Inflatable Snakes

James finished up the last few lines on his sketch, a quick pencil drawing of a cluster of orchids. He scratched a bit of dirt off the edge of the page with his claws, filed and dulled for functional use. The flowers were a lucky find being so close to the entrance of the forest's entrance; they were still blooming as well, without a single wilt or blemish. That sat on their own basking in the spring sun; much like James' wings, their shimmering fur contrasting against the trees with a sharp turquoise. His sketch complete, he walked to his car and opened the back door. Everything seemed to be intact, just shuffled around in the journey. He pushed a bit of tarpaulin and a bike pump out of the way to retrieve his bag and a blanket with some food wrapped up in it.

Bird-song filled the forest while crickets loudly chirped. James sat by the edge of a small river with his back against a tree and the blanket splayed out under him.
A squeaky voice cut the ambience, "Well you're quite an interesting fellow, ain't ya?"
James looked around but couldn't find the source of the voice.
"That's quite a mixture you got," they continued, "You're like a fox and a dragon rolled into one, absolutely precious."
"Hello?" James said.
"Hello there," she replied. Something drooped from the tree James sat at. A  green snake about as thin as his thumb had wrapped its body around a branch which it now hung from, its head now level with his. "Nice to meet ya," she said.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but did a snake just talk to me?"
"Is that's strange?"
"Very."
"How so?"
"Snakes don't usually talk."
"Oh, but this one does dear."
"Apparently," at this point James just thought he was seeing things, so it wouldn’t hurt to talk.
"So watchu doing?"
"Oh, I was just eating lunch. I've got some spare sandwiches if you want some."
"No thanks, snakes don't eat sandwiches anyway."
"So how come you can talk?"
"How come you have wings?"
"Sorry?"
"I mean, they don't look big enough to fly, what are they for?"
"Uh, they're for warming us up."
"Oh, I see. Snakes do that too when it gets chilly. But you have that tail as well, isn't that enough? Aren't you kind of back-heavy."
"Not really, I might just be used to it," he chuckled, "So what's it like having no legs?"
"Brilliant, I'd recommend you try it some time," She said before flicking her tongue out at him. "So what are you, I've not seen anyone like you before."
"I'm James, an artic dragon, it's too cold to be a dragon-dragon up there which is why we look a bit funny. And the wings..." he unfolded his wings to reveal that the front of them was covered in black fur, "The black absorbs the sun better and kept us warm back when we actually needed it".
"What about those horns?"
"Oh these things?" he rubbed two stumps poking from his head, "I had them trimmed and ground down a bit, they're usually pointy but easier to manage when they're blunt you see".
"I see, may I touch them?"
"I don't see why not."
She leaned her head in and rubbed against the stump. "Sorry if this feels weird," she said, "I don't have hands ya see."

"Y'know, it's refreshing to see a new face that isn't scared of snakes by the way, there's not many people to talk to round here, just my husband and anyone that doesn't run away".
"Your husband?"
"Oh yes, Nathair, he's like me but a bit bigger, oh and I'm Ophiona, forgot to mention. Actually, you should join us, so many people are scared of little old me that it's hard to find company".
"Alright, you seem nice, so I guess I'll accept" But, anyway, so what about that question you dodged earlier?"
"Eh?"
"Why can a normal snake speak, and why don't you look like a normal snake?"
"What do you mean about my looks?"
"Well, you're really long, despite being so thin. And your skin, it's unusually smooth and shiny."
"Why thank you, I do try to keep myself looking good".
"That's not what I mean, it's that I can't see any scales on you like a normal snake, and that still doesn't explain how long you are."
"A woman has her secrets, my dear. Oh, I should actually go now, my husband hates having guests unless he's had time to sort the home out first. You see that tree over there?" She looked towards a big oak standing before a hillock on the other side of the river. "There's a shallow bit just down the river over there to the right of us that you can use to get across. When is a good time for you to meet me there?"
"Well, I'm busy now and I will be until this evening. But then I'm free."
"Alright. Maybe come over later after dinner, maybe seven o'clock? I'd invite you over for dinner, but well..."
"Snake diet?"
"Pretty much".

