“All except for Rhyen wanting to stay with her without being eaten. I’d love to be eaten by you, Miss Balfour.”

“I knew that too, and you’re going to be,” she said.

He looked up at her beautiful smiling face, ecstatic beyond his wildest dreams that she had brought his fantasy to life.

“Oh wow! It’s so nice of you to make this machine, just to make the best parts of my story come true.”

“I made it before I ever read your story. It’s been my plan to use the machine this way for some time. When I read your story, I decided to use it on you. There’s another part of your story that I’ll make come true first.”

She brought him to her lips and gave him huge kisses.

“I love that too!”

“Would you like me to take you home and show you my kitchen and dining room now?”

“I think it’s really nice here. We’re all by ourselves. Nobody knows we’re here, and I love looking up at your nice mouth. Would you eat me right here?”

“I’d love to …. Little boy,” she said, recalling his frequent use of that phrase as a term of endearment in his story.

“I love you even more than before,” he said, “I’m so happy you’re going to swallow me down to your nice soft tummy.”
“I was going to choose the best story and make an end of term afternoon treat of the author anyway, but it’s so sweet and adorable of you to want me to do it. When would you like me to start?”

“About an hour before sunset, so I’ll still have a clear view of your tongue, and you’ll still have time to walk back to the school with some daylight.”

“That sounds fine. What would you like to do in the meantime? We’ve got an hour or so, I’d say.”

“Could you sit me on your shoulder and snuggle your cheek against me?”

“What a lovely idea?”

When she had him in position, they were both looking out at the valley. He remembered the times he’d walked down here by himself, and took in all the sights for the last time.

“I sat here when I wrote the story,” he said, “I did it in a lunch hour.”

“Really? That makes it extra special. Little did you know that your story would be brought to life on this very spot.”

“I didn’t know that you were going to eat one of us, no matter what. It’s really thrilling to know that now.”

“I think you’ll taste at least as nice as a leprechaun,” she said.

“How will you know?”

“I’ve eaten one,” she said, and told him about the captive from her first year of teaching studies, whom she didn’t know had been Kenneth, a fellow student from her final year in the previous timeline.

“It’s just as well you worked all that out, when he called you by name and got back in time to make sure he didn’t get away,” said Henry.

She told him about Stanley too.

“So I’m not the first boy you’ve ever shrunken, but I will be the first one you’ve eaten.”