I think these stories are hit and miss. You might like one and not like the other depending on your own complete preferences.
The WG story is very short so it's just an add-on.
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Miriam Werner heard her office door open and continued to look at the screen of a photo that she was considering for the year book. Besides being the school's only counselor, Miriam was also chief advisor on the yearbook committee..
"Um... excuse me. Is this the school counselor's office?"
Miriam looked up, and tried to place the student. Blonde, glasses, no slouch in the looks department (in spite of her conservative clothing and lack of makeup) and eyes that radiated intelligence. Miriam prided herself on knowing all of the school's students (even if it wasn't much of a feat in a rural school like this), but she was drawing a rare blank here. She nodded and motioned for the girl to sit.
The girl obliged and spoke again. "I know I just transferred in, but I'm not finding my classes challenging enough. I was hoping I could talk to you about fixing that?"
Miriam smiled. So this was the new transfer student all the teachers were talking about. "Ah, so you're Susan Corsetti, then? I'm sorry to hear that the course load your father and I hashed out over the phone isn't to your liking. What exactly is the problem?" Miriam pulled up Susan's profile on her computer.
Susan looked nervous. "Well, it's just... At my old school I was in the gifted and talented program, and all of my classes were honors and AP classes. Right now, you guys have me in the same classes that all the other seniors are taking. I've already taken half of the classes I'm currently enrolled in, and even the ones I haven't taken already are painfully slow and, well, easy. Since this is my last year, I was hoping to have more challenging classes to prepare me for college..."
Miriam looked over Susan's records. She saw from her records that Susan had it all. She had brains and she was also a good athlete as she played on the volleyball team and soccer team of her former school. This rural high school didn't have the funds to have a nationally ranked team. They didn't have money to rent an extra bus to transport its teams to the other schools. (Not for the girl's teams anyway.) Most were very far away.
Miriam looked up again and saw the girl was even prettier than she thought. I little makeup and some apparel that emphisized her assets instead of hiding them away and this girl could be as pretty as anyone. She had all this going for her and she still complained that her classes were boring. She was already a shoe-in for college. Let the hard work start there, this was her senior year a time to take at easy before the hard work really started.
How she envied her. Miriam was in her late fifties. Her youth was long gone. She didn't have any of the opportunities that Susan had. When Miriam was in high school, she could never have any of the cute guys. It didn't get much better as she aged and now it was all over for her. She wished she could relieve her youth as a pretty girl, as an athletic girl, and as a smart girl. This was a recurring theme to Miriam. She didn't remember when she started, and no one knew it, but a while back she used to take the pictures of the studs in the school to her house. As the yearbook advisor she had to select the best pictures and help organize them into the book. But she used to take them with her and get into the tub and finger herself while looking at the best of them. She would imagine she was one of the pretty girls and this was her boyfriend. She would imagine doing things to him that no teenaged girl ever could.
Miriam popped out of her reverie. Back to the present, this girl was complaining that her classes were too easy instead of just using the time to have fun? If she wants to be challenged, how about doing her job. Dealing with stuck up cheerleaders who say they should get good grades because they are pretty. Or dumb jocks who do get good grades they don't deserve because they can put a ball in a hoop. The kids that think that passing three out of five classes a year was enough to get them into college. The kids that were just plain trouble who were in her office weekly. And the host of other problems she has to deal with. She wants a challenge let her deal with them.
"I'm sorry Susan, but we're a small district. We've never really had the funding to offer AP and honors classes. I'm afraid your last year might have to be an easy one for you. Look on the bright side, you'll probably be a shoe-in for any college you decide to apply to."
Susan looked crestfallen.
Miriam frowned. This wouldn't do at all. "That said... I might still be able to help you. I do have a way to make your time here more challenging."
Susan brightened a little. "Really? How?"
Miriam pulled out a red crystal that seemed to shimmer in the light. "With this. Why don't you take a closer look?"
Susan's excitement faded. Was this some sort of new-agey crystal nonsense? However, as she glanced at the crystal she couldn't help but notice the strange star pattern the light made as it passed through. Even though Miriam was holding it perfectly still, it seemed to move, radiating outward again... and again... and again... Eventually, Susan was just staring, zombie-like at the crystal.
It felt like she was leaving her body and floating into the crystal. She tried to stay put, but she couldn't. Soon the lights of the crystal seemed to be all around her. The next think she knew she was looking at herself and the crystal was gone. "Was she looking into a mirror?" she thought. No that was her. She looked down at the body she now possessed she wasn't wearing the clothes she remembered. She didn't know she had a skirt like this at all. She was wearing a top with long sleeves. Most of her body was covered by clothes. But her hands were exposed. This wasn't her hand it had wrinkles and slight age spots.