***


James sat on a log drying off his paws. The shallow part of the river only went up to his ankles, so he had taken off his shoes to get across. They looked more like a leather sack made than typical footwear since most shops didn't sell shoes in his size or shape, though they're form-fitting when worn. The sun shone a bright amber over the river as it slowly sunk towards the horizon.  Ophiona had swum across the river earlier, leaving Peter on his own. He finished drying off his feet, slipped his shoes on and zipped them up at the back. It was time to find out whether he was crazy or he really met a talking snake.

"James! Over here!" Opiona coiled around the oak and called out.
His ears pricked up. "One moment!" he shouted back, finishing up the linework on the tree. He could finish off the details later so he slipped it into his bag and bounded over to Ophiona.
"Follow me, it's just back here. You're, uh, not afraid of caves, are you? There's not many other options for homes if you ain't got hands".
"No, but will I need a flashlight? I've got one in my car I'm pretty sure."
"No no. Don't worry, there'll be enough sun coming in. We also found some solar powered garden lights that we use at night, so don't worry".
"Alright then. Lead on." The cave was embedded in the hillock behind the oak tree. Its mouth was small so the tree blocked it from view at most angles.

"Nathy! Our guest is here!" her voice echoed through the cave.
The rock walls were surprisingly smooth, the natural marble keeps the cave looking relatively bright.
"For God's sakes woman, there's no need to shout." The voice from deeper in the cave seemed deep and smooth. "Have you forgotten that this is a cave? You could hear a whisper in here," a massive green snake was now slithering out of the back of the cave. He was almost twice as thick as James with the rest of him still out of sight.  
"Ah, hello," Nathair said, "Oh, don't be scared, you're not big enough to eat so don't worry." he let out a hearty chuckle, "Why don't make yourself at home Mr?"
"Uh, James"
"James. Find a seat somewhere, kick your shoes off, uh, what other things do the legged do?" He murmured to himself.

James took a seat against one of the walls while Ophiona sat in made a nest of her own body. Nathair remained with a good proportion of his body deeper in the cave and only his head and neck poking out from the darkness.
"So why did you come down here James?" Nathair asked.
"He was having a picnic, dear", Ophiona replied.
"Not just that", James said, "I came to draw some stuff. I've actually done few already. Let me show you".
He pulled his sketchbook out of his bag and flicked to the most recent page, the left page had the orchids on it while the other had the sketch of the oak tree outside. He showed it to them.
"It's not as fleshed out as I'd like personally," James said, "But I can do the rest later."
"I like it," Ophiona said, "D'ya got any finished ones in there?"
"Unfortunately, no. I usually scan the picture into a tablet and finish it one that most of the time, so none of the ones in this are properly done".
"That's a shame, it looks like they'd be good once you've got them finished."
"Well, they have to be, otherwise I don't get paid." James chuckled which Ophiona responded to with a chuckle of her own.
Nathair stared at James and leaned in closer. "What did you use to draw those?"
James cocked his head to the side, "A pencil," he pulled a pencil with a sharp point from his pocket.
Nathair pulled back, "I, see." He shot a glance at Ophiona, and back James before breaking out in a smile. "I see you keep them maintained, careful with that you might poke yer eye out hehe".
"That almost happened once," James said, "Back in school. I was fooling around with some of the lads and someone threw a pencil. Luckily, it was blunt and I blinked before it hit me."
"Oof, that sounds like it must've hurt".
"It did, uh let me just put this away." James tucked it into a pocket on his bag while Nathair's smile grew bigger.

