Born a human, Townsen grew up admiring size! He'd always managed to keep himself large of a guy without any health detriment, much to his doctor's chagrin. But with that size, it wasn't just weight he wanted. It was overall bigger.

Throughout his high school years, he volunteered at the local zoo, and after working with them once, he became devoted to the polar bears! Spending nearly every weekend there, he helped to tend to and feed the bears and play with them. From seeing them so often, and seeing one of the younger bears raised, they became very comfortable with his presence.

Eventually the zoo even offered to let him be the sole caretaker for the bears when one day he was barreled over by one of the larger bears for an embrace. At first frightening them, it became clear how much a friend Townsen was to these large creatures, even able to swim with them, dive with them, and practically live with them for several hours a week.

Once he came to bid them goodbye to leave for college, he was approached by the largest for an actual stand-up embrace. That night at home, as he slept, he dreamt the bears approached him all. They thanked him for being such a friend to them over the years. "While we cannot make you physically one of us like this.. we have another gift." In the dream, he looked down to see himself steadily covered in more and more bright white rubber, latex, engulfing his skin. A panic washed over, until he saw the hands coated, becoming large paws, spreading down his feet the same! When he finally saw the black nosepad pop out at the end of his new snout. A bear, albeit synthetic,but.. He was nearly in tears to hug them in the dream.

He woke from it as they bid farewell, to find himself still the same, reaching down to feel that new plasticy valve at his middle. A bit of testing quickly confirmed he could not be burst, cut, scratched, scraped, or melted at all in this form, and he found himself able to change back and forth between human and the balloon polarbear at will, though there was an odd delay in changing back to human once he was a bear.

College years became much more interesting with various moments of fun with some of his closest friends, graduating with a degree in polymer engineering, but cheating slightly with some of his abilities to land a contract with a polymer company for a curiously durable rubber. Keeping the money from it, he now works for fun as a bartender at a quiet gay lounge, styled similarly to a ski lodge, with numerous nooks and alcoves for quiet conversation. It's a good place to find him, and maybe discover he's more of a bear than he looks.

This artwork was done as a commission for me by Toy Dragon in Blue, Kaijima. This is used with permission.