Before she could complete her thought her former body said, "If you want something challenging, then you do my job."
"What?"
"You heard me, Susan. Well your name is Ms. Werner now. I'm sure it'll be as challenging as you can handle."
"Give me back my body!!!" Susan lunged at Miriam, but in her new youthful body, Susan was no match for her.
"Calm down. What is done is done. There is no going back."
Susan started to cry. "You can't do this."
"I'm sorry," Miriam said it although she didn't feel it. "but I can."
"I'll tell everyone."
"No one will believe you. They'll probably send you to St. Agnus if you do." St. Agnus was the local hospital. It didn't have a psychiatric department, but they could always refer to other hospitals.
Continuing to cry, Susan continued to plead to be changed back.
Miriam had enough of the girl's complaining and left the office. She wanted to get some nice clothes and find some lipstick. She heard that Richard Duttan was dating someone, but she was sure she could steal him away with this body. She could rock his world. But first her body would need a little bit of work. A few trendy clothes and some hot makeup and she would be set for action. As for her classes, she could sleep through most of them and still get into a great college. Life was good.
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Gifted and Talented 8 (WG)
Miriam Werner heard her office door open and continued to type the email she was writing.
"Um... excuse me. Is this the school counselor's office?" Susan didn't have time wait to be acknowledged. She was missing her lunch period to talk to the counselor.
Miriam looked up, and tried to place the student. Blonde, glasses, no slouch in the looks department (in spite of her conservative clothing and lack of makeup) and eyes that radiated intelligence. Miriam prided herself on knowing all of the school's students (even if it wasn't much of a feat in a rural school like this), but she was drawing a rare blank here. She nodded and motioned for the girl to sit.
The girl obliged and spoke again. "I know I just transferred in, but I'm not finding my classes challenging enough. I was hoping I could talk to you about fixing that?"
Miriam smiled. So this was the new transfer student all the teachers were talking about. "Ah, so you're Susan Corsetti, then? I'm sorry to hear that the course load your father and I hashed out over the phone isn't to your liking. What exactly is the problem?" Miriam pulled up Susan's profile on her computer.
Susan looked nervous. "Well, it's just... At my old school I was in the gifted and talented program, and all of my classes were honors and AP classes. Right now, you guys have me in the same classes that all the other seniors are taking. I've already taken half of the classes I'm currently enrolled in, and even the ones I haven't taken already are painfully slow and, well, easy. Since this is my last year, I was hoping to have more challenging classes to prepare me for college..."
Miriam looked over Susan's records. "I'm sorry Susan, but we're a small district. We've never really had the funding to offer AP and honors classes. I'm afraid your last year might have to be an easy one for you. Look on the bright side, you'll probably be a shoe-in for any college you decide to apply to."
Susan looked crestfallen.
Miriam frowned. This wouldn't do at all. The girl had it all but it wasn't enough. Miriam decided to fix the girl so she could have as much as she wanted. "That said... I might still be able to help you. I do have a way to make your classes more challenging without breaking the school's budget..."
Susan brightened a little. "Really? How?"
Miriam pulled out a red crystal that seemed to shimmer in the light. "With this. Why don't you take a closer look?"
Susan's excitement faded. Was this some sort of new-agey crystal nonsense? However, as she glanced at the crystal she couldn't help but notice the strange star pattern the light made as it passed through. Even though Miriam was holding it perfectly still, it seemed to move, radiating outward again... and again... and again... Eventually, Susan was just staring, zombie-like at the crystal.
"Susan, can you hear me?" Miriam asked.
There was a brief pause before Susan gave a soft, breathy response. "Yes."
"The problem is that you hunger for knowledge and we don't ahve the advanced classes for you. But let's change what you hunger for so you can have as much as you want. Right now you have a high IQ and a average body. Let's swap that. We will go back and start in kindergarten. There is no need to excel there, you can just be average like everyone else but when it comes time to eat you will want as much as you can handle."
Susan gains a little weight, not too much as a five year old how much could she eat. But as Miriam moved from grade to grade, Susan got fatter and fatter. The more she had excelled in education before the more her weight would increase over average now. Her body swelled up until she weighed close to three hundred pounds.
Soon the crystal was gone and Susan returned to her senses.
"As you were saying," Miriam began, "something is wrong with your classes?"
"Ummm, no. I don't know why I came here." Susan woddled out of Miriam office. She was hungry and lunch period would be over soon.
I'm very amused by your work.