Small Act

(BiggerBetterBarbie)

Typically, when Pudding would perform her circus acts on the street, there'd be people galore gathering around, applauding the talented elementary school student for her acrobatics. She would always ask the people for tips, any yen coin would do nicely and it would inspire her to perform again the next day. Today wasn't one of those days.

In fact, Pudding hasn't had a day like that in over a week. Like many other fads in the history of the world, it seemed people were no longer interested in watching Pudding perform. This appeared distinctly obvious on this very day, as Pudding was balancing her hands while rolling on a big rainbow colored ball, juggling six rubber balls at once, spinning three plates on sticks… and nobody was interested. At this point, much like her initial encounter with Ichigo, Pudding was resorting to getting into people's faces to try and get their attention.
"Come on, people! Don't you want to see the greatest one girl circus this park will ever see?" Pudding asked. One man just waved her off.
"Look at me! I'm jugging six plates at once!" Pudding said to another woman, who also shrugged her off.
"I can walk on my hands and sing Kimigayo! Backwards even!" Pudding shouted as she walked on her hands and was about to sing, but the man said.
"Leave me alone, crazy girl!" the man said. Pudding stood back on her feet and finally showed a depressed face.
"I can do two cartwheels and still juggle six balls…" Pudding softly said to a couple other customers as she juggled the balls.
"Get lost, freak show!" a woman said.

To make matters worse, Pudding suddenly felt something strike her in the face. It turned out to be a couple tomatoes. She looked through what was left of the fruit after wiping her face and saw two younger boys laughing at her and then running off. Pudding would normally be ticked off and easily catch up to those juveniles like she did with Ichigo when she first ran off, but the lonely space around her reminded her of the grim reality.
Pudding turned around and sighed, walking towards Ichigo, Mint, and Lettuce, her fellow Mew Mews who defend the city of Tokyo against evil monsters.
"Hmph! How very rude of those little boys. Maybe I can teach them some manners." Mint said.
"Oh, it's okay, Mint. I guess I deserve it." Pudding said.
"Awwww… come on, Pudding, don't get so down. You know we'll always be fans of your performances!" Ichigo said.
"Besides, it's just a dry spell. People over time will remember you for the tremendous talent you possess!" Lettuce said.
"Well, thanks everyone. Still, it's important I get people to watch my show and tip me. Every little bit helps for my younger sister and brothers." Pudding said.
"Oh, yes… we mustn't forget that." Mint said.
"I know! Perhaps next time we go to work at the Mew Mew Café, we can sit down and think of something to help promote your show!" Ichigo said.
"Hey! That sounds like a great idea! I think I can think of something over the weekend." Lettuce said.
"Zakuro can do given she's a model and actress… though too bad she's out of town for a few days." Mint said.
"Thanks, everyone! You're such great friends! But I gotta pick up Heicha from preschool now. See you all tomorrow!" Pudding said.
"Okay! See you, Pudding!" the other three girls said as the younger teammate ran away.
"Do you think we should follow her home and make sure she's okay?" Ichigo said.
"Don't be silly. Remember? Her siblings offered to look after the house while she was away. Besides, more work than I need to do would be bad for me." Mint said.
"Hmph… ANY extra work is bad for you, Mint." Ichigo said, prompting a bit of a chuckle from Lettuce while Mint just shrugged off that insult. The three girls then left the park themselves.

About an hour later, Pudding returned to her home with her younger sister Heicha in tow. Pudding opened the front door to her home where she saw her four younger brothers (Hanacha, Chincha, Lucha, and Honcha) all waiting.
"Welcome home, Big Sis!" they all shouted together.
"Haha! Hello, everyone! I see you're hard at work as usual." Pudding said with a smile, noticing one boy holding some towels, another holding a mop, and another a plate and washcloth.
"Yes, Big Sis! We do our best to make sure the house is in tip top shape!" Hanacha said.
"All as thank you for the hard work you do for us!" Chincha said.
"So what's for dinner tonight!?" Lucha said.
"Hahaha! Just hang on for a few minutes. I gotta go put my circus stuff away." Pudding said.
"So how did it go, Big Sis!?" Chincha asked.
"Yeah! Did you get a lot of customers again?" Honcha asked.
"Ummm… yes! Yes I did! Everyone loved my show again!" Pudding said, of course not wanting to make her brothers or sister sad that her show was no longer the big hit it used to be. Pudding went down the hall and eventually made it to her bedroom as she slid the door open.

When Pudding walked inside her room and slid the door closed behind her, she looked on her nightstand where she saw something that looked out of place. It was a box wrapped in blue and white wrapping paper, like it was a Christmas present.
"Hmmm? What's this?" Pudding said as she unwrapped the paper and then opened the box from the top. She reached inside and pulled out a purple-colored crystal and also a piece of paper.
"Oh? What a beautiful looking crystal." Pudding said. Then she looked over at the piece of paper and read out loud the message handwritten on it.
"To Pudding from your biggest fan. XOXOXO" Pudding said. She wondered who the mysterious fan could possibly be. A customer from the Mew Mew Café? A random patron who saw her perform in the park? Either way, she turned her attention back to the crystal.
"Never mind that. I wonder what this crystal does… or if it's just a pretty jewel." Pudding said.
"Big Sis! When are you gonna cook dinner?" one of the boys shouted from the other side of the door.
"Oh! Sorry! I'm coming!" Pudding said as she clutched the crystal tightly in her right hand. She got up from the bed and walked out of her bedroom.

