Balloons and chill tunes ♪

Fav the original by  aldo5037 ▶▶▶HERE◀◀◀ *click*

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Happy to share another more informative post here on Totodile's Day again. The following is a bit of a story-like essay that informs over Shiny's life in his home city Triepeaks and what made Shiny become a fan of balloons. People who have fun with anything connected to inflatables will likely find something here and potentially be able to relate to my Totodile mascot's joys. Have a fun read! =D

Totodilooner

Shiny the Totodile has been living for a while in Triepeaks, one of the bigger cities at the Furmerican coastlines. The jolly turquoise Pokémon learned lots about the city life through the help of the friendly professors at Lamplight Labs who had taken care of him since his surprising arrival during one of their experiments.
Since that time Shiny has fit into the much more modern society compared to his wild and secluded life that has been the world he’s been from.

The energetic Totodile felt eager and excited to understand how all the new things worked, and while some of his bigger friends schooled him in pretty much everything the same way a baby had to experience and take it all in first, even when sometimes things got puzzling, the courses with others, the sometimes topsy-turvy and partly overwhelming days of attempting to get outside with him and many quite unusual circumstances, they all have stuck with him as precious memories until now.

Shiny has gotten used to all the various rules to follow for safety, for reacting correctly in traffic, experienced staying in living communities with others and also living on his own, having pocket money and all the conveniences and responsibilities are part of that life style.
He also got taught on using devices, of course reading and writing and how to take care of errands and various more.

Since that period of becoming a helpful and much more independent Totodile, Shiny had received loving support and even moved between various homes to gather more new experiences of his own.
One of his biggest friends, a magical Cat named Richie, sometimes also called Brakk when he enjoyed to change his appearance via a magical ability of shapeshifting, and so becoming a Totodile just like Shiny, liked having Shiny’s company so much that he renovated his attic floor so that Shiny could have a nice room to call his home.

The place he moved into and lives to this day is at Tide Grove, a semi-suberbian place near the outskirts of Triepeaks. From there, Shiny could easily take the bus to go downtown, though Shiny liked to take lots and lots of tours around this big and bustling metropolis. With time passing, Shiny became pretty much got to know Triepeaks in and out and met lots of people through his errand runs, attending school courses and assistant jobs.

Shiny would also like to check out stores to window shop or seeking for products to cook with for his buddy at home or various other things.
Of course Shiny learned on how to spend money for things at home or for himself in the right amounts from what his teachers have tutored him in, but every now and then he enjoyed to save up for special occasions or inviting a dude of his on a whim. The exciting attractions of local fairs, movie theaters, snack restaurants and cafés or arcades definitely made for some moments where he had especially fun to join into.

Some of his favorite hobbies consisted of either taking care of the garden at home growing juicy berries and tasty veggies, enjoying music both through listening what has been making his toes tap or practicing the electric guitar that he earned himself through the generous opportunity to work at one of the local stores, a records, CDs and music equipment location called “Melody and Rhythm”.
Shiny in general learned to love how music introduced him to the world of dancing, parties, simply letting his energetic self be bouncy and twirly.

In his new home's peaceful community of people from all sorts of places, differing species and of varying talents, Shiny has also been very amazed whenever he got to meet people around his own size, feeling like he wasn’t unusually small with his below three feet of size. Being honest with himself though, he had admiration for all the people towering over him and generally himself always dreamed of having a growth spurt at some point so he’d also be as big and impressive as them.

In Triepeaks, growth could be achieved via the means of abilities beyond the natural growth but Shiny was ambitious that if he’d grow for good and stay big, it wouldn’t be by cheating. He still experienced the occasional surprise of being made bigger by the pranks or games that he’s gotten to take part in.
Bigness for Shiny definitely was admirable.

...which leads us to:

A particular subject of purchasable items, that connected pretty much most of Shiny’s joyful thoughts, were something that Shiny had been introduced to quite early on after his arrival, namely those colorful rubbery toys and decorative things called balloons.🎈
Not only the labs where Shiny arrived at were partly involved in making all sorts of different useful items but also such more funny amusing things as like party supplies.

Shiny’s eyes have been glowing, mesmerized by such items since the very first floating helium balloon that he’s been surprised with.
Balloons could do so many things in his eyes. Being pretty and colorful, being blown into all sorts of sizes with either water or different assorts of gases, and make people smile. To Shiny, balloons were absolutely awesome (or totodily awesome like he amusingly phrases it thanks to a suggestion by one of his dudes at Lamplight Labs).