"So enough about me, what about you two? I can't say that I've ever seen talking snakes before."
"Oh, what do you want to know?" Ophiona asked.
"Well, why can you two talk for a start?"
"Tell you what James," Nathair said while drawing back further into the dark, "It'll be easier to show you, come here".
James stood up and reluctantly walked towards him. Ophiona looked between them and muttered, "Oh. Not again."
In a flash Nathair darted past James, blocking him off with his body. He then turned and twisted himself around James, wrapping him up before he could react. James was now trapped up to his neck in Nathair's coils, he only needed to wind around him two times due to his bulk. from his position, James could see that most of Nathair's body was still in concealed in that darkness and his head still towered metres over him.
"Really. Nath?" Ophiona said, "Why do you try this every time? Can't we just have a guest over for once without this being some big issue?"
"What the?" James exclaimed.
Nathair ignored him and turned to his wife, "Because we already have a big issue. Look at you, you're not meant to be that tiny, are you? You used to be even bigger than I am, and where did it go?"
"Yes, I got cut a few times and lost my air. That doesn't excuse treating our guest like this."
"Let me go!" James protested only to be gagged with an extra loop around his face for good measure. With them rubbing in so close if felt like Nathair's skin was made of some sort of plastic.
"Quiet you, calm down. We won't hurt you, just...give us a moment", Nathair sighed. "Listen to me dear, what happens when you get too small? Will you die? What about those kids you said you wanted in the future? How will you have them if you're so small?"
"Okay, okay, fine, fine. I see now, I'm sorry for worrying you, Nath. It's just...I'm so confused. What are we?"
"I don't know dear, but I know enough that we now have a way of getting you back up to size, don't we James?"
Nathair clutched him firmly. James tried to shout but his mouth was blocked by the coils now encircling him. All he could do is squirm. He couldn't lift any of the coils up and was surrounded on all sides. He was stuck.

"Alright now, so James," Nathair said, "We need you to do a little something for us with those lungs of yours".
"Hmmph?", James grunted into Nathair's body.
"Well, as you can see I'm much bigger than my wife because she likes to stumble around and get in accidents all the time".
"I'm still here you know!", Ophiona interjected.
"Yeah yeah", he said, "So James, as you've probably already seen, we're not normal snakes. I'm not sure why, neither of us can remember much, but we need you to make my wife bigger. After that, you can go. So howsabout it?"
"Hmmph mmph!"
"Sorry about making you do this, by the way, we tried to get a someone else a while ago, but an overly sympathetic spouse let them get away.
"Hey," Ophiona whined, "I was too small to stop them anyway"
"So my fleshy friend, do you agree to these terms?"
"Hmmph mph mphh mphm"
"Good, let's begin".

"Honey?" Ophiona asked.
"Yes, dear?"
"Well, if I'm going to get air from him, how do I do it?"
“There should be a valve on you somewhere, I remember seeing one on you when you were bigger, can you feel one?"
"No,  I can't. Maybe...maybe I got too small and they were made into something else? Like when my cuts healed maybe?"
"Maybe, but what are we gonna do without a valve then?"
"Hang on, I've got an idea, let me in dear I'll just be a sec."
She slithered over to the pile of coils holding James and slipped in through the bottom. Nathair loosened his grip and removed the top layer of coils to look down at what his wife was doing. James felt Ophiona's length entwining around his around his body until she was face to face, adding a second, smaller set of coils to his prison.
"Honestly can you believe him?" she whispered to James.
"What the hell is going on?" he whispered back.
"Well, you see, we're some sort of...inflatable snakes. And we can only remember a few months back. Nathy stays in here most of the time so he still has most of his air but I go out and got a few cuts which healed for some reason, but I lost the air."
"Are you going to let me go?"
"Yes yes, please calm down, it's just...he won't let you go inflate me it seems".
"Why didn't you just ask, I could've just lent a hand."
"Sorry, it's just that he decided to step...uh, slither in before I had a chance to properly ask. Besides, I just wanted to chat but the big dumb snake just had to get impatient."
"Dear, remember when I said that you could hear a whisper in here?" Nathair said.
Ignoring him, she continued, "Well, James. Could you think of this not as you being forced against your will to put your lungs to work by a giant snake but instead as a favour for a friend? Please?"
"Alright, I guess I can do that. But how do I do it?"
"Well, my idea's just a theory...you know, I heard that there are snake charmers in India that kiss their snakes", she leaned in close and drove her tiny lips against his.
He pulled back, "But, aren't you married!?"
"Yes, aren't you married?" Nathair taunted, "My, my, you naughty woman, I should punish you later, maybe get back at you by kissing someone else," he looked towards James with a grin and chuckled, "Also my legged friend, sorry about all the roughness, it's just that all the other ones got away you see. Go ahead, you're doing this for her after all."
"O-okay", James murmured, "But I've got another pencil in my pocket, what about that? It could harm one of you, right?"
Nathair frowned for a moment, after a few seconds some squeaking could be heard from the back of the cave. Nathair's tail was reaching out of the darkness towards them. The coils tightened around James as he was lifted up. The tail reached up through the bundle and tugged on his trousers until they fell all the way down, leaving him in just his underwear. It threw them to where James had left his shoes before retreating back into the darkness. James was put back to the ground.
"There, now we're safe," Nathair said.
"Aw, look at you", Ophiona said, regaining her grip on his lower body, "You're blushing up a storm."
"You're enjoying this way too much," James replied.
"Probably. Now, come here." She thrust against his lips again. James reached for a bit of her body and squeezed it gently between his fingers. It was soft and gave no resistance.
"Hey stop that, it feels weird," she pulled back before pushing against his lips again.
"Go on, take a deep breath and blow."

