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Ashley's fingers flew across the piano, chords and licks and riffs bouncing around her studio in a whirl. She stabbed a few extra snares into her drum machine and cranked up the volume, then flicked her bass-synth into another rhythm. She could barely hear a thing. Aside from her music, of course. She threw her head about in pure joy, her long, maroon hair smacking up against the walls.

To anyone else observing her through the window of her studio, it would look like that Ashley was being electrocuted in complete silence. In fact, the only indication that any sound was happening at all was through the dull rumble in the floor boards.

Ashley was living and loving life. Moved out, earning a living, well, managing a living, and creating the music that she loved best. It would appear that for the twenty-two year old, that nothing could stop her now.

Knock, knock.

"Huh?" shouted Ashley, forgetting that the room was soundproof.

Knock, knock.

Stopping her dancing, and, in turn, causing her hair to fall all over her face, Ashley turned the volume down on her synth and drum machine. "What?" she called out, unimpressed. The second she realised that whoever was knocking on the door couldn't hear her, that person...

Knock, Knock.

...knocked on the door again.

The musician stood up, took two steps forward and opened the door ajar. "Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeesssss?" she slithered out.

"Um, Ashley-"

"-Janine."

The petite brunette blinked a few times. "Um, do you think you could, um...turn..." She began to play with the fringe of her short hair. "...turn down your music for ten minutes?"

Ashley opened the door half-way now, leaning against the door frame and folding her arms. "It's soundproofed," she said, tapping the wall with a knuckle. "What's the problem?"

Janine nodded. "I know...but..." Her eyes looked down and began to trace Ashley's Converse. "The vibrations are upsetting my cheese souffle. Please...?"

At this point, normally, Ashley would offer her roommate a blunt comment and close the studio door. However, the disappointed look on Janine's face reminded her who had payed both halves of last month's rent. I guess I can stop for a minute. Even if it's for a stupid souffle.

Janine, who was a head shorter than Ashley, looked up at her roommate. "Well...?"

"Fine," sighed Ashley, rolling her eyes. "My wrists were starting to hurt anyway."

"Thanks!" Janine turned on her heel and disappeared around the corner.

The musician slipped her hands into her jeans and wandered down the hall and into the main lounge area. It was a decent apartment, with a bathroom, kitchen, and two bedrooms, located thirteen floors up on the top floor of the complex. The city that they lived in was pretty stock-standard: thousands of grey rectangles, a mall, a stadium, open country a few miles out - not much in the way of inspiration, for Ashley, at least. She'd answered an ad in the paper placed by Janine and the two were friends from the first day.

That isn't to say they didn't have their issues, though.

"Janine," called Ashley from the lounge area, observing the brunette through the open window of the kitchen. "Get your uniform off of the couch."

Janine spun around and placed a finger to her lips, frowning. "Shh, you'll wreck my souffle. And anyway, you have hands," she hissed. "Use them."

"I ain't touching your smelly chef hat," replied Ashley, just as loudly as before. "Take it off the couch. I wanna sit there."

The chef physically left the kitchen and stuck her head around the corner into the lounge. "Quiet," she hissed again. "Stop being a baby and..." The brunette trailed off, figuring she should be the bigger person and just remove her uniform from the couch. She did so, glaring at Ashley's absent expression. "If my souffle burns-"

Knock, knock.

Both women were startled by the sudden noise.

Janine hissed at Ashley. "It's the front door, you get it." She left the room with her uniform and hat.

"Really?" moaned the musician. "I was just about to sit down." She observed the brunette re-enter the kitchen and squat back down in front of the oven.

Ashley, realising she was being ignored, dragged her feet out of the lounge and to their apartment door. She opened it like she was opening a letter from the IRS.

Slowly, because she really, really, didn't want to. Chances were, and judging from the fact that they didn't use the intercom, that the person behind the door was a salesmen, or worse. Ashley peeked past the small gap she made.

Smiling a brilliant, white smile, was a woman about Ashley's age. Her long, blonde hair was tied tightly behind her and braided into a single tail that reached the small of her back, little tufts of blond hair sitting on her exposed forehead.

Ashley observed the book the woman carried in one hand, the long-sleeved, white shirt, and black vest and tie she wore, and the name-tag, and groaned. Oh, look, it's worse.

"Hello!" said the woman, far too happily. "My name is Eloise." She indicated to the name tag. "Do you have a moment to chat about-"

"No."

The woman was unfazed. "Oh, but you haven't allowed me to finish my sentence."

"I don't need to," said Ashley, still keeping the door only ajar. "We're not interested. I can already tell."

Eloise's smile started to fade. "But I haven't even begun to tell you-"

"-and I haven't even begun to tell you how much me and my roommate are fine with our well-being. We don't need anything spiritual here."

Eloise took a step forward and brought her face close to Ashley's. "But-"

"Bye." Ashley pushed the door closed. She rolled her eyes as she walked back down the hall. I swear, these religious folk get more and more annoying every...

Knock, knock.