As Pudding made her way to the kitchen, a couple of the boys were curious as to what Pudding was guarding in her hands. They were able to catch a tiny glimpse of the crystal she was holding.
"Hey, Big Sis? What's that you're holding?" Hanacha said.
"Yeah, Big Sis! What is it?" Chincha said.
"Oh… it's nothing really." Pudding said.
"Awww… come on, Big Sis! We wanna see!" Lucha said as all four boys were now gathered around.
"Please? Pretty please!?" they all shouted at the same time.
"Okay, okay! Chill out, everyone." Pudding said as she opened up her right hand and revealed the crystal.
"Oh, wow! That looks very pretty!" Chincha said.
"Yeah, but what is it?" Lucha asked.
"Can't you see? It's some kind of fancy jewel." Honcha said.
"Where did you get it?" Chincha asked. Soon, Heicha joined in on the conversation.
"Ooooh! Such a pretty crystal! Can I wear it, Big Sis?" Heicha said as she suddenly took the crystal from Pudding's hand.
"Huh! Wait… I…" Pudding said.
"Hey! I wanna see!" Honcha said.
"No, wait! I saw it first!" Chincha said as the five younger siblings of Pudding, four boys and one girl, all fought for control of the crystal. This got Pudding very worried and demanded for the crystal's safe return.
"Stop it, everyone! Give that crystal back!" Pudding shouted with a bit of furor as she reached into the mini scuffle and took the crystal back. At that exact moment, the crystal suddenly glowed brightly, causing everyone to shield their eyes from the bright light.

When the light faded out, Pudding looked in front of her and didn't see Heicha, Hanacha, Chincha, Lucha, and Honcha anywhere in sight.
"Huh? Boys? Heicha? Where did you go?" Pudding said as she swung her head left and right rapidly trying to find the children. Shortly thereafter, she suddenly heard squeaky voices
"What the? Are there mice in this room all of a sudden? Oooooh… too bad Ichigo isn't here to catch them!" Pudding joked.
"Really Really Big Sis! Down here!" the squeaky voices collectively shouted. Pudding finally directed her attention down to the wooden floor. That's when she couldn't believe what she saw.
"*GASP!!!*" Pudding shouted. There were her younger siblings… shrunken down to 3 inches tall and standing in front of her bare feet. Amazingly enough, they weren't the least bit scared.
"Wow! Big Sis! You got even bigger! That's an amazing trick!" Heicha shouted.
"Actually, Heicha, I think we're the ones that got smaller." Hanacha said.
"Still, what an incredible trick by Big Sis! I wonder if she does this at her show too." Chincha said. Pudding gently kneeled down, making absolutely sure not to crush the shrunken children, and leaned in to get a closer look.
"Are you… are you all alright?" Pudding said.
"Yeah, Really Really Big Sis! We're okay! That was amazing!" Lucha said. Heicha, the lone female of the bunch, ran up towards one of the giant Pudding's fingers and hugged it.
"*giggles* I think you look so incredible being even bigger, Big Sis!" Heicha said.
"Um… glad you like it, Heicha." Pudding said with a sweatdrop down her face.
"Please tell me this is a new trick you learned, Big Sis!" Chincha shouted.
"Well… um… yeah… Yeah! I… um… learned it this morning when a fan gave me this crystal." Pudding said as she showed off the crystal once more to the shrunken children.
"Wow! That fan was very VERY nice!" Honocha shouted.
"Yeah! Though I'm still figuring things out… like how to get you back to normal size…" Pudding said with much worry in her voice, wondering if her younger relatives were going to stay that tiny forever.

She didn't have to wait long to find out the answer. The crystal suddenly glowed bright again. When the light was gone and everyone opened their eyes again, the five kids were back to their normal size.
"Awwww… we're back to normal size." Chincha said.
"Too bad! I kinda wanted to climb all over Really Really Big Sis's clothes!" Heicha said.
"Haha! Maybe another time, everyone. Now go into the other room while I start cooking dinner!" Pudding said.
"Yes, Big Sis!" all the kids shouted enthusiastically. Pudding took another look at the crystal that caused all this sudden size changing, and her thoughts got to racing on what to do with it, including at the talent show in the park like Chincha eluded to. But first things first, she raced to the kitchen to make dinner for her younger siblings.

The next day, thankfully for Pudding, was a Sunday… so she had a day off not only from the Mew Mew Café but also from taking Heicha to the Daycare. Still, she woke up staring right at the crystal she got last night and couldn't stop thinking about its power to shrink people and return them to normal size with just mere thoughts. After changing into her normal everyday clothes, she heard someone knock on the front door.
"I'll get it!" Pudding shouted as she ran out of the bedroom and past the kids. She opened the door and was greeted by Heicha's elementary school teacher, who both Heicha and Pudding with affection called Sensei.
"Ah! Hello, Sensei!" Heicha said as she and Pudding both bowed in front of the woman.
"Hello, Heicha. How are you today?" Sensei said.
"Wonderful!" Heicha said.
"Thank you for coming to babysit my brothers and sister, Sensei." Pudding said.
"It's always a pleasure, Pudding. I take it you are heading to the park to perform your show again?" Sensei said.
"Yep! I shouldn't be gone for more than three hours. It's a bit longer because I'm trying some new things today." Pudding said.
"Oh, I see." Sensei said.
"Yeah! She's gonna use her new crystal to make people small and…" Heicha said, only to have her mouth covered up by Pudding.
"Ummmm… nothing quite like that, I assure you! Can you excuse me a moment, Sensei?" Pudding said.
"Sure." Sensei said. Pudding and Heicha backed away a few feet as Pudding whispered into Heicha's ear.
"Heicha… remember, you and your brothers must NEVER tell anyone about my new crystal. We don't want other people stealing my secret… um… tricks. Right?" Pudding said.
"You're right. I'm sorry, Big Sis. We won't tell anyone. Not even Sensei." Heicha said.
"Good! That's the spirit. Now you all behave for Sensei, okay?" Pudding said.
"Okay!" Heicha shouted.
"Okay, gotta go now. Thanks again, Sensei!" Pudding said as she ran out of the house after slipping her feet into her orange shoes.
"Hohoho… such a charming young girl. Her mother would be proud." Sensei said.

