New Job and New Student (OC Milf / Student TFMC)

Hikari, having a bit of trouble in school due to her many conflicting responsibilities, is given an opportunity to make up some credits by taking an internship at a local high school. She's taken on as an assistant for a teacher, and rapidly finds herself taking to the role easier than expected...

- - - - -

“Do you really have time for an internship, Hikari? You seem to spend most of your time either as a minion, or with me in control.” Izanami grumbled.

“Yes, I do. You’re just saying that because you’ll be bored.” Hikari said under her breath. “Come on, it’s either I do an internship or I get in big trouble. Maybe it’ll be fun!”

“For you, perhaps. For me it’s just watching you watch somebody else for hours. In what world is that fun?”

Hikari Himura, university student and Magical Girl with a villainess as a roommate in her body, walked up to the school building with a mixture of eagerness and trepidation. She wasn’t, honestly, entirely certain she was prepared for the internship she’d taken on. But she was a positive person, and as she’d informed Izanami, she didn’t really have a choice.

Her university had been quite understanding about the issues she had. Especially when Ms. Nakano had leaned on them a bit. She was on a part-time class load and most of the classes she took were the type that were fully online, with most of the course posted at the start and just deadlines for certain parts. But they couldn’t accommodate everything, and with how often she was otherwise occupied she still had issues to a level they couldn’t ignore.

The internship was an extracurricular to make up some credits she was behind on. The high school - the highest rated in the city with the best grades - had recently partnered with Hikari’s university to offer internships in several roles; shadowing teachers, learning how to handle the administrative side of schools, counseling, and any other job associated with a high school had some kind of internship available. Apparently everyone who tried one came out loving their chosen goal more than ever and with the connections to pursue it.

It seemed a little too good to be true, honestly. And frankly Hikari wasn’t sure if education was where she was going. But it was this or explain to her parents why she’d let her scholarship (allegedly academic, actually magical girl duties related) lapse and while they’d be nice she would be dying inside from embarrassment if she had to ask them for money. So she’d signed herself up for the teaching internship, where she’d follow a teacher around and help them out.

Hikari showed her identification at the front desk, and was guided through the hall towards the administration offices. She peeked into classrooms as she passed, and quite liked what she saw - eager teachers laying out their lessons for students who diligently took notes. It was far less chaotic than Hikari’s own high school had been. Honestly she wasn’t sure she liked it that much - it felt a little too serious. But that was what it took to be number one in the city.

When she arrived at the administrative offices, she was greeted by an imposing middle-aged woman wearing a suit, with her dark brown hair tied in a tight bun. “Himura, correct? We’ve expected you. Call me Principal Fujimoto.”

Hikari couldn’t help but suddenly straighten her back and bow in greeting. “Hikari Himura, I look forward to working with you!” she said suddenly.

“Oh, relax, Principal, you’ll scare her off,” said another voice. This was another mature woman, tall and thin and wearing a business-casual ensemble of a light blouse and jacket and dark pants. “Yoshiko Takeda. You’ll be following me around on your internship.”

“She’ll be fine. The university wouldn’t waste our time with unqualified students.” Fujimoto scoffed, then turned to Hikari. “I expect you to follow Miss Takeda and do as she says. Understood?” As she asked the question, she offered Hikari a card. It was a school ID; Hikari Himura, Teaching Assistant (Literature), Age 21, along with a picture of her own face. She wondered when she’d taken that?

“I’ll do my best, Principal Fujimoto.” Hikari said with a sharp nod.

“Hmph. Thinks she’s scary, does she?” Izanami scoffed, “I bet she’d be less scary with a hypnotic mask on, on her knees and worshiping us. You should let me take her.”

Hikari couldn’t speak without letting her issue cause some awkwardness, so instead she just tried to think very hard at Izanami to shut up.

“Now then, ‘Miss Himura’, why don’t we get going? I have a class starting in just a few minutes.” Yoshiko said with a smile, before leading the way.

- - - - -

Hikari’s first task was just picking up some papers from the teacher’s desk and carrying the surprisingly thick and heavy stack behind them. “Isn’t this a lot of work for a classroom, Miss Takeda? It feels more like homework or even vacation work…” she asked - there must have only been enough sheets in there for one or two classes, but it was stacked so high that she was having a bit of trouble balancing it!

“Oh, in other schools maybe. It’s definitely tough on the students to have this much work each day.” Yoshiko agreed. “But we have a reputation to uphold here. The students are used to this kind of workload, it builds up through the lower grades.”

Hikari personally wasn’t sure there was enough class time to read this much work, let alone put down your own answers for all of the questions. But if she insisted the students were used to it, then that must be the case.

They arrived at the classroom precisely as the bell began to ring (how had she been so punctual? She couldn’t have known just when Hikari would show up), and as they entered all the students stood up at once. “Good morning, class,” Yoshiko called out.

“Good morning, Miss Takeda.” The class responded, bowing and sitting back down. That was more formal than Hikari was used to, but not that unusual.

“Miss Himura here will be acting as an assistant in my classes today. I know you’ll treat her well.” Yoshiko announced. Hikari, for her part, made a quick bow of her own and said a greeting.