He took a deep breath in through his mouth and lightly gripped Ophiona's mouth with his, she let out an embarrassed squeak in surprise. He blew with full force, pushing the full capacity of his lungs into her; she swelled noticeably as he did so, expanding by about a centimetre outward as he did so. He pulled back in a daze, gasping.
"Oooh," Ophiona gently moaned, "That was, nice. Oh but darling you've worn yourself out, don't do it so quickly. This is like a marathon, you need to pace yourself".
"I think I might be able to help", Nathair said.
"Wha?" James managed to murmur.
Nathair loosened his grip, "Okay, take a big breath in and hold it. And Ophy dearest, get in position". They did as he asked, and his body moved in to lightly clasp James. "Relax your body James, focus on breathing in, I'll breathe out for you." His coils slowly pushed in on James, squeaking as they crinkled and rubbed against each other. The squeeze was tight, but he could still wiggle slightly. Nathairs body had enough give that he could still breathe in, despite the pressure. He tried to blow some air into Ophiona, but couldn't do it without forcing it out.
"Hmm, that doesn't seem like it was enough force, one moment".
Nathair's smooth skin glided against him as more of his body was pulled from the end of the cave. James was turned around like a wheel as he was shifted further down Nathair's body. Using this excess, Nathair started winding around himself, creating a second layer of loops around the first.
"Okay, like this I should have a bit more force. James, just trust in me. Close your eyes. Think of yourself as one of those squeezable pumps, when you're squeezed you let it all out into what you're pumping, but when released you reflate on your own. Take a deep breath, I'm going to try something."
The top half of the coil prison remained lax, but the bottom seized in on James, squeezing his legs and waist the mass. The grip held him steady for Nathair to wrap a bit more of his body around James' head so that his ears were covered but his face was exposed, deafening him to the outside.
"Listen to my voice" Nathair said slowly, speaking into his own body. James could hear it reverberating around Nathair's body making it sound like it was coming from his own head. "You are not a dragon anymore, you are a pump filling up a balloon. When squeezed...", the coils pushed in faster, "...they let out all their air for something else".
The top half of the coil slowly contracted, compressing James' chest; the bottom half retracted at the same pace, blood flowed to his legs so he could retain feeling. He felt his breath slowly get coaxed out into Ophiona; her body bulged against him as she was pressed in between the other two. The oppresive coils squeezed in tighter and tighter until every breath had been squeezed from his lungs.
"Good pump. But even the best pumps need a moment to refill."
The coils started relaxing, giving James some breathing room. He pulled in air through his nose, lulled by Nathair's voice echoing through his head. The bottom half again pressed and squeezed in, gripping his legs in the same embrace as before. Ophiona had inflated to be slightly bigger than, by about half a centimetre in diameter.
After a short pause, Nathair said: "And when the pump is full it can be squeezed again."
The soft, crushing walls of Nathair's body constricted in again,  faster and firmer now, once more wringing James of his breath while releasing his legs from the immense grip. Squeeze. Release. Squeeze. Release. Squeeze. Release.