Pudding was not too far away from the park when she came to a stop and looked over her crystal once more. She took a deep breath and then walked past the park, staying on the city streets for the time being. That's when she came across an older man who appeared to be in his late 20s. She stepped right in the man's path.
"What the..!" the man said.
"Hello, kind sir! May I perform show you my talents?" Pudding said.
"Huh? Wait! I know you… you're that circus girl in the park." the man said.
"Allow me to bring my show directly to you! Ballerina on the ball!" Pudding said as she suddenly brought out her ball and balanced on it with her hands.
"Um… wonderful…" the man said.
"Super somersault girl!" Pudding said as she somersaulted on that same ball with it still moving.
"That's really fine and dandy…" the man said as he tried to tiptoe away.
"Fireball breather! Kabuki ball dancer! Chair girl of the board!" Pudding said.
"Look, lady, that's all well and good, but I'm late for a date and…" the man said.
"And… best of all! You're the first to witness my newest talent!" Pudding shouted.
"Er… I am?" the man said.
"My shrinky crystal supreme!" Pudding said as she suddenly pointed the crystal about 5 inches away from the man's nose. Immediately afterwards, the crystal glowed bright and the man shielded his eyes.
When the light was gone, the man opened his eyes again where he saw the biggest pair of shoes he could ever imagine. His eyes went up and up and up and that's when it hit him. He was teeny tiny and the once diminuitive Pudding now towered high above him.
"Kikkikki!! Look how tiny you are now!" Pudding said as she bent her knees and reached down towards the man with her right hand.
"Eeeep!" the man said, but before he could take a single step, he felt trapped in Pudding's hand. He froze with fear as he saw his view filled with nothing but Pudding's smiling face.
"Don't worry, I won't hurt you. You'll just be part of my next show." Pudding said. That's when she slipped the man into a carrying bag down by her feet, presumably the same bag she kept all her props in for her sideshow. But Pudding knew that one tiny toy guy wouldn't be enough to draw the big crowds she wanted. She needed a couple more victims. She set her sights on a man about 50 yards away.

This man, like the previous one, was walking down the street and minding his own business when he suddenly stopped in his tracks because Pudding got in his way.
"Whoa!" the man said.
"Hello, mister! May Pudding show you her bag of tricks?" Pudding said.
"Uh… sure… I guess…" the man said.
"But first, I would like you to give a tip. You know, to help support my family back home." Pudding said.
"Wait, a tip before the act? Sorry, but no thanks." the man said as he turned around.
"Hmmm… don't say I didn't warn you." Pudding said as she clutched her crystal tightly and aimed it at the man. The light became bright once more, and when it was gone, the man was as tiny as the last person at 3 inches tall.
"Huh? What happened?" the man asked himself as he looked around and wondered why his point of view looked so different, especially with the sidewalk so close to him now. Then he turned around and saw the now gigantic Pudding giggling in the distance.
"Eeeeek! Giant girl!" the man said as he got to running as fast as he could.
"Fufufu… he looks so cute running away from me." Pudding said. That's when she started walking towards the man. The significant size difference allowed Pudding to easily catch up to the man, and she slowed down her walk to make the man think he was getting away, but seeing him looking back at her shoes only made her laugh further.
"Keehee! This is too much fun! Maybe I should keep these guys as my little play toys for when my day is done." Pudding said. Finally she felt the chase had gone on for long enough, and that's when she leapt in front of the man and allowed him to run right into her shoes and tumble towards her ankles. She gently picked up the man and held him in front of her face.
"You put up a good chase, little man. I'm proud of you!" Pudding said.
"Please, don't hurt me! I'll do anything!" the man said.
"I'm so glad to hear that! That's the spirit! You'll be the star of my upcoming show." Pudding said. Like the first man she shrunk, she slipped this victim into her carrying bag as well.

Pudding felt like one more man would do, as she had a good nickname for her upcoming act… The Three Little Musketeers… or maybe The Three Mice-Sized Men sounded better? She put that thought aside for now, looking on the other side of the street and seeing a red car parked on the road.
"Hmmm… I wonder if this thing will work on bigger objects?" Pudding asked herself. After crossing the road (after looking both ways, of course!), she stood in front of the vehicle. As she concentrated on activating the power of the crystal once more, she didn't happen to notice a young man getting into the driver's seat of the car. The driver started the car's engine, but when he saw Pudding standing in front of his car, he started honking his horn.
"Hey! Move out of the way, kid!" the man shouted. Right afterwards, the crystal was glowing brightly once more. After the light died down, the driver noticed his perspective changed. The road was a lot bigger all of a sudden… and so was Pudding as she walked towards the car!
"Oh no!" the man shouted as he put his car in reverse and tried to back away from the giantess. But Pudding was ready for that… and she gently set her foot on the roof of the shrunken car, pinning it against the road and preventing it from going anywhere. The driver tried accelerating, but this only caused the tires to screech on the ground and leave four separate trails of smoke.
"Teeheekee! I guess you won't be going anywhere anytime soon!" Pudding said. That's when she reached down and grabbed the car, quickly after lifting up her foot, and then moved it up against her face. She then poked a hole in one of the door's windows, shattering the glass, then putting that same finger inside the car and prying the door right off. She tilted the car on its side and forced the driver to fall out onto the palm of her hand.
"Haha! That's what happens when you don't buckle your seatbelt!" Pudding said.
"No! Don’t hurt me! Or my car!" the man shouted.
"Oh, don't worry. I promise I'll take extra care of you like the rubber balls I juggle! I can't say the same for your car though!" Pudding said. As she put both the man and his car into the carrying bag (making sure the car didn't harm any of the three guys), that's when she took a deep breath and fully grasped what she had just done.
"Wow… that felt so tremendously satisfying! I feel like a giantess shrinking those men… 138 centimeters must seem like the Tokyo Tower to them now!" Pudding said, referring to her normal height (which translates to 4 feet, 6 inches tall).
"Anyway, I better hurry up and get to the park and start the show!" Pudding said as she picked up her bag and made her way to the park.