The class greeted her in return, and then it began. Yoshiko handed Hikari a stack of the immense worksheets. “Hand these out, would you, Himura?” she asked.

Hikari made a playful salute (as best she could while trying not to drop the papers) and nodded. “Got it!” she said, before going around. As she handed out the sheets, she was struck again by how strangely disciplined the students were. Even when they’d arrived, there had been no need to quiet down the class or get their attention. Now, while the lesson waited on Hikari handing out the thick bundles of paper, they focused on the teacher’s instructions without a word.

“Boring.” Izanami said once again. “Where’s the teenage rebellion against authority? The casual disregard for rules? I thought we were supposed to be teaching teenagers, not robots.”

“Maybe some people actually care a little bit.” Hikari hissed under her breath as she passed out another paper. The huge stack was surprisingly unwieldy, taking a lot of Hikari’s attention to keep stacked. It didn’t help that, as she was going around the desks, she nearly tripped over herself a few times! It was as if her legs weren’t the length she remembered them as, making her relatively clumsy. It was a good thing her mom insisted on martial arts practice - the training meant she was able to recover her balance before she toppled over.

When she was finished, she had one left over for herself to look over. It was some kind of math work she was pretty sure, though it had been a while since she had to do anything like it herself.

“All passed out,” Hikari reported to Miss Takeda, “Anything else for me to do in this class?” Was it just her, or was Takeda shorter than she’d seemed a minute ago? Must have been her imagination.

“Thanks, Himura. Had a bit of a rough night, so the help is appreciated. For now, just watch me teach. I’m sure you’ll be a fast learner.”

“I’m glad to help!” Hikari replied, and settled in at a desk in the back to listen in. It was all stuff she’d learned, either in high school herself or even in college at some point, but hey, a refresher was never going to hurt!

Still, she began to drift off - math was a bit dull to listen to. She glanced over her own paper, seeing if she remembered enough to guess the answer. Her back felt a bit sore so she leaned on the desk as she did; her chest felt oddly heavy. She would have to duck to the bathroom to make some adjustments when she had a chance.

After about an hour of idly twirling her hair and reading, the end of period bell went off. Hikari blinked out of her stupor and stood up as the class did. The students bowed again, saying “Thank you, Miss Takeda and Miss Himura,” before settling back down. Yoshiko looked over to Hikari and jerked her head towards the door.

“Not much for you to do that time, huh? I hope you were listening at least.” Yoshiko said cheerfully.

“Ah, I guess there wasn’t much… I was mostly trying to listen to you and see how you handled student questions. You run a disciplined class.” Hikari complimented.

“The students here tend to respect their teachers, so I wouldn’t say it’s all on me.” Yoshiko humbly waved off the praise, “But the trick is making sure they have a task at all times, and a path to complete it. If you let a student get unfocused, that’s when discipline problems crop up.”

Hikari nodded and picked up the rest of the papers as she followed the teacher to her next class. The beginning was much the same as the first; polite students greeting the teacher and her assistant, and then Hikari passed out some more papers. It was easier this time, she didn’t feel like she was stumbling over herself and had an easier time carrying all of them.

When she returned to the front desk though, she was asked to do something besides watch. “Himura, would you grade these papers while the class is going on? Since this will be pretty much the same as the first one, I’m sure there’s not much more for you to learn from a second viewing.”

The magical girl blinked in surprise as a bunch of papers were shuffled into her arms. “Are you sure? I’ve never had to grade anything before and this is a lot…”

“Oh, you’ll be fine, Himura. There’s an answer key if you have trouble deciding if someone’s right or not.” Yoshiko said, gesturing for Hikari to get on with it as she began the lesson proper.

Hikari settled down at another desk and brought out the first paper along with a pen. The math was surprisingly advanced for high school and the students showed a lot of work, but that made it fairly easy to follow along; Hikari might act a bit dumb sometimes, but she was actually pretty competent academically.

The main issue was the sheer length of the papers. They were the same handouts she’d been handling earlier, which meant there were a ton of questions on each bundle of papers to sort through. She checked off question after question, but there always seemed to be more.

Another perfect score… another… the students were so competent that it was easy to zone out and not pay too much attention, since most of them got every question right. Hikari’s mind began to drift off…

“Wrong.” Izanami said dryly.

“Bwuh?” Hikari started, surprised by her comment.

“You marked an incorrect one as right. They forgot to add in the decimals, which are important for this question.”

“I’m surprised you’re paying any attention.” Hikari muttered softly as she corrected her error.

“You’re staring at sheets of math and nothing else. There’s nothing else for me to pay attention to.” Izanami sighed.

After that little mistake, Hikari paid more careful attention. Maybe a bit too careful - her vision began to blur, and her butt felt a bit weird from all the sitting in the chair. She shuffled her posture (why did she seem to be looking from a slightly different angle now? And why did she have to bend over a little more to see over her breasts? Maybe she needed to improve her posture, they couldn’t be larger right?), and tried to focus, but that just made her eyes hurt a bit more. She rubbed her eyes, and without thinking about it one hand felt around on the desk for something.

