Question whether the age reduction is permanent or if you'll age normally from that point

The question leaves your lips before you can second-guess it, your new voice making it sound almost childlike in its concern. "Will I... will I age normally from that point? Or is this permanent? Will I be stuck looking like a teenager forever?"

Miss Velvet's expression shifts into something almost pitying, though her smile never wavers. She sets the mirror down on the tray beside you, then leans forward until her face hovers just inches above yours. The scent of her perfume—something dark and floral—fills your nostrils.

"Oh, Candy." She strokes your cheek with one gloved finger, tracing the newly delicate bone structure. "You're asking the wrong question, sweetness. You should be asking 'how does this benefit Miss Velvet?' Because that's all that matters now."

"Please," you whisper, feeling tears prick at the corners of your eyes. "Just tell me."

Miss Velvet's expression shifts into something approaching amusement. She sets the mirror down on the tray beside you, then leans forward, her leather suit creaking softly. Her pink eyes lock onto yours with an intensity that makes your breath catch.

"The de-aging serum I'll administer tomorrow doesn't simply make you look younger—it resets your biological clock entirely. Your telomeres lengthen. Your cellular regeneration increases. Your hormone production adjusts to match someone in late adolescence." She pauses, watching your face intently. "You'll remain physically eighteen or nineteen for approximately the next fifteen to twenty years. After that, you'll age, but at roughly half the normal rate."

The implications crash over you like a wave. "Half the rate?"

"Think of it this way, Candy. When you're chronologically sixty, you'll still appear to be in your early thirties. You'll outlive everyone you once knew by decades, all while maintaining that youthful beauty I'm crafting for you." Her fingers move to your hair, threading through the light-brown strands. "I've perfected this formula over years. My earliest subjects are now approaching their forties chronologically but still look barely twenty-five."

She retrieves the mirror again, positioning it above your face. Your reflection shows the transformation progressing relentlessly. Your features continue their gradual reshaping, each subtle shift pushing you further toward feminine youth.

"The serum doesn't halt biological time," Miss Velvet continues, her tone almost educational now. "It simply resets your cellular clock. After that, entropy takes its natural course. You'll age. You'll grow older. You'll experience everything a woman experiences across her lifespan." Her smile widens. "Just starting from eighteen instead of thirty-four. A lot slower. And living it all as my property."

The grinding ache in your bones intensifies. You watch your nose narrow further, your chin round into an even softer curve. The face in the mirror looks younger with each passing moment.

"That's..." you can't find words. Your face continues its grinding transformation beneath your skin, each shift accompanied by that deep, nauseating ache.

"That's forever," Miss Velvet finishes for you. "Or near enough. You'll spend the next two decades as a teenage girl, Candy. Beautiful, dependent, mine." She straightens, retrieving the mirror once more. "Now watch. Your cheekbones are rising beautifully. In another few hours, you won't recognize the person staring back."

The grinding intensifies, radiating through your skull. Your reflection shows the continued softening—jaw rounding further, chin becoming more delicate, nose refining its shape. The permanent makeup frames features that belong to someone decades younger.

"Essentially immortal youth," Miss Velvet murmurs, clearly savoring the concept. "Bound to me for what will feel like forever."