Classroom Changes: Chapter 13 The Gift: Part I

Summertime.

Umako was working at the Monster Girl Cafe, covering for the regular girls while they took time off to enjoy the nice weather. She needed to save money for her university expenses. She had enrolled at the prestigious Tohoku University in Miyagi to study Computer Science. She felt honoured to have been accepted, but the school was about a four-hour subway and train ride from her home, too far to commute. She had secured a spot in the University House residence and was excited about sharing a home with other students, domestic and international. She hoped there would be a good mix of human and demi-human.

Fortunately, and somewhat mysteriously, she had been awarded a new scholarship set up specifically for demi-human students. The ‘More Than Human’ foundation, funded by an anonymous donor, was covering all her tuition, book and residence costs. She still needed to save for her incidental expenses. The mysterious part was that she had not applied for an award; indeed, she had never heard of the foundation before receiving the notice that she was being sponsored. She suspected Kate had nominated her, but Kate swore she had nothing to do with it.

The work at the cafe was hard, but the camaraderie among the staff was delightful. Reminiscing about the hours she used to spend there socializing over coffee and pastries with Aya made her wistful, though. She had not seen Aya since Serass whisked her off to another universe.

—--------------------------------------------

Friday Evening.

Umkao was exhausted after a long day at work and looked forward to a good night’s sleep followed by a relaxing weekend.  It was not coming easily in her uncomfortably warm room. She was finally drifting off when she heard a melodious voice calling out to her.

“Wakey, wakey, my little pony”

Umako startled awake. There shouldn’t be anyone else in her room. As her vision cleared, she noticed Serass sitting on an oily black cloud, floating at the foot of her sleeping mat.

“Serass,” Umako moaned, still half asleep, unsure if this was a dream, “Why are you here?”

“It’s time for you to have a visit with your fishy friend,” Serass replied.

“Aya!” Umako whispered excitedly, scanning the room, “She’s here?”

“No, she is at Inasmont. I’ve come to take you there.” 

“Now?” Umako questioned, “But it’s late at night.”

“Time flows differently there,” Serass explained. “It’s early morning in Inasmont. The students have just finished breakfast. Do you want to go or not? My time is valuable.”

“Of course I want to go,” Aya exclaimed, jumping up and throwing on a T-shirt. “How do I get there?”

Rather than answer, Serass waved her hand. A portal opened, and through it, Umako could see Aya studying at an antique wooden desk, writing in a book with a quill pen.

“Hi Aya”, Umako shouted in excitement. There was no reaction. Umako looked at Serass in confusion.

“Sound can’t cross the portal,” Serass explained. “Sound is waves in the air. If air were allowed to cross, the pressure differentials would create horrific winds. Just step through. I will reopen it in 8 hours. You can be home by morning; nobody needs to know you were gone.”

Umako approached the gateway and timidly inserted one hoof through. She could feel it touch down on the stone floor of Aya’s room. Aya turned as the hoof landed, presumably startled by the sound of it hitting the floor, although from Umako’s point of view it was silent.

Aya’s eyes widened with fear. She moved her hands in intricate patterns, drawing runes in the air with streamers of light. Then recognition dawned on her face. With a wave, she dismissed the spell she was weaving and mouthed “Umako”, her face beaming with joy.

Reassured by her friend’s welcoming look, Umako stepped through the portal into another universe.

—--------------------------------------------

The change startled Umako as she cleared the portal. Her room had been very warm as it was midsummer at home. Aya’s room had a distinct chill to it. Glancing out a window, she saw a bare tree, indicating that the land was in the grip of winter. Her hooves clattered on the stone floor as she nervously shuffled her feet.

Aya’s familiar face was a welcome counterpoint to all the strangeness of this new environment. Umako started toward her, planning to lift her from her chair for a long overdue hug. To her amazement, before she reached the desk, Aya arose from the chair and floated into Umako’s arms.

“What? How? Aya?” Umako sputtered.

“Water magic,” Aya replied casually, as if her feat was the most normal of activities. “It seems we merfolk have a natural affinity for manipulating water. I use the magic to keep a thin layer of water wrapped around my tail. Then I can levitate the water, and it carries me along with it.”

Aya demonstrated this again by floating back to her chair.

“That’s amazing,” Umako exclaimed

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Aya laughed, “You should see the kind of stuff they teach here.”

“I’ve been reading your letters,” Umako confided, “But I wasn’t sure if I should believe them.”

“My letters…” Aya queried, looking surprised and a little alarmed.