Something slipped onto her face, and suddenly she could see clearly once again. “There we go…” she said, taking a moment to crack her knuckles, before redoubling her efforts. She wanted to finish before class ended, and there wasn’t much time left.

With Izanami double-checking her grading, she managed to fly through the set of papers, finishing just as the bell went off. Hikari leaned back in her chair and stretched. “Ah… made it…” she said, trying not to yawn. She rubbed her eyes a bit, and was surprised to find something blocking her hand - glasses?

“Huh? Since when did I need…?”

“Miss Himura! Bring those papers over here, it’s time for the next class.”

“Right away, Miss Takeda!” Hikari said, her attention shifted. She stood up and brushed her hair back, no longer thinking about her new glasses or noticing her improved bottom, nor the way her streak of white hair was now a bit more of a gray.

The third class of the day, and Hikari was feeling good. So far there had been nothing too far out of her wheelhouse even though she wasn’t an education major, so maybe this internship would really be simple after all. Even Izanami had been too bored to start causing issues.

It began as the other two did - greeting, then making introductions, then handing out the work of the day and sitting down to watch while Yoshiko went about teaching. However, this time once the students were starting, she called Hikari over. “Miss Himura, would you mind going around the classroom to answer any questions the students may have? This close to lunch some of the students may be a touch distracted and need more guidance than our usual classes.” Yoshiko asked

Hikari did a double take as she recognized what was being asked of her. “Wait, help teach? I’m not really qualified, I don’t think…”

The whole time since the beginning of the day Yoshiko had seemed fairly relaxed and easy-going, but when Hikari suggested she might not be able to do that something in her hardened even harder than the fearsome Principal Fujimoto. “No, I don’t think that’s the case, Miss Himura. You are definitely qualified, or else you wouldn’t have been wasting time following me around all day. I’m sure you’ll do quite well.”

Hikari took an involuntary step back. She’d certainly seen scarier as a Magical Girl, but given this was a scenario she couldn’t just blast through, that didn’t help her one bit against Miss Takeda’s intimidating glare. “Yes, Miss Takeda, I’ll help the students,” she said quickly, backing off.

There was a soft feeling of approval in the back of her mind - a feeling Hikari interpreted as Izanami chuckling to herself. “Guess she’s got a backbone. A bit more interesting than I thought, at least when it comes to her job, huh?”

Hikari was surprised to see any kind of approval coming from Izanami, but was distracted as her first student raised a hand and called her over. “Miss Himura?”

“Yeah? Need some help?” Hikari walked over to the desk and bent over to see what the issue was.

“Mmhm. I’m having a bit of trouble with this problem…” The student pointed to a complicated section of math.

“Don’t just give them the answer.” Izanami said idly. “That’d be cheap.”

Hikari knew the answer - she’d seen it on the answer key before - but Izanami was right; just getting the answer wouldn’t help the student if they didn’t figure out where they were stuck first. “Ah… let’s see here, where’s the mistake… I think this is it here. Looks like you skipped over a decimal - easy mistake, a student in another class made it too - and that’s messed up the whole equation… maybe try backtracking a bit?”

The student thanked her and she moved on to the next one, which came nearly before she was done. This girl had a bit more fundamental of an issue, misunderstanding the kind of operation they were supposed to be doing. Math wasn’t Hikari’s specialty so she honestly wasn’t terribly sure how to explain it. “Ah… well… I think you messed something up way back here at the start…” Hikari muttered.

“Confidence, dignity.” Izanami instructed in a stronger yet softer voice than she normally had. “You know the answer to this, and you have to make sure they know that you do if you want respect.”

Did she have a soft spot for kids or something, with all the help? But Hikari listened, trying to stand a bit taller and leaning down so she was physically higher than the youth, and adjusted her glasses as she looked at the problem. “Alright, it goes something like this…” Hikari began, explaining what she could recall of the math concept that the student was struggling with and finding it came easier as she talked about it. Guess she did remember it, after all.

Hikari began to pick up the pace with her help, heels clicking as she wandered through the rows waiting to be called. Wait, heels…? She’d thought she had worn boots, but evidently she’d put on the nice black high heels for the internship. Made more sense anyway.

Soon she transitioned from waiting to be called to seeking out students to help, leaning over at a desk and asking “Now, how may I help you?” or something similar. It always did seem to work to get the students to tell her about the problems they were having, though some of the boys seemed to stare below her eyes a lot for some reason. And one of the girls.

Hikari rubbed her back as the period began to wind down and students started passing up papers. Man, had her back always hurt like that? Maybe she’d been bending down too much. She stretched a bit while she waited for the bell, before leaning against the wall. It was good she’d worn the silk stockings, it was a bit chilly with the AC on. Though she didn’t remember putting those on either…

The bell rung, and the class all shuffled off. Hikari let out a sigh of relief as she returned to Yoshiko’s side. “What did I tell you? Perfect.” the teacher said.

“Ah, thanks… I was kinda nervous.” Hikari said, adjusting her glasses a little again. “It worked out though. I hope the students thought I was helpful.”

Yoshiko grinned. “Oh, I’m sure all the talk about you will be good~” she teased, “Anyway, come on. Our lunch break too, so why not hit the staff lounge?”