One of balloons' several qualities that felt inspiring to Shiny was that sheer variety they came in. Some had shapes going from simple geometrical shapes to looking as detailed as himself.
And playing with them additionally was so easy that even a small guy like Shiny could hold a superbig balloon above his head like it was nothing.
And that said, holding onto a balloon felt soft and squishy, a bit like a cushion with a bounce to it, what Shiny found lovely, too.

On top of it all, thanks to the magical properties that some people have given to balloons, in certain cases it was also possible to encounter a living one, a socalled Toyfur, at Triepeaks. Shiny got lucky to learn a bit on how to even turn himself into a Toy every now and then ,whether by his first of plenty times where Shiny got involved in cartoon Inflation, or by chaning into a socalled Balloonie.
People have applauded him on his amusing experiments and surprises becoming an inflatable Totodile, and vise-versa he gladly helped out if someone happened to look deflated and needed assistance in puffing back into shape.

The happy Totodile could see how much balloons helped bringing out the party vibes, and when there was a chance to decorate for parties with balloons, sometimes even prepping up toys at home and bouncing gleefully around the big playthings, it would make him excited for the great fun to be had.
Shiny’s generous friends every now and then have gifted Shiny balloons a plenty. And the boxes of inflatables in his possession were even frequently refilled, should he actually run out because some dudes of his might have been on a balloon popping spree.

Regarding that, some of his bigger dudes had different tastes regarding how to play with balloons. There were ones who would love to pop them all the time, while some would actively be bummed out by them popping or get nervous when it happened.

Though with Shiny, he loved balloons no matter the size or colors equally. The balloon enthusiastic Totodile sometimes would feel guilty over accidentally popping a balloon given to him, yet he didn’t seem to mind the popping noise itself. It at least didn't really remind him of roaring thunder.

Shiny learned to understand that balloons just can happen to pop after having been played with a bunch, so he still found beauty in the confetti-like scraps that stayed behind afterwards, sometimes using them to decorate and throw them about at festivities. If anything, it just added more to why balloons were such a joy to play with.

The jolly Totodile could sometimes be seen handing out balloons to others to cheer them up, while at home, he couldn’t help himself every now and then and made an effort to fill all of the floor in his room with balloons or trying to cramp them inside his wall cabinet, so he could dive into lots of the reflective orbs.

Whether blowing balloons up himself or via different kinds of pumps, Shiny became more knowledgable of how to have big and squeaky toys thanks to some people who also were big fans of playing with balloons. And some invited Shiny to their parties as well, seeing how much fun Shiny had, carrying balloons on him.

Many friends patted Shiny on the head whenever they saw how much fun Shiny had bouncing on balloons like a trampoline or just using balloons like his personal little relaxing cloud, resulting in them nicknaming Shiny a little Totodilooner.
To Shiny it was a very amusing other nickname besides Totodude and if enjoying to have balloons in your pocket and at home meant people being happy, there were only benefits in it for him.

All that said, Shiny of course still enjoyed a bunch of other things outside balloons like running and playing about outside, swimming and all the funfilled games that he or his many dudes could come up with, but whenever he got invited to prepare a party or somebody gifted him balloons, Shiny has been very much excited and happy to come in contact with more inflatables.
In Shiny's opinion it felt always just natural to him that balloons and inflatables must be quite as popular as nice music, fashionable clothing, movies, video games and tasty treats.

Occasionally inflating one or several balloons from his collection after being done with his daily duties and not yet sleepy enough to go to bed yet, hugging and squishing over the surface of some rubbery balloons resulted in deep and creaky noises as well as sometimes higher pitched squeaks, which both made Shiny giggle as they reminded him some of the music instruments he got to listen to. That melodic side of his toys was also very lovely to him.

When it comes to the variety of inflatable toys, there is even more to mention.
Shiny found it nice when in some balloons, he was also able to see his reflection, giving him a big snooted face in the curved surface. He already learned to enjoy playing in front of mirrors, dressing up and having that with balloons, was way sweet. Some balloons reminded him of stars in the night sky because the material they were made of were a metallic-silvery to golden foil of sorts. And it seems like a given that a jolly Totodile nicknamed Shiny also had a soft spot for shiny stuff.

