(Clay TF, statue TF)
By grapehyacinth
“Headmaster, I don't know what else to do. Shirona is the biggest troublemaker this school has ever seen. She keeps saying that 'art class is stupid' and 'how will art or music help get me into a decent magical arts college next year'?”
The headmaster chuckled, swinging towards the unhappy teacher. “The arts are the background to any good education, I always say. She's a smart kid, but she's a bit belligerent. And it's worsened over the years. As you requested, I had a conference with her parents. They say you should do what's necessary to teach her. Short of violence or torture,” he added with a nasty grin.
Art teacher Richard Glenwood shrugged. “Whatever you say. If you're all good with it.”
“And nothing permanent. They want her to be able to go to college.”
“I think I have just the thing.”
“How stupid is this? We're going to do pottery? Why, so we can make our own cauldrons?” Shirona snickered as Richard began to explain the day's project.
“Cauldrons are so 1600,” countered Tia, one of the many girls that did not particularly like Shirona. And the feeling was mutual.
“My mom uses one still for high-volume potions,” squeaked Nancy Irons.
“She probably created you in it, Nancy,” Shirona burst out. “Like a test-tube baby. No! A test-cauldron baby.” No one else found this remotely funny.
Richard silently passed a box of clay out to each student. When he got to Shirona, she pushed it away from her. “Can I be excused?” she asked in a saccharine tone.
“No,” Richard muttered, walking past.
“Oh, no, Mr. Art-Wizard, my clay fell on the floor.”
“You pushed it, you bitch,” Tia pointed out helpfully.
This was the last straw. Richard was behind Shirona so fast that she gasped. “Did you just teleport or something?” she emitted.
Ignoring the girl, he placed a hand on both of her shoulders. “You want to call me an art-wizard, huh? First of all, I might be one of the strongest wizards you've met so far, and I just happen to like to teach art. Now stand up.”
For once, Shirona looked fearful. “Why?”
“DO IT!” Richard thundered.
Meekly, she complied. Richard could feel her shaking slightly.
“You wasted my clay. It costs the school money.”
“You're a wizard. Make more.”
He smiled sweetly. “I will.”
The teacher's hands on Shirona's shoulders sent a strange heat into her body. The warmth then grew into a tingly sensation, and she gasped in horror. She recognized this feeling instantly – he was using a transformation spell on her! Who would have thought this lowly art teacher was powerful enough to transform someone? And who gave him permission?
“You're changing me!”
“Sure are!” Richard answered jubilantly. He increased the pressure, and Shirona found herself shrinking.
“But...but...you can't!” she sputtered. “You're not allowed!”
“I got permission.”
By now, her body was losing form. Her arms disappeared into her sides and her legs were melting into a shapeless gray mass. “Who gave you permission?” she cried.
“The headmaster and your parents.”
“But my parents would never–”
“Your parents are sick and tired of this! They don't know what to do with you anymore. So they all agreed that you are mine.”
“Yours?” she gulped in confusion.
But Richard, never the conversationalist, was growing tired of the pointless banter. “Mine. Now calm down, Shirona. You know how nice a good transformation can feel if you let it.” He sent some more power into her to allay some of her fear, for it was slowing down her changes. With that, her very features began to melt away. She made a delighted moan and her eyes rolled back in bliss until they vanished into the melting glob she was becoming.
The class watched on in interest. “Wow, I didn't know you had that kind of power, Mr. Glenwood!” uttered one of the boys.
“Dude, I love watching transformations! They're awesome. And I'm jealous of her,” added another.
The writhing mass somehow made another very distant moan as it shrank to the floor, taking on the cubic form of one of the boxes Richard had handed out. It quivered a bit, fell to its side, and grew still.
The class was silent for a minute.
“Nice job!” exclaimed one of the boys.
“Can you change us all too?” Nancy requested. “Please?”
“This is art class, Nancy. You want to be changed, wait for Transformation 101 next year, okay?” He picked up the clay cube that Shirona had become and juggled it in his hand approvingly. “There, Shirona. You've replaced your clay. And you came out quite nicely, I have to admit.”
“How is that a punishment?” Tia whined.
“Oh, you'll see,” he raised his eyebrow, and all the kids began to chat excitedly.
Shirona herself wondered how this was a punishment. Yes, it was embarrassing to undergo a complete metamorphosis before her class, but it felt so good! She was surprised that Mr. Glenwood had allowed her to enjoy it, in fact. And now, as he held her in his warm hands, she felt delightfully square and compact. She wouldn't mind staying a cube of clay...for a bit...until...
Worry welled up within her. Maybe they would leave her this way forever? Maybe that was the punishment part?
She wished he had allowed her the ability to speak...she needed to know if this was permanent!
“Okay, class. I'm going to use Shirona to demonstrate several of the projects we'll be doing in our sculpture section.”
“Awesome!” someone burst out.
Richard continued as if the student had not spoken. “Now, with any clay, first you want to knead it a bit to soften it and get it into a workable shape.”
