Not A Toy 091

Sophie was pleased - for a multitude of reasons.

Finally, standing stiffly in front of her was a testament to her work. No more panic, no more demands, just two human beings perfectly shrunk and perfectly behaved. This made her feel immediately more at ease, she felt like she was back in her lab; there her tools and her numbers didn't object or scream and finally she had that same experience here. The woman couldn't deny there were moral complications with the events of the afternoon but surely there were times where such entanglements could be put aside? Sophie Shaw had laboured long under the thumb of those who did not respect her work, and nor did she respect their designs for her efforts. Wasn't she owed some moments like this?

"Very good, girls." Commented Sophie as she watched the pair stiffen their posture, bring their feet together and standing straight.

Jenna's body felt tense, yet she tried to ignore the movements and comments of the enormous redhead. The mere act of doing as this giantess requested made the teacher's skin cawl. She was a proud woman - and being reduced to a tiny, half naked version of herself that was being measured with a ruler chipped at that pride.  She attempted to keep her vision ahead but felt her eyes drift upwards curiously. Just how small was she really...

Maisie tried to bury the rising discomfort, but her face betrayed her nerves. Unbidden by her anxieties, memories of recording heights of kids in the classroom rose to her forefront. Where she was by far the shortest girl in the class and remained so for the entirety of her adolescence. Even her 'growth spurt' only took her just over five feet, and it had come late at that. Now, Maisie would once again be the shortest girl in the room, as she had so gotten used to.

"Fascinating." Came the voice of Sophie, detached and thrilled all at once. She switched hands to get a better view of her tool and her subjects.

The two women were silent as the scientist continued. "Well, Jenna. You are just about 16.4 centimeters, or perhaps 16.3 might be more appropriate. Around 6.4 or 6.5 inches if you are interested in the imperial measurements."

Jenna winced. 16.4 centimeters?! She had dolls as a child that were taller than that!

Sophie didn't wait. "And Maisie. You are 16.6 or 16.7 centimeters, and using the less specific conversion you are roughly 6.5 inches as well."

Maisie couldn't believe it. She was so tiny! And yet, she was... taller than Jenna?! She felt the anxieties of her younger years lifted somewhat by this revelation.

Sophie considered her findings. "Fascinating indeed. Jenna, when the device activated earlier you were significantly taller than Maisie here..."

Jenna grinded her teeth. "You mean when you shot me with that shrink ray of yours..."

The scientist ignored the apparent correction. "Yet my settings should have had you both end up the same scale. Jenna, how old are you?"

The teacher's lips curled in anger. "Why?"

"Answer the question please."

Jenna rolled her eyes. "Thirty-two."

"And you, Maisie?"

Maisie swallowed nervously. "Twenty-three..."

Sophie rushed through some calculations in her head, trying to reach a conclusion, yet it eluded her. "There could be a discrepancy there that is the cause. Although perhaps where the beam struck your bodies is also a factor. The difference is negligible, of course, yet it is curious."

Sophie considered something. Could Jenna still be shrinking, albeit at an extremely slow rate? Or was the reverse true - and Maisie was growing slowly? The scientist dismissed those as beyond outlier possibilities. None of her experiments had resulted in continuous effects after the device's discharge.

Jenna exhaled, irritated. It was by a small margin, but she was the shortest of the three women here and that didn't sit right with her. The two women hadn't moved as Sophie examined her doll-like subjects, and at last the teacher's patience wore thin. 

"Are you done? You got your measurements." She said, angrily.

Sophie was still making deductions in her head. "I have several questions, Jenna."

"Well, do we need to be standing like this for those?" Came the older woman's reply.

"I suppose not." The scientist relented, enjoying the sight of her unwitting mannequins.