The small Totodile also loved to hang out with balloons resembling the appearance of objects and be made for floating on water. Such heavier type of balloons called prop-up inflatables or pooltoys came usually in a more sturdier nearly fabric-like material that was likely made to even keeping very heavy folks afloat with ease. Resting on such toys sure was comfy to Shiny and some nights he’d just fall asleep on top of one.

Thanks to the magical effects and circumstances with his friends’ ideas, Shiny has been in a bunch of situations with balloons where some either have carried him around through the air or Shiny has been inside the one or other inflatable even.
In a few cases, Shiny got pretty much held in place even by lots and lots of smaller or a pair of bigger balloons. At such moments Shiny’s cheeks would glow slightly and it reminded him of like being hugged by his bigger dudes.
To make Shiny wag his tail and hop up and down with glee, you would either have to praise him, cuddle him, or show him something cute, cool or tasty. Balloons definitely belonged alongside such things and all the ideas that contained them.

The stunning world of devices to create things from magic and therefore combine them with daily objects gave Shiny even more ways to be amazed by balloons. His favourite toys were changed in how they’d function in various ways.
Shiny has seen balloons that could float behind one without the need of a string, balloons that inflated on their own when being activated through chemical reactions or printed on runes and the sorts.
He also encountered balloons that could be used for transport or apparently could grow indefinitly until somebody would make them disappear. Balloons that glow in the dark to balloons that could display messages and contain items were also available.
To Shiny such things were rather fascinating and fun to observe, yet he still also just enjoyed regular balloons as much as ones that came with special effects.

To Shiny balloons pretty much became his favourite toys aside the cute plushies and action figures that his friends brought with them for him. The party mood that balloons gave him as well as the motif of growth made them so cool to him. The squeaky toys could do amazing things he never got tired of observing.

At times, the turquoise Reptile would just find it cool to turn on an automated pump hooked to a balloon and see how the thing slowly billowed out in size taking up more and more room.
In some occasions said balloon instead has been an inflatable tent and Shiny climbed inside the loose blankets made of vinyl and had a happy time looking as it practically was setting itself up around and above his head.
And yet in other cases, Shiny was lucky to find inflatables that were made to be worn like a suit. He’d not mind as the layers of rubber and air would hug around his small frame and lift him into the air like a friend holding him in their arms.
In such moments of basically being stuck until the toy would deflate, Shiny has been just making the best of the situation and taking a rather lovely nap in which he dreamed of images like his buddies around Triepeaks climbing on a large sized version of himself, like an inflatable playground which Shiny also found way cool.

One gotta imagine that you could make inflatable houses called bouncy castles, have swimming pools, boats and various other things to just fold out, fill with air and ready to use they are.
Shiny was himself in the happy opportunity of receiving a little bouncy castle of his own from Lamplight Labs when he did take care of a row of projects of his own for the first time. He loved having that in the garden during warmer summer days and inviting in his dudes for a pool party together with Brakk.
Whether there were beachballs involved somebody bringing in an inflatable slide or balloons you could twist and fold into balloon Animals, headgear and swords, things have made for very amusing parties with balloons.

To Shiny, it also has been impressive that balloons could be used to aid people in various ways. If somebody who wasn’t such a water dweller like Shiny, needed something to stay afloat, they could have a lovely designed innertube, an inflatable vest or small floaters to wear around your arms.
Shiny might not need such items himself to be safe in the water, but as a balloon lover he definitely still enjoyed to get to use them every now and then. They surely made for an adorable appearance on the side of providing him with a relaxing float.

Parties with balloons were always a must for the happy Totodile, yet he has learned about all the exciting ways people used inflatables of varying designs for their festivities.
Around festivals, Shiny and many other happy city folks got to gaze at large blimbs, hot air balloons and floats to advertise or simply create a spectacular view in the blue sky.
During holidays, people often put up inflatables befitting the occasions reaching from Halloween pumpkins to red nosed Reindeers and such cute decorations would be illuminated from the inside out and add to the scenery around peoples’ houses.
The people at the labs or even some factories outside the city that Shiny was stoked about getting to visit at some point, were also always thinking of contraptions or designs for more balloons that could be aquired by people to enjoy as either toys or decorative props.