Over a few minutes later, Pudding had made it to the park. She decided to go for the slow start approach, sticking to her usual bag of tricks like balancing on a ball or spinning plates on sticks.
"Come one! Come all! Support the arts and enjoy the show!" Pudding said. As she expected, only a few were stopping to pay attention, but not the big crowd she once had. Still, with at least a few people watching, she hoped they would be impressed with the main part of the show that was about to begin. Pudding pulled out a table that she folded the legs out of, and then she pulled out the three men she shrunk earlier.
"And now! Introducing the newest stars of my show! These three men are smaller than you can imagine!" Pudding said.
"Ohhh… ahhhh…" the few people watching said. The three shrunken men could only watch as the mix of men and women were staring down at them.
"Please help us! This girl has shrunken and captured…" one of the men started to say, only to have Pudding's giant fingers covering his head.
"Pay no attention to this man… he's just shy for his first act, but watch as I make them jump over my flaming breath thanks to this special candle!" Pudding said as she suddenly pulled out an ordinary looking candle… but when she blew on it, it shot out flames like they were coming out of a blow torch. The few people watching were impressed. In fact, one of the men turned around.
"Hey everyone! Come watch Pudding! She's got a new act with these three little men!" the man said. It only took a minute for a crowd of men, women, pets, and children (of both genders) to gather around the table where Pudding and the tiny men were.

This brought a big grin to Pudding's face, but knew the show must go on. Pudding blew the flames towards the men, making sure they were low enough to allow them to jump over, which they were all successful. The crowd started applauding as they watched the men jump over Pudding's 'flame breath' that came from blowing on the candle.
"Heeheehee! Look at them go! And they didn't even practice this morning!" Pudding said. Finally Pudding stopped with the flamethrowing and gently picked up the three men.
"Now watch as I juggle these gentlemen while balancing on a ball!" Pudding said as she did exactly that. The people applauded as she was able to juggle the tiny men with ease, but of course the men were anything but applauding. They screamed their heads off thinking Pudding was going to miss one of them and make them fall to their deaths, but that never happened.
Pudding spent the next few minutes entertaining the crowd, doing other things (some of them risky!) to the shrunken men like make them run across one of her arms, lick them like they were popsicles and then stick them to a middle-aged woman's clothes, and other things. The big crowd was not lost on those passing by on the city streets, namely Ichigo, Mint, and Lettuce (all in casual outfits since they had the day off from work too).
"Oh? What's going on there?" Ichigo asked.
"Isn't that the spot where Pudding normally has her parkside talent show?" Lettuce asked.
"I don't ever remember seeing that big a crowd before." Mint said.
"Maybe she finally came up with some new talents!" Ichigo said.
"Well, there's only one way to find out." Lettuce said as the three girls got to walking towards the big crowd.

Just as they arrived, Pudding finally brought her show to a close as she placed the three shrunken men and most of her props back into the carrying bag. She also put the many yen coins she received as tips from the crowd into the bag.
"Thank you, everyone! I promise I'll have another exciting show with these people tomorrow!" Pudding said. As the crowd dispersed, Pudding's three Mew Mew teammates joined her at the table.
"Hi there, Pudding!" Ichigo said.
"Oh! Hi, everyone!" Pudding said.
"Wow, Pudding… that was a huge crowd you had there!" Ichigo said.
"Yeah! I told you people would remember the tremendous talent you had and come back to your show." Lettuce said.
"Thanks, everyone! Though I didn't do it alone. I had some… shall we say… little help from some new friends." Pudding said. That’s when she reached into the bag and showed off the three shrunken men. The men didn't dare say anything thinking Pudding was going to seriously harm them if the cat was theoretically out of the bag.
"Oh? Who are they?" Ichigo said as she, Mint, and Lettuce all leaned in to get a closer look.
"They're so tiny…" Lettuce said.
"Like I said, they're new friends I found on the street. I… um… I saved them from being eaten by a cat. Er… no offense, Ichigo!" Pudding said, obviously concealing the true story of what had happened to the three men.
"You don't say…" Mint said as she stared for a short while at the three men.
"Haha! I know what you're thinking, Mint. You wanna take those cute boys home and have them as your boyfriend!" Ichigo said.
"Ugh! You're so childish, Ichigo! Besides, that's not what I was thinking at all." Mint said.
"Listen, everyone, I hope you don't mind, but I gotta get home and feed these poor people. I don't want them to starve and I want them to be ready for tomorrow's show after work! Later!" Pudding said as she put the people back in the bag and then ran off for home.

Lettuce adjusted her glasses as he had a confused look on her face.
"Hmmm… something's not right, girls." Lettuce said.
"What do you mean, Lettuce?" Ichigo asked.
"Well, first off, Pudding looked like she was in a big hurry." Lettuce said.
"So? Isn't Pudding always full of energy and always on the move?" Mint said.
"True, but you don't just walk around and find 3-inch-tall men on the street." Lettuce said.
"Except maybe in a movie… especially one starring Zakuro!" Mint said with a smile. It was no secret that Mint was a huge fan of Zakuro's work and idolized her, much more so than the other Mew Mews.
"Well, Lettuce does have a valid point. We should probably follow her home and see if there's more to the story. What do you say, girls?" Ichigo asked.
"Sure, I'm up for it." Mint said.
"Me too." Lettuce said. The three girls nodded together and followed Pudding back to her home… from a good distance away so they wouldn't be spotted.

When Pudding got home and opened the front door, she was greeted as always by her younger brothers and sister.
"Welcome home, Big Sis!" they all shouted together.
"Oh, hello everyone!" Pudding said. Sensei also greeted the young girl.
"Hello, Pudding. How was your day?" Sensei said.
"Fine, just fine. Thanks so much for watching over my younger siblings." Pudding said as she bowed her head.
"You're welcome. Actually, if you'd like, I can stay a little bit longer." Sensei said.
"Oh, I would like that! Is that okay with you, everyone?" Pudding said.
"YAY!" the siblings shouted.
"Good! I actually have something important to check in my bedroom. You all play nice with Sensei, okay?" Pudding said.
"Okay, Big Sis!" they all shouted together. As the children got back to having fun with Sensei, Pudding quickly retreated into her bedroom.