Fingers poked into Shirona's form seemingly everywhere, and she gasped mentally. Oh, God...oh WOW! she thought to herself. She was being pushed through his fingers, poked and prodded...He had to be doing this purposely.... Ooh!
“Now Shirona here is nice and usable. The first project we'll be doing is to make a little keepsake box. Take your clay, or, in my case, my Shirona,” there was a general chuckle from the class, “and flatten it!”
Shirona, who had been a nice ball for all for only moments, now was thrust upon the table. Richard smashed his knuckles into her, pushing and pounding until she was flat and thin. “There, Shirona. That's the way to make a nice pizza or pie crust too. Hope you liked it!” He picked her thin form up and held it for the class to see.
Tia giggled. “I love that that's Shirona!”
For once, Shirona found herself in agreement with Tia. Being flat and waving in the breeze like this sent shivers through her form. It was great, but at the same time, she felt ashamed of being displayed like this.
Richard threw her roughly to the table and began to shape her into box form. “Make four sides, straighten it and flatten it evenly. And you come up with this! A beautiful Shirona-box!”
Again, he held her up for all to see, and again, she liked being 'boxed', but she did wish that this could be done to her in private. She knew the kids would tease her mercilessly later...if Mr. Glenwood ever turned her back...
“Now some clays need to be heated in a kiln to set–” Richard, peering down at her, paused for dramatic effect.
Shirona grew hysterical. No! Don't put me in an oven!
“But this kind of clay air-dries, so we're fine. No ovens needed. Even so, if we put Shirona in an oven in her current form, what do you think will happen to her?”
“She'll die?” Tia piped up hopefully.
“She's clay. Not a person. Can clay die?”
“She'll be fine when she turns back,” Nancy said. “Right?”
“If she turns back,” Richard replied darkly.
Oh, God! Thought the terrified clay box.
“Next up, we'll make an animal figurine of your choice!” Richard said, crushing Shirona's box form into a lumpy sphere. “We have all kinds of pictures and models if you need suggestions.” Rolling her back and forth in his palms, he motioned to a box of plastic animal figurines and a pile of nature books.
He twisted and pulled Shirona into a long snake. The hypnotic motion of his hands against her giving body was mind-bendingly wonderful. He picked her up and dangled her from her end. “Here's an easy one. A Shirona-snake!”
The class chuckled.
Then he folded her over several times, fashioning wings and feet. It ticked as he formed bird toes out of her; he pulled little bits from the legs he had created, and spun the bits into thin toes. She almost felt like she could stretch and move them, but not quite.
“Oh, you made her into a bird!” cried another girl in delight.
He displayed Shirona's delicate form proudly. He gripped her by her wings, and it was a weird sensation. The wings felt like her arms, only they were plastered back to her sides and sadly unmovable.
“Any of you ever been a real bird?” Richard queried.
Several kids raised their hands. “Wow. I'm impressed. Great experience, huh?”
Shirona wanted to tell them that being a clay bird was much better, yet she wished she could actually fly like this...
He tugged and shaped her wings into legs and crushed her bird-legs into longer ones. Shirona had now become a clay monkey. Richard's creating her tail was so ticklish she felt like she would burst, but of course, she could not move an inch.
A longer head, legs, and a mane...“A horse figurine!”
Shirona liked this form the best out of all the animals. The proportions of her horse-body made her feel quite majestic, but again, she wished she were a flesh-and-blood, life-sized horse instead.
“So, you got the idea, guys?”
“I thought there were three clay projects,” said one of the girls.
“Oh, there is. But first, any questions on the animal?”
“Can you turn her into a real horse?” asked another girl.
Richard chuckled. “Well, of course I can. But today we're making things out of clay. Not horses out of Shironas.”
“Shirona's clay, so that would still be making things out of clay,” Tia uttered.
“I heard that, Tia.”
“Sorry. I just want to see her turned into a real animal. She'd be a nice cow, or hippo...”
Richard coughed. He agreed with Tia wholeheartedly, and it was all he could do not to grant her wish. He could have a little bit of fun, though... “You know, consider doing less common creatures. I, for one, enjoy making marine animals.” He crushed Shirona's horse-form into something near a pyramid-shape, and she was saddened. She had enjoyed that form...but wait, what was she becoming now? He was drawing her out slightly, fashioning a tail where her legs would have been, and a flipper at the end... He was creating fins on her sides, and her head was roundish... She felt rotund, almost roly-poly...
“This is a fun form to play with. First, Shirona's a seal.” He held her up, then immediately set to modifying her. He elongated her further, slightly altering the seal form. Her figure expanded to the sides as he flattened her fat belly, which she found quite pleasant. “Now she's a fish.”
“She's a big fish!” Nancy giggled.
“I wouldn't mind her for lunch,” a boy named Mark murmured.
“And now...” the fish form was expanding, thickening, inflating...
I'm getting larger and larger...He must be using magic for this...but it's so nice...
“You turned her into a whale figurine!” Tia burst out in glee. “Oh, please let me see her!”
“I'll pass her around.” Richard did, making sure Tia ended up with Shirona last.