The alternating grip and pulse of Nathair's coils had an intoxicating, almost hypnotic effect. As one coil moved out, the other moved in to trap him in its embrace. It wasn't long until Ophiona was no longer being gripped in James’ mouth, as she became big enough that she needed to force her lips into his. She had grown to be about a half a foot wide, large enough that her body formed a wall between James and Nathair and her lips now enveloped most of James' face. It seemed that as she had inflated her lips grew to be larger than a typical snake’s lips as if they were made for extracting as much air from someone. All the while James was caught in the trance of breathing in air, only to have it smothered out of him. All so he could be a pump for Ophiona.

***

"Hmm, I don't think this method will work anymore dear," Nathair said, "All I'm doing is squeezing both of you so that the air goes nowhere."
"So shall we let him go now? I think he's done enough."
"No, not yet. Knowing you you'll probably run out of that air in no time. You need more. But perhaps we should ask out guest. Pump, would you like to go or would you rather stay and get her even bigger?"
"Uhh," James moaned, still in a trance.
"I don't hear any objections," Nathair said with a grin.
"Perhaps he needs a break."
"Nonsense, he's got the technique down. If he takes a break he'll break out of the cycle and you'll be stuck at that size".
"So you hypnotized him into being able to inflate me?"
"I think so? I wasn't even expecting it to work, I just thought that it would help him relax. But it helped a lot, didn't it?"
"But will he be okay?"
"I'll be, fine," James managed to say sluggishly.
"See, he's good to go."
"So what do we do if you can't squeeze him? I can't do it, I'm too small."
"You can, if you...have a little help."
"And what do you mean by 'a little help'?"
"Well, let's say that I'm going to punish you for kissing him, and kiss someone else at the same time."

His coils loosened and he reared his head back, stretching his jaw wide. James looked up to catch a glimpse of the rubbery pink throat, if he were of a more sound mind he would probably be scared, but he couldn't help but find the sight alluring.
"Uh. Honey? What are you doing?" Ophiona said, gripping tighter around James.
"Remember this for when you get big enough honey, because this is how snakes kiss," he replied.
In a single movement, his plunged his maw down over them, plunging them into darkness. Had it been just James he would have gone down in one gulp, but the extra width Ophiona added made it difficult. Ophiona tried to protest, but all Nathair could hear were muffled high-pitched squeals. His mouth stretched over the squirming pair, lightly squeezing them together and eliciting loud squeaks. A few more forceful thrusts and they were mostly inside. He lifted the two of them into the air to let gravity to the rest, and the two of them slipped inside, shutting out all sound from the outside.

"I'll send you two further down, where there's a bit more room", Nathairs voice boomed throughout himself, though it was barely audible over the constant squeaking of his insides rubbing over Ophiona's skin.
"He's a bastard, isn't he? Swallowing us! The, ooh, audacity," Ophiona said as she felt the walls work her and her guest further down the gullet.
Ophiona had grown big enough that her body was able to completely entwine James and the tight squeeze of throat meant she couldn't separate, even if she wanted to. Eventually, the pulsing of the walls and the pressure subsided, leaving the two of them laying in a roomy tunnel.
"James, since he can't hear us in here, please tell me what's on your mind."
"Well, I'm, uh, alright with this."
"Alright? Is that all?"
"Well, I like it. It's, relaxing..."
"You're going to be here a while, you know that?"
"I know, I'm, not busy.
She sighed, "I can't tell if you're telling the truth. Just, please sweety, don't hate me for this," she pushed her lips into his.
"Mmmm mph mm mm mph", James murmured.
She pulled back, "Sorry what was that dear?"
"I don't think that will work. There's, no hole."
"Hmm. My husband says he has valves, maybe I do now that I’m bigger. But I can't feel any on me. Maybe..." She puffed her cheeks up as if she was pouting before gasping. "I've got it! I can choose where it forms. Come here!"
She forced herself upon him once more, smothering him in puffy snake lips; taking advantage of her surprise attack, she thrust her tongue into his mouth. He could feel the large, rubbery, forked tongue feeling around in his mouth. He felt about in return and found an open valve on it, a one-way valve presumably. She squeezed him gently, not strong enough to force him to give her his air. But he found that as she squeezed he effortlessly pushed air into her as if Nathair was still tightly squeezing him. Like before he breathed in as she relaxed and felt compelled to breath out as she squeezed, however lightly she did it. Once more he was compelled to breathe in, breathe out to the whims of a snake. She had her eyes closed, had she fallen asleep while doing this? But eventually, they rhythmic pulsing embrace and gentle squeaking lulled him to sleep as well.