“Is it really ok for me to go there…?”

“Why wouldn’t it be? You’re staff right now, aren’t you?”

- - - - -

The teacher’s lounge was surprisingly well-appointed, with nice couches and tables to eat food, a television, and anything else they might need to have a comfortable break. Right now, the only staff present was Hikari, Yoshiko, and two other teachers. “Principal Fujimoto likes to take her lunch in her office,” Yoshiko explained, “And the rest probably ate earlier so they could use the lunch period to prepare for their next lessons. We’ve only got one left today though so we’re fine.”

With that explanation out of the way, it was introductions to the two teachers in the room. “Ah, Miss Fujisaki! How have your literature classes been going?” Yoshiko asked the female teacher. She was definitely an older woman - probably early 40s, by Hikari’s guess, with brown hair that started to have just a few grays visible if she squinted.

“You know I tell you to call me Haru, love.” The woman said with a smile, “Oh, it’s been great. We’re reading one of my favorite classical romances right now, and all the students are so enthusiastic in their discussions!”

“And how’s Physical Education been going, Kenji?” Yoshiko continued, this time to the man. He was younger, maybe late twenties at most, with close-cropped black hair and a handsome face, and had an athletic build that felt like it fit the role of PE teacher. Hikari noticed his name-tag said ‘Kenji Takenaka”.

“You know how it is.” he said, “The boys love showing off for the girls. It’s been a pain to get them to let the ladies participate, but we’ve got a few fiery ones that have been putting them off guard in this year’s class.”

“What about you two? Co-teaching going well?” Haru asked, “I know it was a bit short notice with Yoshiko here not feeling so well. So good of you to help her out, Hikari.”

“It’s been going pretty good! I was nervous about it at first, but it’s coming more naturally than I thought.” Hikari said cheerfully.

They chattered about nothing in particular as they ate lunch - commenting on specific students acting funny, or the occasional schoolgirl crush. Hikari felt herself relaxing a bit as she got used to it; it was nice they were treating her as a coworker. During a lull in conversation, she got a notification on her phone.

Natsuki: Hope the internship is going well! Wanna go out for some food after? I’ll pay!

Hikari started to reply automatically, but frowned, furrowing her brow. Natsuki… did she know her? The name seemed familiar, but she just couldn’t place it for some reason. It was on the tip of her tongue…

“Oh, don’t frown like that, Hikari~ You’ll mess with your makeup!” Haru chided.

Distracted by the intrusive comment, Hikari blinked and refocused. “Huh, what?”

“Oh, you thought we didn’t notice just because we didn’t say anything? Well I can’t speak for the other two, but you did great on it. The lipstick and blush is a bit subtle, but it really brings out the best in your features!” Haru continued.

“Thanks…?” Hikari said, caught off guard by the compliment. Had she put on makeup? She must have if it was mentioned, and hey, her nails did have the pink polish on them so clearly she had. “Yeah, I have to look my best for work. It’d be disrespectful to not put in the effort, right?” she continued, a bit more confidently.

“Mmmh, mmhm~ Sure, that’s why~” Haru giggled, then leaned in and started speaking in a conspiratorial stage-whisper, “Are you sure you’re not trying to impress a special somebody~? Maybe a cute coworker, hmm hmm~?” She glanced furtively at Kenji, who insistently pretended not to hear.

Hikari blushed fiercely at that. “O-Of course not! I don’t really think about that kind of thing anyway… aren’t I too young to worry about that stuff yet?”

Haru’s lips split into a cheshire-cat grin. “Oh, are you now? Come on, girl, I’m only a little bit older than you and I’ve already got a lovely hubby and a couple adorable kids~ If you wait too long, how will you have the time to find someone?”

At this, Izanami came to the front of Hikari’s mind. “Is she calling us a damned christmas cake, really? Come on, that’s ridiculous!” she snapped, and Hikari was shocked by the passion in her voice, but she couldn’t help but agree completely.

“It’s not a big deal, Haru,” Hikari huffed, though she was still blushing - was it hot in here? She pulled awkwardly at the collar of her white button-up blouse, fiddling with a button to make herself more comfortable. “I’m just focusing on my work right now is all.”

“Ah, a career woman, I get you, I get you,” Haru nodded sagely, “But don’t wait too long, okay? Will there be any cuties left for you if you wait until the gray hairs pop in? You should let me get you set up with someone~”

Hikari nervously played with her hair, hardly noticing the new physical tic as her fingers worked it into a braid. “O-Of course it’s fine. Christmas cake is a really silly concept, you know? We’re in the modern age, I can settle whenever I want. I don’t have to have a husband at 22 to be secure!”

The one male at the table cleared his throat to speak up. “I have to agree with her here, sorry Haru. I’m sure your husband makes you quite happy, but a modern woman can choose for herself when or if she wants to settle, can’t she?” he said.

“Thanks, Kenji…” Hikari said gratefully.

“Besides, Hikari looks great for her age, weren’t you just saying? I’m sure she especially won’t have any problems.” he continued. Hikari flushed pink.