“Yeah,” Umako said, “Shortly after you left, this strange book appeared in my room. At first, it was all blank pages, but over time, it started to fill in with what appeared to be letters you were writing to me.”

“That’s what I thought was my private diary,” Aya moaned, “I wrote the entries like they were letters to you, but I never thought you would see them.”

“Oh,” Umako said, blushing, “I’m so sorry. I never would have read them if I knew they were meant to be private.”

“It’s ok,” Aya assured her, “I hope I didn’t embarrass myself too much.”

“Not at all,” Umako replied, “They were a joy to read and I cherish them, they’re the next best thing to having you back. I was only sad that there wasn’t a way for me to reply. I hoped that if I wrote in the book, you would see it, but no pen or pencil I tried could make a mark on the paper.”

Aya looked pensive for a long moment.

“You know, don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m glad you couldn’t write to me,” she said eventually, “It’s been so hard to settle into this strange realm and hearing from you would have made me so much more homesick.”

Umako nodded and gave Aya a sympathetic smile.

“Hey,” Aya said, brightening, “This is no time for sad stuff. Let me show you around the place. Can I ride on your back?”

“Sure,” Umako replied, “But why would you want to if you can levitate?”

“It takes concentration to maintain the spell,” Aya explained, “Besides, it will be fun. Just like old times”

—--------------------------------------------

Aya and Umako made quite a stir among the students as they toured the campus. Umako was quite disconcerted by all the whispering and pointing.

“What’s going on?” she whispered to Aya. “Why are they all looking at us?”

Aya couldn’t control her laughter any longer.

“What?” Umako demanded, annoyed.

“Sorry, Umako. I’m afraid I was messing with you.” Aya managed to reply, gasping for breath between laughs. “ You see, in this world, centaurs are well known for their pride. They would never let anyone ride on them unless it was a medical emergency! They probably think I’m practicing my power of command on you.”

“You bitch!” Umako exclaimed, although with a smile showing she wasn’t furious. Aya was well known for her pranks, and frankly, Umako would have been disappointed if Aya hadn’t pulled something. 

“Come on, I’ll show you the Fantastic Beasts zoo,” Aya offered to make amends. She levitated off of Umako’s back and floated beside her.

“It’s easier to talk to you this way anyway,” she smirked.

—--------------------------------------------

The day flew by, and before Umako knew it, they were back in Aya’s room, waiting for the portal to open.

“Before I go, I have to tell you about Masuyo,” Umako said. “You wrote that you ran into her here. She’s back now, the curse is gone, and she’s a different person. She’s so much more confident and pleasant. It seems she has a boyfriend in this world. I don’t know how that’s going to work out, talk about a long-distance relationship. Anyway, I’m sure you’ll be quite pleased with the new Masuyo when you come home.”

“Yeah, about the returning home thing…” Aya said, avoiding eye contact.

“What?” Umako demanded, “You said you could control your power. Why are they making you stay here?”

“They’re not making me stay. But I’m learning so much, and yet the more I learn, the more I see I don’t know yet. I’m seriously considering staying on another year, or maybe even two.”

Umako was crestfallen. “But I miss you so much, two more years is like forever.”

“I know, I feel the same,” Aya said. “But at least now I can visit more often—Freya actually trusts me to control myself. And hey, when I go back home, just think how cool it’ll be for you to say your bestie is a powerful mage!”

“The most powerful on Earth?” Umako teased with a wink.

“Well… except for a few of the teachers here,” Aya admitted quickly, glancing around as if one might overhear. “I know some of them are secretly visiting our world…”

“You were already a handful as a regular girl,” Umako laughed. “I’m not sure the world’s ready for ‘Aya the Wizard.’”

“Well, they better get ready,” Aya replied, joining in the laughter.

“Oh, speaking of magic, I almost forgot I have something for you,” Aya declared, opening a drawer in her desk and removing a large polished jade box.

“What is it?” Umako asked suspiciously. Was this another of Aya’s pranks? “It’s not going to turn me into a toad, is it?”

“Nah, magic has a conservation of mass limitation. The more the object’s mass changes in a transformation, the more skill it takes to work the spell. I’m not that advanced yet.” Aya retorted with a sinister grin. “I could probably manage turning you into a horse, you’re three-quarters there already.”

Umako went slightly pale, worried Aya might mean it.

“Seriously, though,” Aya continued, “It’s something to spice up your sex life with Hiroto. Freya helped me create it; she said it was her mother’s idea.”

“What,” Umako asked warily, particularly concerned to hear Serass was involved, “Is it some kind of magic vibrator?”