Once she got inside the closed the doors behind her, the eccentric girl sat down on the bed and then reached inside her bag and pulled out the three shrunken men, holding them in the palm of her right hand.
"Keehee! Did you have a nice trip, boys?" Pudding said.
"Please let us go!" one man shouted.
"Yeah! My wife is probably looking for me by now!" another man said.
"Sorry, guys, no can do. You're the reason my show is a hit once again! But don't worry, I'll make sure you get treated with the utmost respect. Although…" Pudding said, who suddenly smiled as the men had an uneasy look on their faces.
"I don't like the looks of this…" the third man, who almost had his car crushed, said.
"Considering your current size, I simply can't resist!" Pudding said. That's when she laid flat on her bed and pointed her legs straight upward. She then casually tossed the three men up on the bare feet, with all of them landing right on her right foot.
"Bullseye!" Pudding said. The three walked around uneasily, looking down at the rest of Pudding's gigantic body. They then screamed helplessly as Pudding started to juggle all three men with her feet!
"Hahaha! This is a cool trick! I should definitely do this at the next show." Pudding said as she concentrated and juggled the three men as best as she could with her feet, although one of them did fall down.
"Aaaaaah!" the man screamed until he landed right on her stomach, covered by her orange shirt. Pudding caught the other two guys in mid-air with her hands and sat up, causing the one man to go tumbling down between the giantess's legs. The man gulped nervously at the walls of orange that were Pudding's pants that surrounded him.
"Keeheehee! I guess you lost the juggling contest. I'm going to have to punish you." Pudding said. That's when she slowly closed her legs together. The man sweated nervously as the 'walls' came together like he was trapped in a garbage compactor.
But just when it looked like the man was going to get crushed in between, Pudding stopped and picked him up, placing him back in her hand.
"Hahahaha! I really had you going, didn't I?" Pudding said, "But seriously, I meant what I said. I promise with my heart that no harm will come to any of you as long as you are in my possession. So don't go trying to escape… my younger brothers and sister would probably step on you easily!"

The guys could only sweat nervous bullets as they wondered what the giantess would do next. But before Pudding could engage in her next act, she heard a couple knocks on the door.
"Pudding? Are you awake?" the familiar voice of Sensei said. Pudding gasped and quickly threw the three men back into her bag (all of them landing on the car that she also shrunk earlier).
"Yes, yes! Come in!" Pudding said. The door slid open and there was not only Sensei, but also three of Pudding's closest friends: Ichigo, Mint, and Lettuce. Of course, Sensei had already known them when they offered to help with Pudding in her home while she recovered from sickness.
"Hey, Pudding. I saw your friends outside the house trying to peek in some of the windows." Sensei said.
"Oh, were they? Thanks, Sensei." Pudding said.
"Why do you suppose they were acting that way?" Sensei asked. All the girls then heard some youthful shouting in the background.
"I don't know. Don't worry, I'll ask them. You might want to get back to watching the younger ones. It sounds like one of them has declared war in the kitchen." Pudding said with a smile.
"Oh, dear… you're right! Heicha, what's going on in there!?" Sensei said as she walked away to another part of the house while Ichigo, Mint, and Lettuce all stepped into Pudding's room.

"Hey, guys! So what's going on?" Pudding asked.
"Oh… nothing. We just wanted to see how our favorite young and talented Mew Mew is doing." Ichigo said as she twiddled her fingers and brushed her feet around. Mint and Lettuce, however, decided to get straight to the point.
"Look, Pudding. We've come to ask you about those shrunken men." Lettuce said.
"Huh? What about them?" Pudding asked.
"You didn't find them walking around on the street, did you?" Mint said.
"Yes, you're right. I found something else that allowed me to shrink them. Here, I'll show you." Pudding said. That's when she reached inside the bag and pulled out the crystal that she used to shrink the men and the one car.
"Oh? That's a pretty looking crystal." Ichigo said.
"Where did you find it?" Lettuce asked.
"That's the weird thing. It came in a package saying it's from one of my biggest fans. There was no name." Pudding said.
"Hmmm… that sounds suspicious." Lettuce said.
"I think it's rather romantic!" Ichigo said.
"Come on, Ichigo! Think! Who knows where this crystal came from? Someone from the café or from the park, or worse…" Mint said.
"You're not thinking what I'm thinking, are you?" Lettuce said.
"That this could be another ploy by Deep Blue." Mint said.
"Oooooh… I wonder if Taruto is the one who sent that crystal. He seems rather infatuated with me." Pudding said.
"Still, that crystal could be dangerous, Pudding! I think we should unshrink those men and destroy that crystal immediately." Lettuce said. Pudding tightly clutched the crystal and held it close to her chest.
"No way! This crystal is the best thing to happen to me ever! My show is getting its biggest crowds ever!" Pudding said.
"Pudding, don't you realize what you're doing to those tiny people? You're holding them against their will!" Mint said.
"I hate to agree with Mint, but she's right. And like she said, what if this is some trap from Deep Blue?" Ichigo asked.
"Maybe so, but I'll take my chances! These guys are staying tiny until the crowd stops tipping me or gets tired of my act. In fact…" Pudding said as she looked longingly in the eyes of her three friends.
"Huh? Why are you looking at us like that?" Ichigo said.
"Wouldn't it be so awesome if three tiny Mew Mews were part of my act?" Pudding said.
"W-w-w-what!? I don't like the sound of this…" Lettuce said.
"Don't worry, my friends! Or should I say my LITTLE friends! This won't hurt a bit!" Pudding said as she aimed the crystal at the other three Mew Mew girls and it started to glow brightly.
"RUN!" Mint shouted as she and the other girls turned around, but it was too late. They had to shield their eyes from the bright light.