Sensing her defeat in the subject, Haru graciously conceded defeat and moved on to another topic. “Oh, by the way, are you free tonight? I was thinking that we could all get drinks together after work, teacher’s night at the bar and all. Sounds fun, doesn’t it?”

“I’m open,” Kenji said, then looked at Hikari. “You?”

“We should go.” Izanami said. “It’ll be fun to knock a few back. Hasn’t it been too long since we’ve gotten some real booze in us?”

“Oh, I was just talking with someone about plans…” Hikari trailed off, checking her phone again. She shook her head at the text. It must have been a wrong number - looking at the picture next to the contact, she was sure she didn’t have any friends that young. She deleted the number from her phone and looked back to the teachers. “Actually, yeah, I should be free tonight.” she said. It was nice having friends like these - she felt way more comfortable now than she had when she’d joined them, enough that she could use their first names without feeling disrespectful. “What about you, Yoshiko?”

The other teacher had been surprisingly quiet for that conversation, and when Hikari looked over she seemed a bit pale. “I think I’m going to have to take a rain check, sorry… I’m not feeling too good.”

“Maybe you should see the nurse?” Hikari suggested. “I can take you-”

She was interrupted by the bell.

“Oh, damn, next class…” Yoshiko sighed, “Hikari, could you cover for me? I’ll get to the nurse myself and check in if I get some medicine.”

“A-Alone? Are you sure you’re okay with me handling your lesson?” Hikari was a little surprised by this, but Yoshiko nodded.

“Of course I am. You’ve done great all day. I really need you to cover for me, none of the other teachers are open.” Yoshiko insisted.

“A-Ah… if that’s the case, I guess I don’t have a choice, huh?” Hikari sighed.

Yoshiko patted her on the shoulder and smiled. “There’s a good woman. Thanks.”

- - - - -

The class was seated and waiting just as they had been in all of the previous ones Hikari had visited, but there was something notably different this time. When Hikari walked in a couple students started talking amongst themselves - who was this, where was Takeda? - and didn’t stop when she cleared her throat.

Confidence, her inner voice said. You’re in charge here, even if you’re not their normal teacher, so make sure they know it.

Right, confidence. She cleared her throat louder this time, and started speaking - clearly, projecting her voice so that even the whispering students had to listen. “Call me Himura, or Miss Hikari. Miss Takeda is feeling unwell, so I’m handling her class today. She’s let me know the lesson plan for today, so treat it as a normal one.” she said.

She’d come a bit early to make that explanation, and on cue the bell rung. The conversation stopped and the students stood and bowed, greeting ‘Miss Hikari’.

Hikari handed out the papers, and looked at the notes that Yoshiko had handed her for the lesson. Nodding to herself, she started reading the lines off, explaining the focus of the class as she wrote out a few examples on the chalk board behind her.

You don’t need the notes. Just teach them - you know this already. The voice inside said. Make sure they respect you.

Nodding to herself and adjusting her glasses again, Hikari put down the notes and got into it. She’d sounded a little robotic as she read from the page, but now she sounded confident and knowledgeable, secure in her knowledge and ability to impart it.

The lesson proceeded apace, and Hikari started walking around the class to help out when they got into independent work. She gave off a completely different air than she had in the first class of the day. No longer was she nervous and shaky, but confident and stable. The youthful uncertainty is replaced by a mature, calm confidence. Her internal voice fed her lines, and as she said them, the two voices got closer together by the second.

Her hair - in its tight side-braid - had a single, dark gray streak in it. It just made her look more adult, but it was darkening as the inner voice shifted. It sounded too much like Hikari did. Was it even a separate voice at this point? No, of course not. She didn’t need a separate voice inside her; she was confident on her own. As the streak completely faded into her natural hair color, there was no longer a seam where one mind flowed into the other. Because there were no longer two separate minds inside her body. One individual with unified thoughts.

The new teacher was a surprise to the students, but one they took in stride. None of them wondered if she was qualified, if she was inexperienced. She looked like a woman born to be a teacher, with a mature figure that would doubtless give many students a taste for older women as they developed, a demanding yet caring demeanor that pushed them to their best, and a casual confidence that told them she’d taught for ages.

When the class started to wind down and the bell rang, the students stood up as one and bowed. A subtle shift in the air from when they began, they were quiet and respectful to the substitute teacher. The bell rang. “Thank you for teaching us, Miss Hitomi.” they said.

The words nearly jerked the teacher out of her flow. She’d been fiddling with her collar a little as she stretched at the end of class, and knocked her ID from its position. “Ah…!” she grunted softly, bending over to pick it up.

Her picture looked back at her, with her glasses, smile-lines, and makeup. It was a nice picture of Hitomi Hoshino, Senior Teacher (Math), Age 34. The mental break mended itself, and Hitomi brushed a bit of hair from her face. “Thank you, class. You were wonderful. When you reach your third year, I hope a few of you are in my homeroom.” she said with a polite bow.

Hitomi left the room, and nearly walked into the principal. “Ah, Principal Fujimoto, do you need something? Yoshiko had to rest, so I took her class.”

