boredom. Nobody looked like they were really judging her.

She sighed and lowered her head. “…Okay,” she mumbled. “…To tell you the truth, when I heard you won the poll… I was a little relieved.”

Carly burst out laughing. “Hah! I knew it!”

“It’s not what you think!” Marley exclaimed. “I just, I mean…”

“You want to be the ‘big’ sister for a few more days, eh?” Carly socked her playfully in the arm. “That’s what I figured. You were making such a big stink about this whole ‘massive breasts’ thing that I assumed you were trying to **** yourself to feel that way, because it’s the way you’re ‘supposed’ to feel, isn’t that right?”

Marley flinched. She shrank a little. Because her sister was right on the money. As soon as Carly put the idea out there, she realized that was exactly how she felt. She’d been in conflict between not liking her huge breasts, and liking that it actually gave her an edge over Carly at least for a little while.

That was a part of herself she didn’t feel fully convinced of. With a sigh, Marley handed the flower back to Carly.

“You’re right… I guess… part of me really wanted to be bigger, at least for a little while.” She reached back and massaged her shoulders. “But the back pain, it can really be a bitch.”

Carly laughed. “Trust me, I know. But hey- at least you realize how great all this is, right?” She was just happy that Marley was being open about her desires and wishes. That was the important thing. As a sister, Carly couldn’t want for anything less!

So with Marley’s blessing, she popped the flower into her mouth, chewed, and watched as her breasts shrank, receding into her pajama top.

Kim let out a soft sigh and patted Dani on the back. “Sorry, Dani. I know that must be rough for you,” she said gently.

Dani rolled her eyes and shoved her friend off. “Come on, stop messing around.”

“Excellent, such a touching scene,” Dakota cooed, reaching up and wiping a fake tear from her eye. “Gets me choked up every time. Now then…”

“We’re back!” Rose skipped into the Banquet Hall with a smile on her lips, looking like the cat who just ate the canary. A slightly-exhausted Nick followed after her, with Mary and Gina pulling up the back of the pack.

Rose paused in the center of the room and looked around for a moment. “Eh? Something happen while we were gone?”

“Just a vote,” Dakota said. “Carly got a bit of a downgrade, sadly.”

“But hey- on the positive side, Marley’s boobs will stay really big for a few more days!” Sylvia pointed out, smiling from ear to ear.

Nick glanced at Marley, who blushed and covered her breasts slightly.

“Don’t… don’t look at me like that,” she said, averting her eyes. She may have been honest about appreciating her massive breasts, but she still had a lot of work to go when it came to general honesty points unfortunately.

Dakota cleared her throat. “Oh, don’t look like that,” she said, intentionally mistaking Nick’s stunned expression for disappointment. She skipped over and patted him on the shoulder. “Carly’s greatness is still immortalized in print, if you recall.”

She flashed him a handful of photographs of the sultry cosplayer showing off her enhanced breasts, much to Carly’s amusement, Dani’s embarrassment, and Nick’s shame.

“That’s… something, I guess,” he said, not sure what to make of Dakota’s insinuation. “Yay?”

“Don’t forget though!” Dakota took a step back, pulling away the pictures, “it always helps to support with your donations!”

“I don’t need to solicit money like that,” Carly said, her face getting hot. She shook her head and sighed in exasperation. Dakota was pushing it right now.

“At least one of you is back to normal, I guess?” Mary said, looking sympathetically at the now-bustier brunette twin.

“It’s fine, this is what everyone wanted,” Marley said, shaking her head. She wanted to end the notion that this was a problem once and for all. “Yeah, these things are a little inconvenient, no argument there. But I’m only going to be stuck with them for a few more days, and then the flower should regrow.”

That was the hope she was holding onto. But she figured that Sylvia would probably try and make some arguments against her when that happened.

Marley would rather avoid that, if she was being honest. But she doubted that would happen.

Rose loudly cleared her throat. “Um, excuse me… can I say something?”

The other girls looked over at her. Nick raised his eyebrow. “Rose?” What was she talking about now, getting involved like this?

“Look, if the only issue is Marley’s big boobs being uncomfortable… I can just loan her my sweater for a couple of days, right? You know, the one I got from my transformation?” Rose pointed out. “The one that lets me not have to worry about massive boobs or anything like that.”

Everyone stared at Rose.

“Oh, that’s right!” Dakota tapped her chin thoughtfully. “There was something like that, wasn’t there? What was the wording on that sweater’s boon again…?”

With a knowing smirk she summoned up a screen, and presented the specific text of Rose’s sweater’s boon to the crowd.

• Lighter than Air: While wearing this sweater, the wearer’s muscles will be strengthened to make them feel like their body is incredibly light and easy to move. They will be able to run faster, last longer, and carry heavy things with ease, including their breasts!

“…Yes, I think that would work quite well!” Dakota said, nodding. “What a good idea, Rose!”

Marley’s jaw dropped. “What!?”

The idea hadn’t even crossed her mind. But now that Rose had put it out there, she couldn’t believe she had forgotten about something so simple!

Rose’s sweater would basically completely negate the downside of her massive breasts. While also making them bounce all over the place.

“…You’re just now thinking of this?” Dawn looked sharply at the blonde.

“Hey, nobody kept me in the loop, I’ve been doing my own thing these last few days!” Rose protested, taking a step back and holding up her hands. That sounded better than admitting she’d hung the sweater up in her closet and promptly forgotten about it due to all the new clothes in the Fashion Suite until just now.

“You’d really do that for me?” Marley asked Rose, genuinely touched. “Rose…”

“Hey, I don’t need it right now, my breasts are the perfect size, with perfect support,” Rose tittered, winking at Nick and giving her boobs a nice shake. “And hey, you like sweaters, Marley, and you really need something to lift them up, so… hey, what the heck?”

She shrugged.

Marley looked a little humbled and embarrassed. After all, she really should have remembered it herself, and asked Rose. But she held her tongue and sighed, scratching her head sheepishly. “Well… if you’re serious… thank you, Rose. I appreciate it. Really, I do.”

Rose smiled at her. “We’re friends, aren’t we?” She smacked Marley on the back, making her huge breasts jump in her stretched top. “What are friends for?”

As Marley got her breasts under control, turning red, she couldn’t help but spare Nick a glance. The way he was looking at her… the way he was trying not to look at her… …It made her feel all warm and tingly inside. She delighted in that feeling.

“Well… that’ll make these next few days a little easier, I guess,” she admitted with a grin, trying and failing to not show how happy she was right now.

“Indeed it will!” Dakota chirped. “And now that that’s been settled, shall we move ahead and get the day started for real? We’ve got a party ahead of us!” And of course, there was the ongoing lesson between Amelia and Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin. That would be good for a couple of laughs.