***

He could still feel the tongue in his mouth when he woke up, it had swollen to a great size, easily tripling the size of his own tongue. Two giant lips pinched his head between them, loosening as he breathed in so he could breathe but squeezing and rubbing him when he breathed out so the air could only go into her tongue. The pressure was immense. Before, when he was being squeezed by Nathair, the pressure fully receded when he was allowed to breathe in. But now the pressure was constant. The 'squeezing' now was just adding even more pressure to this already strong grip. As she grew bigger in her sleep it seems she tried to keep her whole body wrapped around her squeeze toy, so she had wrapped around herself several times despite the lack of space.  And now she had formed a massive snake ball with James at its centre, the claustrophobic press of Nathair's walls struggling to contain this blockage strengthened the squeeze of this chaotic mess.  Any attempt to struggle or wriggle led to more squeezing and any moans were ignored. Obnoxious squeaks were all that could be heard anyway, she must be used to it. She was still asleep it seemed. All James could do is sit and endure this tight, intimate embrace.

***

"James? Where did you go my little pump toy?", her voice could barely be heard above the squeaking. "And why is it so, ugh, cramped in here now?"
She could not feel James' wriggling anymore as if was so faint. He was pressed in on all sides, any movement was instantly forced back by the cushiony grip.
"Mph mppph", James moaned from somewhere between her lips, barely being heard.
She looked down as best she could, "James? When did you get so small? Oh...oh my. Oh, you're adorable!" she squealed.
"Good, oooh, morning", he managed to say though the pressure.
Nathair's voice boomed through himself again, "Seems I left the bread in the oven too long. It rose so much that I can't get it out."
"Is he talking about us?" she asked.
"Of course," James replied, "It's like you said, snakes don't eat sandwiches. Why would they make bread?" He chuckled but was cut short by her shifting slightly resulting in an unexpected constriction.
"Ophiona dearest," Nathair boomed again, "I need you to start trying to climb up my throat, I'll push the rest of you further down to try and untangle you. And James, sorry but you're probably going to have to crawl up on your own, you're too small for me to tell where you are without my wife wrapped around you."
"Well, James. I guess I'll see you later when you finally get out of here. Don't take too long," Ophiona said as she turned to slither back up through her husband, leaving James stuck in the squeeze, getting sucked deeper into Nathair's body.
The pressure didn't let up either, while Ophiona's body slowly vacated he was slowly forced down into the tighter recesses of Nathair's tail. The ball unravelled as Nathair pulled it down, turning James around until he forgot what way was up in his dizziness.

The last of Ophiona's body had now unwound itself from him, he caught a glimpse of her tail disappearing into the darkness. But this was no solace as he was still trapped in a firm grip, this time by the walls surrounding him. Their internals were different from the outside bodies of either of the snakes. It felt like they were made of some sort of latex rather than PVC, it's extra flexibility meant it's squeeze fit around James' form near-perfectly, making any movement incredibly difficult.
"Wow", Nathair said, his voice now a faint sound from the outside, "I didn't expect you to end up that far down James, you're almost at the tip. You're making quite a bulge, I'd imagine that would be very tight," To demonstrate, Nathair flicked his tail side to side to demonstrate, dizzying James as he was bounced between the walls. "Unfortunately for you, I only have one hole, so you'll have to come out the same way you came in. You've got your work cut out for you. You know what, I reckon I can help you out after all, for now at least.. Now get going if you want out."
The walls started squeezing on his head and chest before sending a squeeze down his body in a ripple. This continued, slowly pushing James backwards. He attempted to curl up in a ball to make himself easier to push, but it was too tight to properly bring his knees in front of him, so all he managed to do was squirm. The rhythmic ripples of the walls gradually dragged him back to a more spacious part of Nathair where, after a bit of struggling, he managed to turn himself around and start working his way out. He was forced into a belly crawl, as the walls still pressed too much to do much else.