When the light died down, the girls opened their eyes and immediately gasped. Pudding's bedroom looked a whole lot bigger than before.
"Oh no… how tall are we, Lettuce!?" Mint asked. Lettuce looked up at the ceiling high in the sky and then down on the floor that was a lot closer than before.
"Well, as best as I can guess from doing the calculating in my head, we must be no taller than 3 inches high." Lettuce said.
"Keeheehee! WOW! You three look so incredibly cute at that size." the echoing voice of Pudding said above the three girls. They turned around and saw the once diminutive Pudding now tower over them. Pudding couldn't help but wiggle her toes in front of the girls.
"So, I guess I'm not the short one of the bunch anymore, right?" Pudding asked.
"Waaaaaaaah!!! I don't like being tiny! There should be some law prohibiting magical girls like us from being shrunken!!!" Ichigo shouted.
"Pudding, you can't do this to us! I demand you return us to normal immediately!" Mint shouted. Pudding got down on her knees and leaned her face in towards the group.
"Haha! Sorry, Mint, but I don't think you're in a position to be making demands. In fact, I can't wait! I'm gonna take you all to the park and show you off for my next show today! I'm so excited!" Pudding said as she reached down with her hands.
"Eeeek!" all three girls said as they were helplessly scooped up into Pudding's hands. She then slipped all three girls, as well as the shrunken guys and the shrunken car, into the black bag.
After picking up the bag and walking out of the bedroom, Pudding looked over at Sensei who was doing her best to keep the children under control.
"Hey, Sensei! I need to run a quick errand. I'll be right back!" Pudding said.
"Okay, be careful!" Sensei said as Pudding nodded and made her way out of her home.

A few minutes later, Pudding was back standing just outside the park. Happy to see a big crowd of people still walking around, she pulled out the shrunken Mew Mew girls from the bag, holding them together in her right hand.
“Okay, girls! Now would be a good time to change in your Mew Mew outfits.” Pudding said as she winked one of her eyes.
“No way! I refuse to be subject to such humiliation!” Mint said.
“What if some kid or someone else mistakes me for a toy?” Ichigo said.
"Or what if something else bad happens and we get hurt? Then how will we be able to save the world?" Lettuce said. Pudding then had a rather unpleasent look on her face and squeezed her hand holding the shrunken girls into a fist.
"Aaaack!!" all three girls said.
"I said change into your Mew Mew outfits!" Pudding said. After she opened up her hand again, the three girls sighed.
"We don't have a choice, everyone. We better do what she asks." Ichigo said.
"I agree, she's serious about putting us in her show." Mint said.
"Let's just hope this is the only act we have to put on." Lettuce said.

All three girls took their Mew Pendants out and held them high above their heads.
"Mew Mew Strawberry…" Ichigo said.
"Mew Mew Mint…" Mint said.
"Mew Mew Lettuce…" Lettuce said.
"…Metamorphose!" all three shouted together.
It took about 30 seconds, but all three girls were now transformed into their Mew Mew selves, which brought a smile back to Pudding's face.
"Keehee! Thank you, my friends! I was gonna go Queen Kong and maybe climb up a building if you didn't comply." Pudding said.
"Heh heh… that might make an interesting story one day." Ichigo said, trying to make light of the situation.
"Now then, we don't have another second to spare! It's showtime!" Pudding said as she threw the shrunken girls back into her bag, picking it up and taking it to the park. Inside the bag, the men were stunned to see three of the Mew Mew girls at the same small size that they were at.
"Oh my… even the Mew Mews got shrunk! There's no hope for us now!" one of the men said.
"Now don't worry, everyone. We'll think of something… somehow." Lettuce said.
"Um… can I have your autographs, ladies?" another of the men said.
"Ugh…" all three girls shouted.

Some of the crowd stopped when they noticed Pudding happily walking into the park once again, with her last show that starred three shrunken men the highlight of that performance. They wondered why she was back so soon and what other tricks she had up her sleeves. The crowd started to gather in front of the table the young girl set up.
"Hello again, ladies and gentlemen! Thank you for coming to the Super Special Pudding Talent Bonus Show! I have a very special treat since you all enjoyed the acts by the tiny men I had earlier." Pudding said. She then reached into the bag and pulled out the three Mew Mew girls.
"I give you not just the Mew Mews… but Mini Mew Mews!" Pudding said as she showed off the shrunken girls to everyone around her.
"Wow! How did they get so small?" one man asked.
"It's quite simple, young man! These girls have the power to become smaller if it's necessary. They saved me from a monster and when they told me about this power, I begged for them to volunteer for my talent show, and they were nice enough to say yes!" Pudding said. Obviously that was a total lie, but even the Mew Mews were impressed that Pudding came up with such a story.
"Wow… seriously?" Mint said.
"Shhhh… let's not scare the crowd away with the truth. It's making Pudding very happy." Lettuce said.
"Okay, fine." Mint said as she shrugged her shoulders.
"And now, let's get the show started. Watch as I juggle these plates…" Pudding said as she suddenly pulled out a series of plates, spinning them on sticks like she has done numerous times before.

After spinning the plates on sticks for almost a minute, like she was trying to build up speed for them, she suddenly thrust them high in the air. The plates went spinning behind Pudding and away from the crowd.
"Now watch as Mint uses her expert aiming to shoot down these plates!" Pudding said as she stepped aside and looked down at Mint.
"W-w-what? With what!?" Mint asked.
"I SAID NOW WATCH as Mint uses her expert aiming to shoot down these plates!!!" Pudding shouted. The tense tone in Pudding's voice caused Mint to think fast, and that's when she finally got the hint.
"Oh! Okay, okay! Mint Arrow! Ribbon Mint Echo!!" Mint shouted as she quickly formed a bow and arrow out of tiny feathers that blew towards her out of thin air. Then she shot the arrows up towards the plates, shattering them immediately upon contact. As the shards rained down harmlessly to the ground, the people applauded towards the shrunken Mint. Some even chanted her name.
"Oh… well… thanks… I guess…" Mint said as she blushed a bit and brushed her shoes around.