“I heard. I wanted to thank you for your help, Hoshino. I’m sure it’s tiring to help Takeda on top of your own classes.” Fujimoto said.

“Oh, it’s truly no trouble. I love nothing more than teaching, and spending some time with the younger students was fun too. I need to head to my own class now, if you don’t have anything else…?”

“Actually, I did have something. The university is considering piloting an advanced course in this school, to give some of our students college credit before they begin. Do you think you could handle that class on top of yours?”

“Of course I can,” Hitomi said with a grin. “It sounds like an enjoyable challenge.”

- - - - -

Akemi Foster didn’t really need the lesson that she was sitting down for, honestly. She was doing well enough academically and actually had already taken the class this would give credit for. But she wasn’t sitting down in this classroom because she was in need of knowledge. She looked around the class - a mix of high school kids, all dressed alike in school uniforms, mixed in with the more haphazardly dressed college students. The sort of crowd you’d only really see in a special program like this one - and the sort of crowd that let Akemi have a legitimate way to enter a school she otherwise had no business being in.

Her rival Hikari had begun an internship at this school a week ago. She hadn’t been heard from since. Natsuki, Hikari’s best friend, reported no replies to her texts for several days before being told ‘wrong number’ and blocked. It could be that Hikari had switched her phone number and not mentioned it, but Akemi was experienced - that told her that Hikari had been transformed when she came here.

But whether it was the school or someone in it, she didn’t know, and that’s why she couldn’t just bust in with a warrant. She needed evidence, and with Hikari most likely an entirely different person now, she would be hard to find. The program opening up gave Akemi an opportunity.

The bell rung and on cue, the teacher came in. She was a tall woman in her mid thirties, with black hair tied in a neat side-braid, glasses, and a light dusting of makeup. She also had the kind of figure that made Akemi roll her eyes at the college men in the room who couldn’t seem to take their eyes off of it. The high school students stood up to greet her.

“Hello, class. Since not all of you know me, I should introduce myself. My name is Hitomi Hoshino. You can call me either Hoshino, or Miss Hitomi.” she said. “I trust you’re all mature enough that I don’t need to write it out for you. While I’m sure some of you older students took this class for an easy grade, this is not that kind of easy class; this is a full university level course, and I expect you to take it as seriously as you would any of your other courses. Ideally, even moreso - you have to set a good example for those younger than you.”

Akemi glanced around the room to see how that was taken. A tanned, blonde-haired girl was typing away on her phone, a clear example of the sort of “here for an easy grade” student that Hoshino had mentioned. Another of the college age students was paying less attention to her words and more to her breasts, which wasn’t helped by the tight-fitted blouse she wore that seemed to emphasize their size. Meanwhile, the high school students were one and all dutifully at attention and waiting for the lesson to begin.

The class began, and Akemi focused. Not on the lesson, since it was math she knew - but to the teacher. She’d checked records on a lot of teachers in the school, and she couldn’t figure out where many of them had graduated from. A few had credentials from Matsushita City, but many - Hoshino here, another math teacher, the PE teacher, a Literature teacher - just had notes saying they’d gained their accreditation abroad and it had been accepted as valid.

However, observing this ‘Hoshino’ woman, it was hard to find anything suspicious. She was seemingly just a normal, passionate teacher. She clearly liked teaching a lot, and the content was surprisingly difficult - even Akemi had to shift a bit of attention to the test she handed out to get an understanding of where everyone was starting from. But she was confidently walking around the room, making gentle corrections and explaining things to students as needed.

She shifted a bit as the lesson wore on, feeling a bit too warm in her clothes. She tugged at the collar of her jacket, considering if she should take it off, and found herself focusing on the work. She even asked Hoshino for help once, and the teacher wrote an explanation of a math concept she’d been struggling with on her paper before continuing to the next student. Akemi watched her go, a finger twirling in her hair… wait, it hadn’t been long enough for that, had it?

Akemi looked up and looked around. The clock was approaching the end of class, but that wasn’t what she was looking at (though she did note she’d lost track of time). The college students were still present, but… different. The gyaru had put away her phone, and her bleached-blonde hair had darkened to a bright brown while her skin seemed a touch lighter. The ogling boy was scratching his forehead over a tough question instead of staring at the teacher’s butt when she passed.

They were transforming, she was sure of it now. She watched Hitomi Hoshino suspiciously, as she went up to the board and wrote down what they had to have done by the next class. Something about that writing…

It was as the bell rung that Akemi realized what was nagging her. It was Hikari’s handwriting. The words on the board, and more damningly, the notes on her own paper. She’d put down money that the mature, older woman Hitomi had, one week before, been the decidedly immature young lady Hikari.

“Pass up your papers, the instructions for next class are on the board,” Hitomi announced, and Akemi decided to take her row’s papers to the front for them. She passed the now ex-Gyaru - did she seem younger, too? - and resolved herself to confront the teacher.

“Miss Hitomi…” Akemi started as she handed over the papers. She paused - she didn’t want to make a scene, where there were so many civilians present… “I’m going to stay after class.”

“Oh, do you need something?” Hitomi asked cheerfully. “I can cover any questions you had about the content.”