The musician stopped her stride. She turned towards the door. ...day. With curious steps, Ashley approached the door again. Did I piss her off or something? She smiled a little. I could do with something fun. This time, Ashley opened the door all the way, leaning against the door frame in preparation for an angry preacher.

Instead, she was met with another smile.

"Hello!" said the woman, far too happily. Again. "My name is Eloise." She indicated to her name tag. "Do you have a moment to chat about our saviour-"

"Yeah, stop," interrupted Ashley. "I thought I told you we weren't interested. Shouldn't you just, like, go or something?"

Eloise waggled a finger, her blue eyes sparkling. "You cannot possibly be not interested if you haven't heard what I've got to say."

Ashley smirked. "Ah, but I already know what this abou-"

"No you don't," interrupted the blonde. "Silly, you keep stopping me before I finish. Now-"

"Hey, listen," said Ashley, more than annoyed than she was expecting to be. "Don't you interrupt me when you're the one knocking on the door with your faith and other phooey. We're not interested. Thanks but no thanks. See ya." With that, she closed the door, firmer this time to punctuate her point. "I swear to God..." she muttered, walking down the hall once more. "...I just can't believe she interrupted-"

Knock, knock.

Ashley choked a little. She glared at the door with increasingly burning eyes. Then, with a breath, she calmed herself. I'll just leave her there. She'll go. God, she has to be the most persistent-

Knock, knock.

The musician's eyes began to bulge. She is not about to do this, she is not about to do this, she is not-

Knock, knock.

"Will you get that?" came Janine's frustrated call.

Ashley nearly lost her temper with both Janine and the door. She strode over to it and pulled it open violently.

Again, she was met with a smile.

"Hello!" said the woman, far too happily. Again. Again. "My name is Eloise." She indicated to her name tag. "Do you have a moment to-"

"You're joking, right?"

Eloise shook her head. "You interrupted me again."

"That isn't the point," said Ashley, barely keeping her voice below a shout. "This is border-line harassment. Stop. Knocking. On. This. Door."

"If you stop interrupting me, then I'll stop knock-"

"No, no." The musician's tone was smarmy, complimenting the fact that she just flicked a maroon bang behind a shoulder. "That's not how this works. You knock on this door again, I'm calling the police." She stuck her face into Eloise's. "Piss. Off."

She slammed the door.

"What are you doing, Ash?" shouted Janine. "You nearly broke my souffle! Are you that childish that you have to keep slamming doors because I interrupted you?"

Before Ashley could even shout a reply-

Knock, knock.

-rang in her ears.

Knock, knock.

Fire. Ashley saw fire. And burning. And crimson, eternal hell. She wrenched open the door so fast it almost came off its hinges.

"Hello!" said the woman, far too happily. Again. Again. Again. "My name is Elo-"

"WHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaatttttttttTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?" shrieked Ashley.

With the most hideous, shit-eating grin, Eloise leaned in and said: "I want you to stop interrupting me."

"DON'T YOU FREAKING-"

"Silly."

Ashley bellowed like a banshee and smashed the door shut. The apartment rumbled, then there was silence. Then, within that silence, there was a tiny sound. A poomph. It was the sound of a souffle bursting and slowly sinking into itself.

Ashley felt Janine before she rounded the corner. "You don't understand..." began the musician.

"Shut up." Janine shoved past her and wrenched the door open, ignoring the smiling Eloise who stood just outside. "You always do this. I ask you to do something, one thing for me. But you have to get all crabby if it interrupts your music." She wiped her eyes. "Even if it just interrupts you. I payed your rent and this is what I get."

Ashley felt her anger turn into frustration. "But it was-"

"Don't." Janine stomped down the hall. "I'm so angry, I don't care if I sink everyone's souffles. I just..." She stopped, trying to make the effort to turn back to Ashley, but ended up flailing her arms instead. "I just need some time alone." She disappeared down the fire stairs.

The musician felt like punching a wall. She felt like yelling. But she knew that Janine was right. And suddenly, being emotional didn't sound interesting anymore.

Eloise leaned in a little. "Sounds to me like you could use some saving."

Ashley shot her a withering look.

"Do you have a moment to talk about our saviour and Goddess, Eve?"

Ashley snorted. "That's a new one." She allowed five seconds to pass before adding: "you aren't gonna leave until I let you in, huh?"

"Nope!" said Eloise, smile wide and white.

The musician wandered back into the apartment. "Make yourself at home."

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"I do like the sleek, modern look you've got going here."

Ashley flopped onto the couch. "Compliments aren't going to make you stay longer."

Eloise nestled into a chair that faced the musician. "I'm just being honest. You must earn quite a bit to keep staying here."

"It's mostly Janine. She's got a stable salary." Ashley adjusted her striped shirt, pulling the fabric across her exposed midriff. "None of your business, by the way. So get on with it. Your...religion thing."

Eloise nodded politely. "Of course, apologies. So, to begin, I must explain the story of Eve, and how the Goddess touched me with her grace."

The musician struggled to stop her eyes from rolling.

