The Body Shop - Part Three

With a loud gasp I come to, my eyes snapping open as the dim light of the store and the relative darkness of the stairwell I had fallen in is replaced with harsh shafts of morning light streaming in through somewhere nearby.

My head sits partway up, a soft downy pillow or three beneath me providing more than enough support. Despite being able to feel the cushioned pillows behind my head I find myself struggling to make out much more below the neck. Despite the hazy and numbed state of my body I can still feel it shift and, the low slumbering breathes being forced through my lips and my head shifting with each deep inhale and exhale.

Blinking rapidly I try to clear my vision, my sleep filled eyes begging to be rubbed clean of the gunk from what was apparently a long nights sleep. As the bleary and blurred sight of the room slowly comes into focus I find myself shivering beneath the sheets in some strange apartment as rain pelts down heavily outside.

The sound of the heavy rain hammering the thin panes of glass rumbles throughout the room, the near all-encompassing noise leaving me with a building panic. My apartment was never this loud, the thick walls and the numerous floors above me shielding me from much of the noise from outside. As my eyes adapt to the light of the room I quickly find myself staring at an unfamiliar wall covered in white plaster and a small bedside table, the phone buzzing on the tabletop emanating a blinding light I had mistaken for sunshine.

Form Fitter - Part One

Walking back towards my apartment I can't help but shudder with each swing of my arm, the small box grasped in my clammy hand rattling slightly at the end of each arch. I try to shake the thought of just what was rattling around inside the palm sized box from my mind, instead focusing on the warm sunny rays bearing down on me and the scent of the rain baking off of the sidewalk.

"Wait..." I mutter under my breath, my hopes of not thinking about the little gift I ad been given falling apart almost immediately. "What would they do to me if I enjoyed the sun like this? Tan me?" I mutter, looking down at the plain white plastic case.

As I cross the street I raise the box up, bringing it closer to my face as I turn it in my hands. With each spin I don't find much in the way of instructions or any useful information, the only words on printed on the plain white surface simply reading.

Standard Form Fitter

One Week Dosage

Re:The Body Shop - Part Three

"I'm certain I have some more you may be interested in around here somewhere" the owner mutters, glancing around at the many shuffling bodies and busy assistants racing around the long and narrow storefront. With a shrug of her shoulders she glances back down to me.

"So valued customer, do you have any thoughts?" the witch coos softly, wincing slightly as her dim valley girl voice appears to irk her more so than the constant twitching and fidgeting of the stolen young body beneath her mature-aged head.

Glancing around I try to gather my thoughts, my limited range of motion making it extremely difficult to really assess any of my options. I'm mostly left looking over 'Gym Bunny', the nervous looking fit young woman pushing her chest out slightly as her bright white running shoes shift with her feet as they practically begin to wear through the floorboards beneath her.

The sound of the 'Exotic E-Girl' scrambling to escape the clutches of a set of assistants echos through the store, the cracking noise of open hands capping against bare skin and the low thuds of leather boot against shin sends shivers down my non-existent spine.

Glancing up at the witch she narrows her gaze at me, her lips pursing and wriggling a little as she seemingly tries to read my thoughts.

"My apologies" she huffs, shrugging her stolen shoulders "I don't have any other male bodies, at least not in your price range. I may have a few in the three or four out of ten shelves, how do you feel about forty-year olds with... what do they call it these days?... Dad... Bod?"

My eyes go wide as I look back at Bunny, the young woman 's hands wringing against each other as the sound of her squeaking gloves slip out from behind her.

"Or..." the old woman muses, looking up to the tall shelves lining the walls of the shop. "I could put you in storage for now, I'm sure a body more to your taste will be by in... oh... maybe a few months. You'll be fine up there, trust me, I haven't heard any of them complain yet."

Re:The Body Shop - Part Two

With a snap of her fingers her face brightens up, her eyes going wide as if struck by an epiphany.

"That's it!" she calls out, her fingers clicking over and over as she points towards a distant rack with her other hand. "That one! Yes yes to the left, you can hoist him up... Oh..." she states, pausing for a moment before looking back to me.

"Sorry, just realized where to stock that old body of yours" sh explains, waltzing towards me as I feel myself slowly get placed back down atop one of the many wooden boxes stacked around the storefront. She looks away from a second, giving a nod to one of her many helpers before musing to herself once more.

Musing for a moment, poking and prodding at the inside of her mouth with her tongue in thought, the witch finally pipes up to announce "I'd say your trade-in is...a... Eight out of Ten." With a loud thud I listen as a series of foot falls suddenly turn face, the bodies that had been dragging my old frame away suddenly stopping before shuffling closer towards the front of the shop.

"Oh don't be such drama queens" the witch sighs, rolling her eyes as her helpers move towards us. "Tall and hung, those are definitely worth something. He's also not that old, and... well we simply don't get much male stock coming through."

I stare up at the witch for a moment, my mouth falling open as my lips move without a single word. Catching the movement the older woman glances over to me, shrugging her shoulders a little as I hear a curtain begin to be drawn back.

"I would be pleased to be considered a rarity" she cackles, glancing up towards one of the more seemingly intelligent bodies before pointing towards me. "I mean otherwise I'd be giving you something closer to a four or five, instead you're getting something..."