“I don’t want to spoil the surprise,” Aya replied, “I put a warding on the box so that it won’t open until you and Hiroto are ready to ‘snuggle’. Trust me, though; this is no prank. You'll thank me when you see what it does.”

There was a shimmering in the air as the portal to Umako’s room appeared. Aya gave Umako a goodbye hug and a more-than-sisterly kiss, then bid her farewell.

Umako stepped through the portal into her room holding the mysterious box.

—--------------------------------------------

Naturally, Umako tried to open the box as soon as the portal closed and Aya could no longer see her. The lid wouldn’t budge, even when she tried to pry it open with a screwdriver. Frustrated, she put it away at the bottom of her closet, buried under some spare blankets. Hiroto was on vacation with his family for a few more days, which would give her time to consider if she dared explore what the gift might do. She believed Aya meant well, but she wasn’t sure Aya’s definition of good sex matched hers.

—--------------------------------------------

It was a stressful week at work, so Umako had little time to think about the mysterious gift.

On Wednesday, a customer grabbed her arm as she walked by, causing her to spill a tray of coffee. She instinctively reacted by striking out with a rear hoof. She was distressed to learn that she had broken his foot. She was tearfully relating the incident to Leira when Serass interrputed and assured her that the customer got off easy. Somehow, the thought that he had avoided the eldritch horrors Serass might visit on him was not much comfort.

—--------------------------------------------

Finally, it was Saturday, and Hiroto was coming over for some Netflix and chill. Umako was happy to just hang with him in her room; going out on a date seemed too much effort after a tiring week at work.

They did stream a movie, but kept the volume low as they chatted. As usual, Umako sat on her sleeping mat, and Hiroto leaned against her. He was amazed to hear about Umako’s visit to Inasmont and insisted on hearing all about it. As the conversation proceeded, they gradually got more comfortable (less clothing) until they were both naked, with Hiroto playing with Umako’s breasts while she toyed with his semi-erect penis.

“What’s that?” Hiroto asked casually, looking past Umako to the corner of the mat. Umkao turned and was shocked to see the jade box on her bed. She had not taken it out of her closet. Furthermore, the lid was ajar.

“How the hell did that get there?” she gasped.

“What is it?” Hiroto asked, alarmed by Umako’s reaction.

“It’s a present Aya gave me,” Umako answered, bewildered, “But I have no idea what’s inside. I thought it was in my closet. I couldn’t get it open until now.” Umako flipped the lid fully open. The box contained a pendant made of a metal that shimmered like liquid mercury. When Umako picked it up, it felt warm in her hand. It was covered in strange markings that resembled Norse runes.

“Hmm,” Hiroto mused, “I thought Aya had better taste. It’s not really that attractive.”

“It’s supposed to be magic,” Umako told him, “But she wouldn’t tell me what it does. She just said it would spice up our sex life.”

“Some kind of aphrodisiac?” Hiroto mused. “I don’t really feel like I need one when I’m with you”.

Umako blushed. “Aww. Me neither,” she agreed, “But I don’t think that’s it.”

“Well, it’s a necklace; the obvious thing is to put it on,” Hiroto suggested.

“Alright, here goes,” Umako said, slipping the chain over her head.

A shiver ran through her body. “Whoa... I feel weird,” she murmured.

At the same time, Hiroto flinched. “What the—?” He turned, something firm pressing into his lower back. His eyes dropped—and widened.

“Oh… my… God,” he gasped.

“What? What is it?” Umako asked, a note of panic creeping into her voice.

“It’s… It’s enormous,” Hiroto stammered, staring at her midsection like he’d just seen a miracle—or a monster.

“Hiroto!” Umako shouted, now fully alarmed. “What’s going on down there?” A twitch of confusion and stress tightened her lower body. She felt something heavy thud against her belly.

“You’ve got a penis,” Hiroto said, his voice hushed, awestruck. “A huge one. Like—seriously massive. A full-on horsecock. It’s... majestic.”

“What the actual hell, Aya?!” Umako shrieked. She tore the necklace off and hurled it back into the box. “Tell me it’s gone!”

Hiroto blinked and peeked down again. “Uh... nope. Still very much there.”

“Oh my gods,” Umako groaned, her panic rising. “What if this is permanent?”

Hiroto looked at the pendant, resting in the jade box. He noticed a slip of paper jammed against the lid. He extracted it and began reading:

“Hey, Umako. I know you have concerns that Hiroto is not man enough for you.” Hiroto stopped and gave Umako an inquiring look. She blushed and shrugged.