"One night, when I was asleep, a voice spoke to me, in a language incomprehensible to human ears." Eloise's eyes shone with whimsy and glee. "But I felt a light force around me, too. It could only have been Eve." She began to smile again. "I was warm, and I felt so good. And her lips! Once the Goddess kissed me I could understand her language and she told me," she held up the book, "that I had to spread the word of Eve and get others to bask in her light."

Ashley blinked a few times. "Are you high?"

Eloise frowned. "I was chosen specifically and only by the Goddess to..." She stopped once the musician started laughing.

"Hold on a second," Ashley snorted. "You're the only member of this religion?"

Eloise stared blankly. "No-one's let me in before. How could I get anyone else to join?"

"So then, the story is..." Ashley had to stand up to stop herself from falling off the couch. "...you got high, had a wet dream, and then started preaching about it?"

"No."

The musician's green eyes locked onto Eloise. "Right. Well, thanks for the laugh, but I can now definitely tell you, my roommate and I are not interested. So, you can leave."

"But I haven't gotten to the physical benefits yet," said the blonde, matter-of-factly. She suddenly stood up, leaving her book on the chair. "At least let me give you a demonstration. I haven't had a chance to show anyone yet."

Ashley stared at Eloise for a few seconds. Then she sighed. "You're lucky that Janine stormed out. I wouldn't be feeling as guilty as I am, usually." She flopped back onto the couch. "Sure, tell me about it. Go."

Eloise nodded and began to undo the cuffs of her long-sleeve shirt.

Huh? thought the musician. It's not that warm.

Then the blonde loosened the belt of her black pants.

Weird.

Then she pulled out her neck tie a little.

She can't be that hot.

Eloise started to undo the top buttons of her shirt.

It was then that Ashley had to say something. She sat up and began waving her arms around. "Woah, woah, what're you doing?"

The blonde looked at her as if she'd been asked why she had legs. "I'm preparing myself for the demonstration."

"Aren't you just telling me about the benefits of your," she raised her index fingers, "religion?"

Eloise smiled with a shake of the head. "I said physical benefits. Why..." She looked down at Ashley with a half-lidded gaze. "...surely you think the Goddess rewards her followers for spreading her light? I am but 5'6"."

That's almost my height, thought the musician. "But what's that got to do with...?"

"Observe." Eloise closed her eyes and shook out her limbs. Then, after a second or so of silence, she spoke with a firm tone. "Eve. Give me your blessing."

Ashley leaned back into her seat. She was a little curious as to what the blonde meant by, "benefits," but more importantly, the quicker Eloise went through her whole spiel the quicker Ashley could get back to her music.

Unexpectedly, though, the maroon-head found she couldn't take her eyes off of Eloise. Is...is she... The musician leaned forward and stared at the shaking blonde. ...is she glowing yellow?

Then, unexpectedly again, a groaning sound entered the apartment. Ashley looked around in fright, at first, expecting the ceiling to cave in, but then a voice entered her ears.

"Oof," muttered Eloise, eyes closed tight. "The Goddess seems p-pleased...that I...have invited...a-another..."

Ashley felt herself standing and backing onto the couch as Eloise suddenly swelled up an inch. She didn't want to blink, and she didn't want to turn away. The blonde was steadily increasing in height, her body stretching, her bare feet covering more of the floor every passing second. Her long-sleeve shirt creeped up her arms, the creases flattening out, her vest pulling taut, the 'V' of her shirt widening. It seemed that every twitch and drip of sweat added another quarter of an inch to her height.

Eloise passed Ashley's height of 5'7" and continued to increase as the seconds ticked away. Her hips soon expanded to the point that her pants sat comfortably on them, but in a few seconds they became too big and started to stretch the fabric outwards. The black material clung to Eloise's legs like a second skin, emphasising their curves and allowing Ashley to spot her twitching muscles.

"It's interesting," muttered Eloise, suddenly. "This sensation of expanding is not new to me. But, t-today..." She raised her head a little and smiled, swelling another inch higher, her neck taking up more space in her tie. "...it feels so much better than before. The Goddess must like you very much."

Ashley could only garble like an idiot and continue to look skyward.

The tightness of Eloise's shirt was becoming apparent. Every movement of her biceps was visible through the farbic, and her modest cleavage was starting to appear over the top of her vest. The vest itself was beginning to buckle against her thickening waist, as were her pants legs against her thighs. "Mmph," she breathed though her lips, growing past 6' and counting. The fabric of her shirt was restricting her arms now. The neck tie almost completely encircled her neck. She was drenched in sweat and still rising in height, her body arched and her mouth open, breathing heavily.

Then just as she hit 6'2 the growth petered out. Eloise opened her eyes. "...she seems to be pleased." She peered down past her cleavage at the shocked Ashley. "I think she..." She was interrupted by another warm sensation filling her. "O-oh, just a b-bit m-more." She swelled several inches all at once, rising steadily, pulling her clothing to the absolute limit and making the floor creak under her new weight. Eloise stopped growing once she hit 6'7".

Ashley didn't realise how much she, herself, had been sweating. She could barely understand what had just happened.

Eloise brushed a loose strand of blonde hair from her eyes. "She is very happy today. So, what do you think?" She locked eyes with the musician and smiled.

"Interested in the cause?"