Tia brandished the small whale in the air. “This is great! I love that this lump of clay is Shirona!” She plunked her down on the table, and before anyone could stop her, she had slammed her fist into the clay whale, flattening it. “Guess what she is now? A manta ray!”
Everyone laughed, but Richard appeared somewhat guilty. He rescued Shirona's misshapen figure and brought it back to the front.
I am so going to get that girl, Shirona swore to herself angrily. Maybe I could get someone to turn her into a peanut and crush her into peanut butter. Then I'll make a sandwich of her...
“Okay, the last project is the toughest, so be creative with it, and be patient. We're going to try to make a statue of ourselves.”
A statue? Well, that should feel especially good when he sculpts me into a human! Shirona thought with excitement. He crushed her back into a fat oval shape, rolling her and pulling at her as he spoke. “The best way to do this is to bring in a picture of yourself so you have something to look at.”
“Can't you just turn us into statues?”
“No, Arthur, that kind of defeats the purpose.”
“Can we make someone other than ourselves?”
“No. We're doing us. This is a way to learn about ourselves.”
Richard smashed the clay girl flatter, then began to curl her up like he was fabricating a lunch wrap. Nice! Nice! Nice! she thought in delight. Then he compressed her in that form.
“So, I'm going to make a statue out of Shirona while you guys start working on your boxes. Enjoy!”
Richard took her to his desk and deposited her in front of him. “So, Shirona. I bet you're enjoying your punishment. But we've only just begun!” He positioned his hand on her, leaving indentations in her surface. “I need a bit more of you,” he decided, and she found herself growing and expanding even more. “Feels good, huh?”
Yes! Yes it does! she cried in her mind.
Being kneaded into a human figure seemed somehow even more stimulating than any of the other forms. She was not quite sure why; perhaps it was simply the magic that Mr. Glenwood was using. But the gripping, rubbing, and pulling of her clay form left her tingling unbearably. She was gaining back her arms, her head, her legs... She noticed Mr. Glenwood was leaving that area in a rougher state, and she was both grateful and upset. She did wish he could work on her down there...
He was putting great detail in creating her hair, however. She could feel him formulating strand by strand using a pointy clay instrument. Her hair had never been this long and flowing. Too bad it was just made of clay.
“Ah, Shirona, you are truly a work of art,” he murmured, studying her for a moment. Then he picked her up and exhibited her to the class. “What do you think?”
“It looks just like her!” Tia gasped. “You didn't use any magic to do that?”
Richard looked insulted. “I used the magic of my own two hands. Well, I did magically increase the amount of her a bit,” he chuckled. “I needed something to work with.”
“Dude, I see why you became an art teacher. You're way talented, Mr. Glenwood.”
“Thank you, Mark. I find creating works of art very comforting. Chanting spells and creating storms and dragons just isn't my thing.”
“But you're so powerful,” whispered another one of the girls.
“And believe me, I use my powers. But there are other career paths for wizards than just...wizards.”
“Damn, I want to be a wizard art-teacher,” Mark said.
Richard smiled. If he had even gotten through to one student, it was good.
“What are you going to do with Shirona?” Nancy asked.
“Well, first,” Richard placed her back down on his desk and pulled out his cell phone. “I'm taking a picture of her in this form! Say 'cheese', Shirona!”
Now truly embarrassed, the statue wished more than ever that she could speak. She wanted to toss back a nasty retort at him, but she also felt strangely naked in this form...Oh, no! Am I naked? He wouldn't! she wondered in horror.
But this concern was immediately put to rest with Mark's next question of “Why did you give her clothes like that?”
Richard clicked a picture and put the phone back in his pocket. “It's a toga, Richard. I gave her the dress of a goddess.”
“Some goddess,” Tia muttered.
The buzzer rang, announcing the end of the class. “Okay, guys. Leave your work where it is. We'll let it air dry, and then we'll paint it next time.”
The kids filtered out, and Shirona watched them in mounting fear. No one even gave her a second glance. Wait! What about me? I have to get to my next class! Turn me back!
Richard stood before her. “No, Shirona. You're not going anywhere. And guess what? I can hear every word you're thinking!”
You can! Why didn't you answer me before?
“I have to pay attention to my class. Not a talking ball of clay.”
Turn me back! Please! I've had enough! A strange tightness was coming over her form.
“You're not enjoying it? I allowed you to enjoy it since your parents specified no torture or violence.” Richard walked towards the door.
Where are you going? Wait! Why do I feel...tight?
“Tight? Well, what do you think? You're clay! You're drying!” Richard turned off the light.
You're leaving me like this?
“Yes! Drying is fun!”
What?
“Oh, believe me, your form growing harder, more sturdy...very nice. Enjoy! I'm off eighth period, so I'm done for today. See you tomorrow.” He began to pull the door shut.
Wait! What are you going to do with me? she whined in terror.
“We'll do just like what we do with the boxes. We'll let you air dry, and then we'll paint you. Don't worry. I'll make you nice and bright.” He shut the door behind him, ushering in a silence that nothing broke. The little statue hardened into a paintable figurine, and watched the sun set through a window.