After a while of worming his way through the rubbery tunnel, he got to a part where he had a bit more space, probably near where he and Ophiona had slept. His hands sunk deep into the latex as he pushed himself up onto his knees. He pulled one out with a sharp pop and placed it further ahead, the body once again greedily absorbed it, holding it in its soft grasp. He slowly continued like this, gradually pulling his hands free only for them to be swallowed up but the gluttonous walls as he moved ahead.

***

"Nath? Are we really just going to leave him in there?" Ophiona asked. She was now about half the size of her husband, which meant she was still large enough to swallow someone if she wanted to.
"Well, he wanted to be in there didn't he?", Nathair replied while looking down.
"I don't think this is what he meant, can't we pull him out?"
"With what? A long rope? Need I remind you that we don't have hands?".
"I have an idea, follow me." She guided him out of the cave to the oak that guarded its entrance. She wrapped her tail around the tree and looked back at her husband. "Open up, I'm going in."

***

Continuing his sluggish slog through Nathair, James continued to drive forward through the darkness. He barely noticed how the squeaking had gotten louder up ahead and slogged on until face was clasped in a pair of massive lips.
"Hello there," she said.
James raised an eyebrow as he pulled back, “What are you doing back in here?"
"Getting you out, obviously."
"How?"
"Well, since Nath said snakes have a special way of kissing, its time I kissed you for proper, don't you think."
"Of course that's how..."

After some squirming and enough squeaking for a thousand rusty doors, Ophiona managed to pull out of her husband.
"Where is he?", he asked.
She motioned towards a squirming bulge in her body which squeaked with every movement it made.
"Well, are you going to let him go? Like we promised we'd do?"
"Of course, but we could hardly call ourselves hosts if our guest has not had breakfast."

James couldn't even move an inch, the tightness of Ophiona's belly gripped and pulsed upon him. It felt almost deliberate in how hard it squeezed, pushing hard enough to make him moan and squirm but not enough to cut blood flow or constrict. To think that the air now being used to knead him had once been in his lungs. Surely she must be out of Nathair by now, what's taking her so long to spit him up?

The walls eventually started up their a ripple, pushing James back up feet-first. His feet felt a cold chill as they left Ophiona, only to be caught in more warmth as they were gripped between more rubber and tugged at. He was pulled out swiftly by Nathair but caught and laid down gently by Ophiona.
"Good morning my pump. How was that?" She asked.
"I, um, well, if you want more air some other time..."
"You lucky dog", Nathair said, I haven't even been inside her yet and yet you got a go before I did."
"Maybe if you let out a little air I could show you what it's like dear," she grinned.
"Very funny, anyway James my wife made you breakfast. I hope you're okay with fruit and nuts."

"So then", Nathair said while James was tucking into his breakfast, "I remember you asking questions yesterday. In truth, we don't know the answers. I reckon it has something to do with this cave since this is where our earliest memories are, but, well we can't see shit down there. It's too dark."
"Oh, I can help with that, I'll just bring a flashlight next time I come."
"Next time? I'm glad to hear we didn't scare you, Ophiona said."
"Oh, you did. It's just that is was...I guess, the right kind of fear. Like a rollercoaster I guess. And I guess it felt good as well."
Both of the snakes let out a sigh of relief.
"Hang on, there's something else..." James said.
"Oh?" she said.
"What is it?" Nathair asked.
"I just remembered that I have a bike pump in my car."
A long pause hung over the cave. This interrupted by a squeak as she wrapped a tail around him.
"Why didn't you say so sooner silly? Maybe then I could've eaten you earlier," Ophiona said.
"That's not really what I mea-mphh!" he was interrupted as the tailed around him pulled, causing him to stumble straight into Ophiona's lips.
"Oh, and James?" Nathair began, "When you do leave, do remember not to kiss and tell, things could get complicated. Now dear, stop hogging the pump."
As James managed to pull away from Ophiona he turned to be pushed back into her. Nathair had thrust his own lips forward, pinning James against Ophiona, who had started squeezing his legs with her tail and kissing the back of his neck. His chest and face were rubbed and smothered by the gargantuan lips of the giant snake while his arms were trapped between them, making him helpless to their torment.

They let him go just before mid-day. When James got home, he looked online for pictures of snakes and started sketching.