“It’s fine,” Hiroto said, “It’s not exactly a secret. I should have expected you’d talk to Aya about it”. He continued reading:

“This charm will give him a cock that can do justice to your magnificent body. Have him put it on before sex. Once the enhancement has begun, he can remove it, and the transformation will last until he comes. Have fun. Love Aya”

“So,” Hiroto concluded, holding up the note, “it was meant for me, not you.”

“Ya think?” Umako shot back, deadpan. “Next time I’ll be sure to check the fine print before accidentally sprouting a third leg.”

He winced sympathetically. “So… what do we do now?”

“Well,” Hiroto said, rereading, “It says it’ll go away when you come. So I guess I get down to business with your lady bits and—”

Umako cut him off. “I really don’t think that’s going to do it. This thing”—she motioned down—“feels like it came with its own user manual. And that manual says oral input required.”

Hiroto went pale.

Umako tilted her head. “Is that fear I see? Or morbid curiosity?”

“Uh… both?” he said weakly. “I have to what now?”

“Oh, come on,” Umako coaxed. “I’ve done it for you plenty of times. Consider this… character development.”

Reluctantly, but not unenthusiastically, Hiroto leaned in. The sheer size of it gave him pause.

“Jesus, Umako. You could joust with this thing.”

“Less commentary, more commitment,” she teased.

He opened his mouth and took in as much of the head as he could, which wasn't much. His tongue flicked against the tip as his hands explored the shaft—awkward at first, but increasingly confident as he mimicked the techniques he’d enjoyed from her.

Umako was startled by the intensity of the sensation. Sex for her was a slow build-up of desire that took a quarter hour or more to peak. This experience was much more urgent. She wanted to thrust, to drive herself into Hiroto. The way she was lying on the bed inhibited her ability to do so, her hind legs twitching with no purchase for her hooves. She had to be careful that she didn’t accidentally kick Hiroto; she could easily hurt him. As the feelings built, Hiroto’s gentle touch wasn’t enough.

“Harder,” she panted. “Faster!”

Hiroto complied, picking up the pace with both mouth and hands, committing to the effort with surprising enthusiasm. Her pleasure mounted quickly—unrelentingly—until the pressure became unbearable.

“Wait, I think I’m—”

Too late.

Her hips jerked, her whole body shuddered, and her cock pulsed as she climaxed violently, releasing a flood into his unsuspecting mouth.

Hiroto gagged and pulled back, coughing and sputtering as semen overflowed down his chin. He looked both dazed and mildly betrayed.

“Oh, sorry, darling,” Umako said sweetly, giggling. “Guess it was more than you could swallow.”

Even as she spoke, her erection softened, retreating like a vanishing magic trick. Within seconds, the shaft, sheath, and testicles had all been reabsorbed into her body, leaving no trace.

“Well,” she sighed contentedly, collapsing back onto the mat. “Now I understand that face you make when you come. It's ridiculous.”

Hiroto could only nod, still coughing, his eyes slightly glassy.

—--------------------------------------------

Umako and Hiroto lay tangled together, the afterglow wrapping around them like a warm blanket. She basked in that blissful calm that only followed a truly great orgasm—but a small voice in the back of her mind refused to let her fully relax.

“So,” she asked tentatively, “I hope that wasn’t too gay for you, but I really couldn’t think of any other way to fix my dilemma.”

Hiroto considered his answer carefully.

“I know you’ve been worried about my sexual orientation since that incident with Aya’s boyfriend. Frankly, I’ve wondered about it myself. I had to check out some gay porn to see how I’d react.”

“And…” Umako prompted nervously.

“The sight of a naked man does nothing for me,” he assured her, “I believe it was totally Aya’s magic that compelled me to hook up with him.”

Umako breathed a sigh of relief.

“That’s what I’ve been hoping to hear,” she replied, “But when you saw that horsecock on me, your eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store.”

“Yeah,” he admitted, blushing. “That was something different. I mean, it was still you, someone I love. And, to be honest, compared to you becoming a centaur, it wasn’t that much of a change.”

“After the initial shock,” he continued,  “I kind of got excited that this was a novel way to give you pleasure. How many people get to feel what sex is like from the other side?”

Umako smiled and kissed him.

“Well,” she confessed, “It was an experience I’ll never forget.”

Hiroto grinned. “I wouldn’t mind a sequel. Y’know, if you ever feel like slipping that pendant on again…”

“That’s a very generous offer,” Umako laughed, “I just might take you up on that someday. But for now, let’s use it like Aya intended.”

… to be continued