Pudding, meanwhile, got ready for the next part of her show. For this stunt, she pulled out the three shrunken men from her bag.
"And now, watch as Ichigo saves this flying man with her cat-like reflexes! Up you go!" Pudding shouted as she tossed one of the men in the air.
"Aaaaah!" the man screamed as he started falling down towards the ground, with the crowd backing up to give him and presumably Ichigo room. Ichigo gasped and, without hesitation, jumped up from the table.
"I'm coming, sir!" Ichigo shouted as she managed to grab the man in the air. Both he and she went falling towards the ground, with the man continuing to scream (with his arms wrapped around Ichigo's neck) while Ichigo (holding the same-sized man with both her arms) stayed quiet, like she was concentrating or in deep thought.
Finally though, Ichigo landed right on her two feet, covered by her dark pink-colored boots. Even more amazingly, she appeared to be unhurt. This caused the crowd, and even Pudding, to burst into a roar of applause.
"It's okay, sir. You're safe now." Ichigo said. The man opened his eyes slowly and saw he was alive and well, and he thanked Ichigo as much as he could.
"Oh thank you thank you thank you…" the man said. Before Ichigo could breathe easily, however, she looked up and saw a normally small dog, which of course towered over both he and she. The dog barked a few times, and Ichigo's cat ears and tail both perked straight up.
"EEEEEEEEEEEK!!!" Ichigo said as she took off running with the dog chasing right after her. Ichigo, still holding the man she rescued, and the dog ran laps around the table, with the crowd watching and laughing. Even Pudding couldn't resist cracking up from watching the chase.
"Hahaha! Naturally being a catgirl, dogs seems to fall in love with Ichigo at first sight!" Pudding said. Mint and Lettuce, however, didn't find the whole thing amusing.
"Pudding! You can't let that chase keep going! That dog could eat up Ichigo!" Lettuce shouted.
"Yeah! And that dog isn't going to tire out so quickly!" Mint said.
"Okay, okay. I understand." Pudding said. That's when she stepped in front of Ichigo and held her hands down, allowing the Mew Mew girl (and the man she held) to jump onboard. Right when Pudding raised her hands up and placed the two back on the table, that's when the dog stopped chasing and briefly looked sad.
"Awww, sorry about that, little doggy, but we wouldn't want you mistaking my friends for dog chow!" Pudding said with a cute smile. The dog seemed to understand and let out a happy bark, wagging its tail until its owner (an elderly woman) ran up and picked up the dog, taking it back into her arms.

Pudding then took a good look at Lettuce and thought of the perfect act for her.
"Next, I have to show you a special power by my friend, Lettuce. Does anyone have a bottle of water that they can spare?" Pudding said.
"I do!" a young woman said as she walked up and handed the bottle over to Pudding.
"Now watch as Lettuce magically controls this water before it hits her and everyone else on the table!" Pudding shouted. Then she tipped the bottle of water forward ever so slightly, causing roughly 1-2 ounces of water to fall out.
"Watch out!" Pudding remarked as she thrust her hands forward while everyone else ducked for cover. Before the water hit, however, it stopped right in mid-air and hovered directly above the shrunken Mew Mew. As the crowd oooohed and aaaahed, impressed at Lettuce being able to control the water in mid-air, Lettuce looked over at Pudding.
"Ummmm… okay, Pudding… what am I supposed to do next?" Lettuce asked. After a very short pause, Pudding snapped her fingers to indicate she had an idea.
"Now, everyone! Watch as Pudding will guide the water all around you without getting a single drop anywhere. Not even in your hair!!" Pudding shouted. Lettuce at first hesitated briefly, although she played along with her giant companion. She took a deep breath and steered the water all around. The people watched in awe as the water swirled around their heads and waists like a flying snake.

While this act was going on, Pudding suddenly heard her Mew Pendant let out a beeping sound. She took several steps backwards while the crowd was distracted with watching the shrunken Lettuce's water show, and eventually found a tree to hide behind.
"This is Pudding." Pudding said as she tapped a button on the pendant to make it act like a communicator. A male voice could be heard on the other end.
"Pudding, this is Keiichiro. Can you please come to the Mew Mew Café immediately? It's an emergency!" Keiichiro said.
"Oh? What's the problem? Is there a chimera anima on the loose?" Pudding asked.
"No, this is different. I can't seem to contact the other Mew Mew girls. Ryou and I could really use your help in finding them!" Keiichiro said. Pudding didn't say anything for a few seconds except for a nervous gulp. How was she going to explain the 'disappearance' of Ichigo, Mint, and Lettuce? She wasn't sure telling them that she shrunk them would be the best idea.
"Pudding, are you there?" Keiichiro said, picking up on the silence.
"Right, sorry. I'll be right there!" Pudding said before shutting off her pendant.

Pudding then walked back to the table where she saw Lettuce still entertaining the crowd with moving the water around.
"Bravo, Lettuce, bravo! Unfortunately that concludes my show for today as I have to get home now. But come back next time for more fun with my teeny tiny friends! Maybe I'll even juggle all of them for you! Don't forget to leave a tip before you go!!" Pudding shouted. After a relatively loud applause from the crowd, they started leaving numerous yen coins on her table before they all left to go on with their normal lives.
"Pudding, why did you leave temporarily?" Ichigo asked.
"Keiichiro called. He said there's trouble at the Mew Mew Café. We better get going now." Pudding said.
"The café? Pudding… what are you going to say to Keiichiro or Ryou?" Lettuce said.
"I don't know… I'll think of something." Pudding said a bit nervously as she slipped everyone back into her bag and then got going, walking out of the park and making her way to the Mew Mew Café.