“I had a couple. I’m sure an experienced teacher like you can help. How many years have you been at this school, anyway?” Akemi pushed a little. Not enough to be accusatory, but she was probing for a reaction.

Oh, that’s a bad attitude… a part of Hitomi thought, Maybe I should see if the principal has advice for a resistant student…

“Oh, a good few now,” Hitomi waved off the question. “Of course I’d be willing to help you. You should head to room 3-E, then. That’s a small office that’s not in use for now, it should be good for a private lesson. I need to prepare my materials, if you don’t mind?”

Akemi nodded stiffly and went to the appropriate room, while Hitomi - propelled by the momentarily-returned voice in the back of her head - headed for the Principal’s office.

“Come in,” came the harsh voice of Principal Fujimoto, and Hitomi entered. “Ah, Miss Hoshino. What do you need from me? Did the class go well?”

“The class went quite well, thank you. I need a bit of advice, ma’am.” Hitomi said, nervously adjusting her glasses. “One of the students came to me after class and asked for some additional aid. This isn’t so unusual, but the way she asked felt… hostile. I think she’s got a bit of a bad attitude and my normal approach isn’t getting through to her. Do you have any advice?”

The principal straightened, adjusting her tie. “I see. Well, I suppose I can assist. Rather than give advice, why don’t I just talk with her alongside you? I have some free time, and if one of the college students is acting up that’s something I should take care of.”

“Ah, I’m sure that’d work wonders,” Hitomi said, visibly relieved. “I had her wait in the spare office on this floor.”

- - - - -

Akemi waited, tapping her fingers on a table in the office and taking stock of her own changes. Her clothes had morphed halfway to a school uniform, and her hair was longer than it had started. She wasn’t sure about anything more, but clearly this area had some kind of theme it morphed people to fit; Hikari had been in a teacher role, so a teacher she became. Akemi was in a student role, so it was making her a student.

She was pretty sure there wasn’t any mental effect… right? She did it like this because she wanted proof not because of any influence on her mind, definitely, right?

The girl was startled from her introspection by the door sliding open. “Hitomi” walked in, apologizing for the wait, but she wasn’t the only one - a severe-looking woman with her brown hair in a tight bun and wearing a suit.

“I hope you don’t mind, Miss Foster, but I brought Principal Fujimoto along as well to help, since this is a matter involving a university student.” Hitomi explained.

The imposing woman nodded shortly at Akemi, her eyes appraising.

Akemi should have called it off there - this was clearly suspicious. But instead, she found herself nodding quietly. “It’s fine, I guess…” she muttered.

Hitomi smiled at the agreement, and sat herself down alongside the Principal. “That’s good. Now, we’re going to have a good conversation about things, okay?”

“So you’ll start to answer my questions…?” Akemi prompted.

“Later.” Principal Fujimoto interjected. “This conversation will be about your behavior as a student first and foremost.”

“That’s not what I had questions about–” Akemi tried to interrupt, but she was silenced with a hand.

“If you still have questions afterwards I’m sure she’ll answer. But I’m told your behavior is unfit for a student at this school.” Principal Fujiwara continued.

“I have… some concerns, of course.” Hitomi agreed. “I do apologize, but I’m required to report such things to the Principal.”

Akemi made some unkind noises under her breath, but couldn’t bring herself to fault her - she just seemed so earnest as she said that… “I… I see. What kind of concerns?”

“Well… isn’t your hair a bit… improper?” Hitomi broached. “I think it might give some of the students ideas…”

“What about my hair?” Akemi demanded, protectively rubbing the blonde locks. “It’s not in any strange style is it?”

“No, it’s more about the coloring…”

“Don’t beat around the bush, Miss Hoshino.” Principal Fujimoto interjected. “Be strong and clear.”

Hitomi nodded. “It’s against school rules to have bleached hair. I’m aware it’s a style thing, but it’s also not healthy.”

“Bleached?” Akemi asked incredulously. “Of course my hair isn’t bleached! It’s naturally this light!”

Hitomi sighed softly. “Come now. You can’t seriously expect us to believe your hair is naturally blonde, can you?” she said firmly. “No more bleach. Let it be it’s natural color.”

Akemi didn’t really see how her hair had already shifted, darkening shade by shade as Hitomi talked until it was a dark brown. It was longer, too, well past her shoulders and lightly curling. “I… okay… no bleaching my hair, I guess…” Akemi conceded, accepting she couldn’t win on that point - and not realizing she’d already been forced to accept it as truth.

“Could you perhaps… cover up a little more, as well? The boys may be distracted, and the girls may be jealous.” Hitomi continued, leaving Akemi further baffled. She didn’t have that big of a chest, did she…?

“This is rules enforcement, Hitomi. There’s no room for niceties.” The principal said patiently.

Hitomi sighed. “Button up. I understand you’re proud of your figure, and you absolutely should be,” she said - Akemi shuffled uncomfortably as her shirt strained against her swelling bust and her pants struggled to contain her equally ballooning bottom. “But that doesn’t mean you have to flaunt it.”

