It was a beautiful day out today. The sun was shining, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The pedestrian mall was busy today, with people and merchants haggling, chatting and laughing. Both the mood and the weather were bright and sunny.

Yep, if it weren't for the fact that she was lost, Cindy would be having an absolutely brilliant day!

Not that she would stay lost for long. No, she had a plan. A smile on her face, the mouse trotted towards a figure leaning against an alley wall near the edge of the street.

The raccoon was very large, at least compared to Cindy ─ more than twice her height, in fact. Her fur was white, much lighter than most raccoons Cindy had seen, and her eyes were a striking pink. She was wearing blue jean shorts and a pink hoodie, which was currently open, revealing part of her chest. She leaned against the wall, bracing herself with one hand while her other rested on her large, rather bloated stomach.

"Excuse me? Miss?" Cindy stood on her tiptoes and waved a hand to get the raccoon's attention.

The raccoon started in surprise, her eyes widening as she looked down at the little mouse. Her stomach shifted, muffled screams coming from inside. "Um, yes?"

"Would you be willing to help me with something?"

The raccoon looked a bit nonplussed, as though she was surprised that Cindy would talk to her. She straightened herself up from the wall. "What can I do for you?"

Cindy gave her a winning smile. "I'm afraid I've gotten separated from my sister. I was hoping that, perhaps, since you're so tall, you'd be able to help me spot her! She shouldn't be too hard to find: she looks just like me! We're twins, you see."

The raccoon stared at Cindy for a moment, then grinned. "Twins, you say?"

"Uh-huh!"

The raccoon stroked her hand over her writhing gut. A visible handprint pushed out from beneath her fur. "You know, this is going to seem like a huge coincidence, but I think I saw your sister not too long ago! If you'd like, I can reunite you with her."

Cindy let out a small squeak of excitement. "I knew I picked the right person! Thank you so much, miss…?"

"Valerie."

"I'm Cindy. Nice to meet you!"

"Same!" Valerie stepped away from the wall. "If you'll just follow me, I'll take you to your sister."

Cindy smiled, falling into step beside the raccoon. Well, not exactly in step: she really had to scurry to keep up with Valerie's long strides.

"So, what brings you out today?" Valerie asked.

"Shopping," Cindy answered, as they turned a corner into a short alley. "We're meeting up with my sister's girlfriend. We're gonna spend the afternoon together."

"How nice!" Valerie smiled down at her. "Well, we don't want to keep them waiting!"

"Yeah! Are we almost there?"

"Almost."

Valerie and Cindy turned a corner, and suddenly they were out of the alley, in another part of the pedestrian mall. This area was a little less crowded, and Cindy thought it looked familiar.

Cindy's ears perked up as she heard a familiar voice.

"Cindy! Is that you?"

Cindy turned to see her sister running towards her down the street. "Milly! There you are!"

Milly pulled Cindy into a tight hug. "You dummy, how are you always getting lost? Where…were…?"

Milly's words trailed off as her eyes fell upon Cindy's companion, her chin tilting back as she took her in.

"Oh!" Cindy smiled happily, turning around to stand beside her sister. "Valerie, this is Milly, my sister. Milly, this is Valerie!"

Milly was staring straight at Valerie's midsection. "Nice to…m-meet you…"

"Valerie helped me find you!" Cindy explained. "Has Lisa arrived yet?"

Milly swallowed hard. "N-no, she's…um…"

"That your girlfriend?" Valerie asked. "Cindy mentioned her."

Cindy could tell that Milly was in some kind of weird mood, so, not wanting to be rude, she answered for her sister. "Yeah, that's her! Hey, you wouldn't happen to have seen her, too, would you? She's a rabbit, a little taller than us, kind of busty?"

"Cindy…!" Milly's voice was a harsh whisper.

"What? She is!" Cindy responded.

"N-no, not that! Her…n-necklace…"

Cindy tilted her head to one side in confusion. She followed Milly's gaze, and caught something twinkling in the sun on Valerie's wrist.

"Oh! You're right!" Cindy said.

"Right about what?" Valerie asked.

"That bracelet you're wearing! It looks just like Lisa's necklace!"

Valerie lifted her arm to better display the small silver pendant. "Oh really? We must have gotten them at the same store or something."

The raccoon's belly writhed, and muffled screaming could be heard within.

Milly swallowed hard, her ears dropping backwards. She looked visibly nervous. "Y-yeah. What a c-c-coincidence."

Valerie turned her gaze back to Cindy. "This Lisa…she wouldn't happen to have gray markings around her ears and over one eye, would she?"

Cindy perked up. "Yeah! Did you see her?"

"No, no…just a guess."

"Wow, that's a really good guess! It's exactly right!"

Milly stammered, an inarticulate sound escaping her lips.

Valerie looked down at Milly an laid a finger against her own lips.

Milly whimpered.

"Well anyway, it was nice to meet you girls," Valerie said, "but I need to get home to digest my lunch. You two make sure you stick together from now on, okay? Otherwise you might end up in a belly." To punctuate her warning, she gave her gut a firm slap, eliciting another round of squirms and muffled screams.

"Can do!" Cindy said. "Thanks again!"

Valerie turned and walked off down the street, her belly jiggling and squirming with each sway of her hips.

Cindy turned to Milly. "She was cute. Do you think she liked me?"

Milly's eyes snapped to Cindy's. "You MORON."

Cindy was taken aback. "What? You're dating a female!"

"That's not…that was Lisa, you idiot!"

Cindy laughed. "What? Lisa's a bunny, silly. Valerie is a raccoon."

"No, I mean…!" Milly took a moment to gather herself, which apparently required slapping the palm of one hand to her forehead. "Cindy, that bracelet didn't just look like Lisa's necklace, it was Lisa's necklace. Why do you think she knew what Lisa looked like!? Didn't you see her stomach!?"

Cindy just stared at Milly. The confusion must have been clear on her face, because Milly looked exasperated.

"That was Lisa in her stomach! The only reason I didn't say anything is because I was worried that if I pushed it, we'd be dessert!"

Cindy looked at her sister. Then down the street in the direction Valerie had gone. Then back at her sister. Her eyes went wide with understanding.

"Oh."

──

Valerie grinned to herself as she walked down the street, massaging and prodding at her belly. "Wow, that mouse isn't the brightest bulb in the box, is she? At least your girlfriend was smart enough to keep her mouth shut and not cause a scene. Though perhaps it is a bit of a disappointment that she won't be joining you."

Her stomach writhed as the bunny inside kicked and squirmed. Muffled shouts managed to penetrate the layers of fur and flesh, but not enough to be understood.

Valerie giggled. "I do admit, it does feel a bit weird that I'm going to be 'dumping' someone else's girlfriend!" She gave her belly a soft squeeze. "Now you should settle in and get comfortable. You've got a long night ahead of you."

A whimper came from Valerie's gut, and the raccoon hummed to herself as she walked towards her home.