Looking at Cindy and the others I quickly realized trying to attack the guard or free Steven and Carolyn was a no go. Even if I turned the guard into an infant the alarm would sound bringing more people into the room. Trying to free Steven and Carolyn was also not a good idea. Even without the guard the chances of making contact with the two of them could prove risky. Steven was only 9 now while Carolyn wasn’t far behind at 15. If I made contact with either one they could quickly be reduced to infancy before I freed them. My best bet now was to get to the bathroom and plan my next move.
Unfortunately Dr. Hardy want taking any chances. Glancing back I noticed now burly chaperone trainling behind me. What made it worse was he appeared to be far enough away to avoid regressing while remaining close enough to stop me if I tried anything.
“Bathrooms right there,” he growled, motioning towards a door. Opening the door quickly I entered the public bathroom, the guard followed maintaining a safe distance. “Think damn it, think,” I muttered. Looking towards the nearby stall I entered locking the door behalf nd me. “Make it quick I don’t have all day.”
Sitting down I rubbed my head as I tried to think. “What an I going to do,” I thought. “The others are counting on me.” I couldn’t think of anything and I wasn’t sure I could stall for much longer. Fortunately fate intervened on my behalf.
My captor seemed to be growing impatient with the amount of time I was taking. As I looked at the bottom of the door I could see him approach, violently shaking the door in an attempt to get me to speed things up. It was at this moment I noticed his feet and legs were within reaching distance of my small arms. Taking a deep breath I crept close to the door before quickly sticking my hand under the cuff of his pants and touching his leg.
My captor let out an astonished groan as he melted into his clothing. From my place on the floor I watched as his cloth No crumbled to the ground as he regressed almost instantaneously into an infant. Slowly I opened the door to see a child of maybe a year old sitting in a mass of clothing. The guard appeared to stun to even make a sound as he gazed up at me. “Gonna have to hide you pal,” I said.
Grabbing the remains of his clothing I dragged the infant towards a janitors closet. Throwing the closet open I dragged the infant inside before closing the door. Thankfully as I looked at the baby he appeared to not regress any further. Hopefully someone would find him eventually but for right now he hoped the infant would remain quiet. As I peaked out into the hallway I was thankful to see no guards around. Slowly now I crept out as I tried to make my way back towards the others. Thankfully Dr. Hardy was quite loud and angry, making finding the room much easier.
As I stood outside Cindy’s room I could hear Ellen Hardy continue to interrogate Cindy. The woman obviously had not noticed her regression yet. “Good job Cindy,” I thought. “Keep it going I’m on my way to help.” Standing on tiptoes I reached for the doorknob. Unfortunately at my 3 year old size doing something as simple as turning a door knob was a near impossible task. Standing on tiptoes and straining with every muscle I had I was finally able to turn the knob and open the door a crack. Peering inside I was surprised by what I saw.
Ellen Hardy was significantly younger now. The formerly Middle Aged woman was back in her late 20s, perhaps no older than 27. Ellen’s face appeared unlined while her brunette hair shone with renewed energy, her lab coat and business suit appeared to still fit her well enough despite some looseness around her waist. Pushing with all my might I slowly crept inside, hoping Ellen wouldn’t hear the door. Thankfully Ellen seemed to angry to hear the door slowly open and close.
“I’m getting tired of this Cindy,” Ellen roared. “You are going to give me what I want or your friends will pay the price.”
Cindy had noticed my entrance and despite some misgivings she may have had she would have to trust me. Realizing she needed Ellen’s complete attention she decided to think on her feet. “Don’t,” she cried. “Carolyn and Steven have nothing to do with this.”
“And what about your little friend,” Ellen smirked. “What about him or is he just another unfortunate victim of your carelessness?”
Cindy frowned at her rival, she needed to stall Ellen as long as possible if they were gong to escape. Glancing at the woman she could see she was still growing younger, rapidly approaching 26. Looking towards me she seemed to indicate to me that if I was going to make a move I needed to make it fast. Gathering my courage I took a deep breath and charged towards Ellen Hardy.
Ellen didn’t know what hit her as I threw my entire boy weight into the back of her knee. Stumbling the woman fell to her knees, shocked by my appearance. Quickly composing herself she spun around, glaring angrily at me. “You little brat.”
Cindy and I could only smirk as we gazed at Ellen Hardy. My attack may have knocked her backwards but it had a secondary purpose. Ellen Hardy was now a very plain looking teenager of 18. Ellen’s lab coat and business suit seemed overly baggy as she laid upon the floor. As she now tried to stand she stumbled in her suddenly loose heels. Curiously she looked herself over a look of terror and awe crossing her face. “H..how, how did I get so young?”
“Oh I forgot to mention that Ellen,” Cindy grinned. “You see the longer your Round me and my friend the younger you become. Oh, and before you think about touching one of us you should know something. Touching one of use only speeds up the process.”
Ellen grit her teeth as she slowly rose to her full height. Glaring at us angrily she turned to Cindy. “Fix this,” she growled. “Where’s the antidote? I can’t stay like this.”
Cindy smirked as she gazed at the teenage Ellen Hardy. “I don’t know Ellen,” she mused. “I mean after all I’m curious how you looked as a child, you know, since you think I’m so cute now.”
Ellen’s eyes bulged as she stared at Cindy in abject horror, she was no longer in control of the situation. If she wanted to avoid becoming a child herself she would need to listen to Cindy. “No,” she whispered. “Please...no Ill do anything you want just....please...don’t turn me into a child.”
“That depends on how quick you are Ellen,” Cindy smirked. “First you need to free me, Steven, and Carolyn. After that you going to have to follow my lead and keep your goons off of me or else, your going to get to relive grade school all over again.”
Ellen shuddered at the thought of being reduced to a preschooler, quickly grabbing a knife from a nearby table Ellen cut the ropes binding Cindy before rushing into the adjoining room to free Carolyn and Steven. As Carolyn and Steven rushed into the room with Ellen Cindy smiled. “Okay good now tie Ellen’s hands together.”
“What why,” Ellen protested as Carolyn grabbed her arm and twisted. Ellen groaned in pain as she felt the farm girl torque her arm. “Ow your hurting me,” she whined. Carolyn glared at the slightly older teen as she began to hog tie her hands together. Despite Ellen being a couple of years older than she was decades of farm work made the girl significantly stronger than the 18 year old teen.
“An your lucky I’m not even tryin,” Carolyn spat. “If I wanted too I could tear dat arm clean off.”
Ellen could only whimper as the farm girl tied her hands behind her back. Cindy appraised the situation thoughtfully as she looked over Carolyn and Ellen. For now the 15 year old would be able to handle the 18 year old Ellen. Unfortunately the teens were still growing younger. Carolyn was fidgeting with her dress while Ellen’s face appeared more innocent and youthful with each passing second. Eventually Cindy worried that Carolyn would become too young to control Ellen no matter how old they became.
“Cindy,” I said quickly, noticing Ellen become 17. “What’s the plan? Where do we need to go?”