Ronald went through the final calculations with only half his attention. This new revelation gave him much to consider. Now and then, he stole a glance at Randy, who was busy shutting off the Bunsen burner and preparing to clean up. The boy's changes had progressed steadily, maybe even accelerated by the drastic tweaking to his height. By now, he possessed a fine, delicate bone structure to go with his diminished size. His nose had softened into a pert little button, and his mouth had gained some rosebud lips, pink like his nails. Checking his eyes would have to wait until he took off his goggles. To top it all off, the color of his hair had brightened a bit into a healthy chocolate brown while its length had reached chin level .
Not bad, but Ronald felt a bit bad about unintentionally robbing Randy of his athleticism. Could he possibly undo the height and build adjustment? Concentrating, he tried to envision a taller girl with lean, toned musculature.
At first, nothing seemed to happen. Then, Randy began to grow. Unlike his earlier rapid shrinkage, his re-growth came at a snail's pace. It was difficult, like swimming against a current. Not only that, Ronald had to maintain his mental image the entire time. Fortunately, any slip would merely cause the process to stop rather than reverse, but he could sense that the magic at work did not appreciate having to backtrack.
Soon, however, Randy had gained back a few inches, though not much beyond the lower range of average. He also developed some muscle again, enough to give him a lithe, gracefully sculpted physique. Hopefully, he could now partake in some kind of sport.
"How's it going?" Randy asked.
"I think I've got the numbers correct. Want to check it for me?" Ronald moved around the table and held out his notebook.
"Sure," Randy replied.
With Randy distracted, Ronald took the opportunity to check on Leonard. The boy's weight had definitely taken a plunge, giving him a narrower waist above some nicely flared hips. Interestingly, his chest had kept a bit of fat, distributed into two parts that shifted separately beneath his shirt as he moved.
To anyone watching, it almost looked like an invisible sculptor was chipping away at his extra mass, removing whole parts here while leaving bits there. Already, his face had become one of classic beauty, with high cheekbones and cupid's bow lips. Glasses which once marked him as a nerd and outcast now sat on the table, ignored. Would girl Leonard need them when he was done?
He's going fast, maybe faster than Randy! But why? Wait, was it because I was standing nearer to him? Do the changes go faster if I'm closer? I wonder how far I have to be before they stop altogether.
Still contemplating these things, Ronald set about cleaning up the rest of the experiment. Carrying the used glassware over to the sink designated for such purposes, he disposed of the leftover liquid chemicals. Carefully, he rinsed off the beaker and other supplies with distilled water before setting them down to dry. Just when he turned to go back to his table, he nearly bumped right into Karyn going in the opposite direction.
"Eep!" She yelped as a container almost flipped out of her hand.
"Oh, s-sorry." Ronald reached out to steady her. "Didn't see you there."
Rather embarrassed, she gave a shrug as she set down her supplies. "No, it's my fault. I wasn't paying attention." Nervously, she lifted her goggles and gave him a smile. "But thanks."
Ronald gulped. Dang! She's already beautiful. What's there to improve? Then, he eyed her shapeless sweater and scuffed jeans. *Hm *
Technically, her style preference might be part of her personality, which would preclude it being altered. On the other hand, perhaps an improved taste in fashion would be counted as part of being a sexy, feminine girl. There was one way to find out.
Before he could do anything, though, Randy called to him from the table. Deciding to save this particular experiment for later, Ronald headed back to his seat.
Jon wandered about the halls, still searching for the stone and being careful to avoid any faculty members. He had told Karyn to go on to class when he saw that lunch had ended, but he opted to keep up the hunt. Saving the universe seemed like a reasonable excuse to skip class. Now approaching the end of the period, he still found himself empty-handed.
"Might as well just wait for Karyn," he sighed.
Going over to the door to the lab, he peeked through the window. He spotted Karyn right away. "Who's she talking to?" Jon mumbled to himself. It seemed to be a boy he vaguely recognized. "Doesn't he go to my geometry class? I never spoke to him before."
Eyeing the boy as he finished his conversation with Karyn, Jon found him oddly intriguing. "Maybe I could get to know him. Just to be friendly."