Several minutes later, Pudding arrived at the café. She walked inside and was immediately greeted by both Keiichiro Akasaka and Ryou Shirogane, who looked as grumpy as usual with his arms folded.
"Pudding, I'm so glad you could come!" Keiichiro said.
"Thanks, Keiichiro! You said you couldn't find the other Mew Mew girls?" Pudding asked.
"Correct, and I think I know why." Ryou said.
"You… you do?" Pudding asked.
"Pudding, it's very important that you empty your bag… would you please?" Keiichiro said.
"Okay." Pudding said, knowing there was no way she was going to hide secrets from Keiichiro and Ryou. They're the heart and soul of the Mew Project and have that powerful command center in the basement that can read any abnormal activity in the city, especially alien sightings. And so, begrudgingly, Pudding set the bag down on the nearby table. That's when she pulled out Ichigo, Mint, Lettuce, the three shrunken men, and their car.
"Just as I suspected." Ryou said. Keiichiro kneeled down and looked at the shrunken people.
"Ichigo! Mint! Lettuce! Are you all okay?" Keiichiro asked.
"Yeah! Considering what little there is of us. Heheheheh…" Ichigo said. Mint and Lettuce slapped their hands against their foreheads, with sweat running down the sides.
"Bad joke, Ichigo." Mint said.
"And people at school thought I wasn't humorous." Lettuce said.
"Look, I can explain what happened! Honest!" Pudding said.
"You don't have to, Pudding. It's in your bag." Ryou said.
"You… you know?" Pudding said.
"At least Ryou does, but go ahead and show us, Pudding, if you please." Keiichiro said. Pudding just sighed.
"Okay. I understand." Pudding said. That's when she pulled out the black crystal that she found yesterday.
"There it is, Ryou… you were right." Keiichiro said.
"How can you be so utterly stupid, Pudding? Can't you see that's one of Deep Blue's size-altering crystals?" Ryou said, coming right to the point like he usually did.
"What!? This is from Deep Blue?" Pudding said.
"Indeed it is, Pudding. They probably thought you were the perfect one to use the power of that crystal. Don't take it so hard though… how could you know it was from Deep Blue?" Keiichiro said with a smile on his face and a pat on Pudding's shoulder.

That's what made Pudding start to tear up. Not just because Keiichiro once again showed incredible sympathy despite the mistake she made (especially by Ryou's admission), but also because she had allowed her ambitions to cloud her judgment.
"I… I'm sorry, everyone. I… I got so carried away with wanting to bring people back to my talent show… I should've treated that crystal like any other mysterious gift and thrown it away. *sniff sniff*" Pudding said as she wiped the tears out of her eyes.
"Well, fortunately the damage is easily reversible… hopefully you at least figured that out." Ryou said.
"Yes. I accidentally shrunk my brothers and sister last night, but a wish to make them normal-sized again did just that." Pudding said.
"Then that's all you have to do." Ryou said, finally letting out a smile.
"Wait here, girls. We're gonna get the gentlemen back to normal first, and the car as well." Keiichiro said. Ichigo, Mint, and Lettuce all stood by while they watched the others take the men and the car outside with Pudding holding onto them. Fortunately for the girls, the few patrons that were inside the café were too busy eating their food to notice them.

Very shortly after walking outside the entrance to Mew Mew Café, Pudding wished upon the crystal to restore the three shrunken men to their normal sizes, as well as the car that belonged to the third guy. When the bright light was gone, the men and the car were back to normal.
"Whew! Thank you so much! Now I can return home to my family." one of the men said.
"Not so fast, gentlemen. We must ensure that you have no recollection of these events so that important secrets don't get exposed." Ryou said.
"Wait… does that mean you have to kill us?" one of the men said.
"No no, heavens no we'd never do that!" Keiichiro said.
"Keiichiro is correct. He will take you downstairs where we have a machine that can safely erase your memory of the past few hours. Keiichiro, if you would please." Ryou said.
"Right away, Ryou." Keiichiro said as he led the three men back inside the café. Pudding and Ryoh re-entered as well, this time stopping in front of the table where the three shrunken Mew Mew girls were.
"Okay, fellow Mew Mews! It's your turn!" Pudding said. The youngest of the Mew Mews gently picked up the three girls and led them outside.

Pudding set the three girls down on the ground in front of her shoes and started wishing to the crystal with Ryoh standing behind her. A few seconds later, the crystal glowed a bright light once again. When the light eventually disappeared, the three Mew Mew girls were back to their normal sizes.
"Whew! Thank goodness we're back to normal. Like I said earlier, it should be a crime for magical girls like us to be shrunken." Ichigo said as she brushed her pink hair.
"Yeah, I'll second that now that you mention it." Mint said.
"Now then, Pudding, may I have the crystal?" Ryou said.
"Okay." Pudding said. She handed the crystal over to Ryou, who immediately threw the crystal to the ground and shattered it into many pieces.
"Whoa! Remind me never to make you angry, Ryou!" Ichigo shouted.
"I assure you I won't be throwing any chairs when I'm feeling like that. But nevertheless, that should be the end of that Deep Blue threat." Ryou said.
"Awww… too bad, it was fun while it lasted to be the tallest of the Mew Mews." Pudding said. When she turned around and saw the other three Mew Mews staring at her, she quickly changed her tune.
"But I'm glad you're all back to normal. Really, I am!" Pudding said.
"I'm only sorry you lost your ticket to getting people back to watching your talent show at the park, Pudding." Lettuce said.
"It's okay, Lettuce! I'll just have to try much harder to impress everyone at the park with the talents I already possess!" Pudding said.
"I feel the same way, Pudding. But for now, you all should go home and get some rest. You have a busy day tomorrow here at the café." Ryou said as he walked back inside the café.

As Ichigo, Mint, and Lettuce all transformed back into their civilian clothes, they decided to walk home with Pudding and spend the rest of the day with her, her younger siblings, as well as Sensei, just to show there were no hard feelings with them being shrunken and perfectly understanding the temptation of using such an incredible power from one of Deep Blue's crystals.

And of course the three men had their memories erased by Keiichiro and Ryou. Not knowing why they were walking out of a café late in the day, they drove home and resumed with their normal lives.

END