Akemi wanted to complain, but she found her voice dying in her throat. Instead, her hands maneuvered to button her shirt a bit more, covering some cleavage she’d been exposing. She also took the initiative to adjust her belt so her bottom wouldn’t show quite so prominently. “Not my fault I have a sexy figure…”

“Speak politely with your elders, young woman.” Hitomi snapped. “Your hostile tone is what started this.”

Akemi flushed. “Hostile tone? I’ll show-” A murderous glare from the principal cut her off. She shrank back, and bowed her head. “Yes, ma’am.” she said, her tone softer. When she looked up, her face was more youthful-- not by much, as the distance between 22 and 17 going on 18 was not a large one, but notable. Hitomi swore, this face seemed more familiar to her each day…

“This is for your own good, young lady. You can’t act like a delinquent. You’re meant to be exemplary within the upper year.” Principal Fujimoto said, her tone a bit softer. Hitomi took her queue from a meaningful glance.

“And what kind of example is it if you can’t even wear your uniform right? Jacket on, not around your waist. Collar up. Lower buttons firmly in place.” Hitomi continued, and Akemi found herself forced to follow along. Her clothes, once the semi-casual stuff she would normally wear to college classes, morphed into the black-and-white formal school uniform favored by the high school.

Hitomi finished her spiel and the thoroughly transformed student sat before her awkwardly, looking down with a shameful blush on her cheeks. Principal Fujimoto motioned to Hitomi to lay off, while she sat in front of her. The school ID on Akemi’s jacket was fuzzy, shifting, and now was an important part of setting it correctly. “Now, I’m sorry to make you go through this, Aiko, but why were you acting out in class? You’re usually so studious…”

Aiko blushed harder. She looked over at Hitomi, then looked down. Why had she been acting out? Well… “I… I wanted attention…” she said quietly, “F-From M-Miss Hitomi…” This last was so quiet that only the Principal could hear. The teenage girl felt like she was about to die, admitting her crush on her teacher like that.

“Oh, is that it?” Fujimoto said, matching Aiko’s whisper. With someone who’d been so resistant to the change that Hitomi couldn’t do it herself, this girl needed a personal touch to hammer in the new identity-- and might need a consistent one too. “Well, that’s not so bad. But won’t she be more happy with a good student?”

“M-Maybe…” Aiko stammered.

“Well, my daughter can be the best in class. Don’t you think she’ll be impressed if you graduate at the top of your year?”

Aiko Fujimoto looked up, wiped her eyes, and nodded. She looked like a young version of her mother now, with the same intense eyes and dark brown hair, and even a similar confident and intense bearing that could occasionally intimidate her classmates-- even though right now she just looked like the teenager with a youthful crush that she was. “Y-Yes… I think so, Mom. I’ll be good now.”

Fujimoto pat her new daughter on the back. “That’s what I like to hear. Now, why don’t you go get ready to head home? I’ll come back a bit early today so we can go together.” she said.

Aiko stood up and nodded, and then bowed respectfully to Hitomi. “I’m sorry for my behavior, Miss Hoshino, it won’t happen again.” she said, before rushing off out of the room.

Hitomi sighed. “Thanks for coming to help with that, I wasn’t so sure how to handle her…”

“Oh, I should thank you. Her behavior would be an issue if left alone, and I think you’re the only teacher she’d really listen to.” Fujimoto waved off the thanks. “You should head home a bit early, too, Hoshino. Classes are finished and there’s nothing needing done that you can’t handle at home.”

“Ah, thanks, Principal.” Hitomi said.

She was on her way to the lounge to get her bags, when she nearly bumped into a coworker. “Ah, sorry, nearly hit you there Hitomi!” Kenji, the PE teacher, said.

“No, my bad,” Hitomi insisted, blushing a bit. Oh, now she was acting the schoolgirl, huh? “Were you on your way out?”

“Actually, I was looking for you.” Kenji said, and Hitomi’s heart beat a bit faster. “I was wondering if you wanted to go for drinks tonight?”

“Oh, with Yoshiko and Haru? Sure, thanks for inviting.” Hitomi said.

Kenji rubbed the back of his forehead awkwardly. “Ah, not quite… I mean just you. And me. I mean, if we could, together…”

While the younger man was a bit awkward-- he was asking out a woman several years his senior-- Hitomi flushed bright red. “O-Oh… I see…” she said. Oh, swallow it up, you’re a grown woman! And an attractive man has asked you on a date! You know what to do! “Of course. Pick me up at seven?”

- - - - -

The next day was a normal day at the high school. Hitomi waltzed into the classroom with a girlish spring in her step, positively giddy over how positively delightful the previous evening… and night… had been. They’d already agreed to do the same again the next week! It was all she could do not to make a comment that morning when they’d greeted each other in the teacher’s lounge-- at least, she couldn’t say anything where the others could hear.

She turned to the class, and carefully schooled herself into serious teacher mode. “Good morning, class,” she said, just as the bell rung and the class stood to greet her. At the front, now a perfect model student, was Aiko Fujimoto. Leading the class, she bowed to the teacher. “Good morning, Miss Hoshino.” They all said in unison.

Hitomi felt it would be a good day for the class-- another step towards her and the Principal’s shared goal of a 100% graduation rate.