You can see that to the happy Totodile, all such things have been simply beautiful in all their senses that they were able to affect him. Looking nice, making amusing sounds, great to nuzzle against, and he didn't mind playfully squashing some in his jaws (in a few cases toonishly leading to him gulping down a balloon like a dumpling). Shiny also pretty quickly learned to love the scent of rubber and latexy things.
Speaking of which, in a few occasions the playful Totodile had the chance to play with liquid rubber and even get covered in it. Such experiences to him felt just as amusing as when taking his regular showers and baths, and he liked the squeaky results coming from them.

At this point, you can bet that with balloons no matter if just one stuffed under a shirt, or enough to fill up rooms with them, lno matter if lighter than air or heavy waterballoons that could steamroll over you, any of such options would be a welcome surprise to Shiny, and it would be easy for you to win him as an assistant, would any of your experiments in science, magic or toony shenanigans involve something rubbery and squeaky.

In any way, Shiny the little Totodilooner is still happy to this day to sometimes wake up to a bunch of inflatables surrounding his bed, whether there are inflatable versions of other Pokémon, simply colorful orbs that remind him of carnivals and various parties, or anything magical that brightens up the day and adds to him feeling just as bouncy.
Perhaps you may meet Shiny wearing some rubbery stockings that a dude of his gifted to him, as he’s listening to music resting on top of a balloon as you come for a visit.
Or perhaps you meet Shiny at the central park donning a dapper suit and playing balloon vendor as he shares his fun of balloons with other people. He’s surely happy to share the fun with you as well.

(And perhaps one might take Shiny even home as their personal Totodiloon. (^.=.^)*squeak* 🎈)

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I wanted to do one of these for a while again and have been in and out editing the text here, trying to not forget the vast collection of ways you can find balloons in the community, including pretty much everything that you could think of. But I challenge you here. I happily hear if I forgot anything. (thinking of it, did I mention that in this toony community you can also inflate plushies with a buil-a-bear like contraption and make them plush balloons? Or that Slime Monsters are pretty much like another kind of living balloons in a way. I bet Shiny loves those, too, hehe). X3

In regards to this all, I gotta state that IRL I am not a looner myself, but I always thought combining cute and colorful toys would make cute and colorful characters, well, even cuter, and growing up with cartoon Inflation and finding on FA lots of you who encouraged the joys of their characters taking on amusing shapes, it just felt natural that I gave my playful Totodile mascot a bit of a strong affinity towards such toys. Obviously the farthest the subject goes for me is making Shiny a little flustered, but generally seeing him happy and joyful around toys is what makes it nice to pair the subjects.


Thanks here go out to Gato who drew the lovely illustration of Shiny resting on top of that big white and blue balloon. I love Shiny's expression of comfort which can make you guess that he is either just taking in the soft squishing into the balloon's surface with delight, or that he's already fallen asleep dreaming of likely more balloons even, sending him on cloud nine for a divine float across the sky.
Shiny's vest and headphones were also really nicely drawn and I enjoy that Gato took notice of the design of the player buttons on the Bluetooth-MP3-wristband. Lastly, Shiny's baody expression is just so sweet! He looks so relaxed with his tail resting on the balloon like it were a big airbed or cushion for him.
I also like the nice pattern that Gato gave the balloon here which is reminiscent of how some IRL balloons' colors are designed by mixing up two colors in a paint vat and dipping the balloons inside them, giving them those wobbly shapes. I sure can understand why people love to save up money to start a balloon collection here.
Overall, the composition of my mascot on the balloon with the squishlines, and highlights on the balloon, plus the pastel colors of the background gradient create such a nice result together, that I just could not help myself but using the illustration for my trivia-about-Shiny post.


You are of course able to find various other nice balloon related art of Shiny here, in Gato's gallery and across various other submissions that I hope to share with you soon enough yet.
For now though let me thank you who have read till the end of my description and I hope that I might have been able to capture your interest. Should you also enjoy balloons, inflatables, rubberstuff and whatnot, I of course gladly also encourage you to write me about that, why your characters might find them as totodily awesome as Shiny does. I'm also interested if there are specific ideas that you like especially and perhaps would be interesting to see Shiny get into. Perhaps I can share a link or two with you or I will memorize it for future potential submissions. It's great to bond over such things.


For now I hope you all will enjoy a lovely Totodile's Day and an uplifting time! Love you, dudes!💖

Shiny, art and story belong to ShinyTotodude
Artwork drawn by aldo5037
Brakk belongs to Brakkwani
Totodile belongs to Nintendo/GameFreak/ThePokémonCompany