Cloth Diapers & Panties

Sleep, My Love (1948)- A film noir/thriller with Claudette Colbert. 

Hello friends, I have another older story archived (from abdlstoryforum) I wanted to share with you. Sadly the story was never finished, but the author Rammus_Fan published notes, how the story would have gone. I don't know if any of the writers here has interest in finishing the story, but if so you can message me and I send the notes (I can also post them here, but it would kind of be a spoiler if some one really do want to finish it. My English or my talent in writing are not good enough to do it myself.   However, here is chapter 1-5 of Checkmate:   Checkmate      Chapter 1   “Checkmate” the young girl said with a final satisfying click of her computer mouse, a smug grin, and flick of her hair. The computer showed that the opponent had left the game chat without saying anything, not so much as an obligatory ‘gg.’ Two more clicks and the girl closed the program. Chessmates Online was Catherine’s favorite pastime. Nothing was more satisfying to her than intellectually defeating an opponent. It was a unordinary hobby for a ten year old girl, playing chess. Catherine displayed genius far beyond what was expected of others her age. Much of her personality and interests were similarly advanced. Most days after school Catherine could be found reading books that most adults would find too complex or otherwise boring, such as her older brother’s college physics books. While she didn’t always understand all the subject material, she still possessed the desire to learn. When not reading advanced literature and science textbooks Catherine liked to play intellectually demanding games. Especially games with a human opponent such as checkers, Boggle, Mastermind, Go, and of course chess. Most of these games she played online, as she had driven away many friends by constantly beating them. Most girls and boys her age were put off by Catherine’s large vocabulary, her higher skill in all things academic, or her lack of interest in conventional preteen girl and boy toys like dolls and nerf-guns. “Cathyyyy, dinner will be ready soon! Stop playing your silly computer games and come down here to wash up!” Catherine’s mother called out to her daughter from down the hall. The young girl then rolled her eyes. She hated being called Cathy and she hated her mother’s disapproval of her time spent playing games on the computer. “They can barely be called computer games anyway,” she thought, “I bet there are even better and more challenging video games out there, if only Mom would let me download them.” Mrs. Soulland had made it very clear she would not allow Catherine to have unrestricted internet access or unapproved games for a long time to come. “Maybe after you turn thirteen,” Her mother had said, though Catherine knew from previous experiences that maybe usually meant “no.” It was fortune that her older brother had gifted her his old computer, as it would be likely that her mother would never have bought her a personal computer for years to come if not for that. She often wondered how long she would be kept mentally suppressed like this, her ability to learn limited to the maximum number of books possible checked out from the local library. After washing their hands, Catherine and her mother spent their meal at the table alone in a usual awkward silence. Mr. Soulland had cheated on Catherine’s mother and left while Catherine was too young to even remember him. Her brother was off at college halfway across the country finishing his last year of his degree. That left the two women to share their meals like this for the past four years. Not that there was no love in the relationship between mother and daughter, but rather that neither felt very relatable to the other. Mrs. Soulland worked as car saleswoman, a job that did not interest her daughter. The clanking of the forks and knives hitting the bottom of their bowls of chicken and pasta was the only sound that broke the silence for several minutes since Catherine had thanked her mother for the meal. At last Mrs. Soulland spoke first, slowing her eating and speaking clearly between chewing and swallowing, “Cathy,” Catherine suppressed a wince, “about your progress report that came in…” this time Catherine actually did wince. She hated this conversation. “It said you have one B, four C’s, and a D. Why are you failing in algebra? I know that you understand the material.” She asked in a tone that was latent with annoyance, accentuating it with a condescending cock of her head and accusatory glare. Catherine stopped eating, but turned to the side to avoid her mother’s disappointed gaze, “I don’t know… it’s stupid.” She knew this answer would only anger her mother, but it was all a part of the plan to disengage the conversation. “It’s stupid, that’s your excuse? You told me that you are getting A’s on all the tests! Young lady if you have been lying to me-” She was cut off by her daughter. “I do get A’s on all the tests! I don’t know why I have a D, but I’ll ask my teacher tomorrow.” It was the truth. Catherine would often skip her homework and just perform flawlessly on the tests. Some teachers were so charmed by her achievement that they would overlook her lack of homework and give her a total grade for the class based on her test scores alone. Others would not budge and her grades would suffer. If not for her apathy towards half the school learning curriculum, Catherine would likely have been able to skip a grade; a conversation that had been discussed before. Mrs. Soulland was not entirely convinced and raised a suspicious eyebrow at her daughter’s answer, but still relented. “Alright, but you better have improved grades by the end of the second quarter.” She warned. She continued after finishing her last bite of pasta, “By the way, I’m going out to a late movie tonight. So your babysitter should be here soon.” Catherine loathed having a babysitter, but recognized that adults and teenagers wielding authority over everyone younger than them was simply the way things were. Her brother seemed to be the only one who respected her as an equal. “Okay” Catherine gave her obligatory acknowledgement of her fate before retreating to her room. It wasn’t unusual to have a babysitter watching her at least twice a week. She planned to spend the evening like any other while a babysitter was present, in her room with a book and having as little interaction with them as possible. An hour passed and there was a knock at her bedroom door. “What is it Mom?” she called out, not wanting to get up and be torn from her book. The doorknob turned and swung wide open. With annoyance at the unwarranted intrusion, Catherine turned to chastise her mother for letting herself into her room without permission. “I’ve only been babysitting you for, like, two minutes, but I’m flattered you’re already calling me Mommy!” A high pitched unexpected voice answered. There in her room stood Catherine’s newest babysitter. A fit looking blonde girl, her hair in a ponytail, with tan skin and expensive looking clothes, she towered over the preteen. Even sitting on her bed, with hands on her knees, she leaned over Catherine and smiled down on her like a child. Catherine immediately did not like her overly cheery and patronizing entrance. “I thought you were my Mom. I wasn’t actually referring to you,” she corrected her babysitter, “speaking of which when did she leave?” It wasn’t uncommon for her mother to forgo introductions with new babysitters. “Oh! Like, two or three minutes ago. My name’s Delia, but you can keep calling me Mommy if you want,” Delia said with a wink. She then suddenly reached forward and hooked her hands under Catherine’s arms before the girl could react and picked up her charge, leaving the book abandoned on the bed. “And what’s your name, sweetie?” Delia asked in the same sugarcoated and perky tone while holding up the confused Catherine. “Uh, I don’t really like being held like this.” Wanting very much to be back in a situation where she had control over her own body, she started to squirm. “That’s a funny name!” Delia heartily laughed before lightly swinging Catherine upwards and crouching with her fall to catch her in a cradling position, “but I was told your name is Cathy!” she said gently poking the other girl’s nose. Catherine was no more comfortable in this position either. “Yeah, but call me Catherine. I don’t like being called Cathy.” She had since stopped squirming, resigning to her fate, and took the different strategy of asking politely, “Can I get down now, please?” Setting her down on the bed, the babysitter relented with a disappointed groan. “You sure don’t like a lot of things!” Her babysitter was reminding Catherine more and more of why she didn’t like most people. “What do you like then?” Delia continued, “Oh! How about a game?” Catherine perked up at this just a little. Games sometimes implied chess! It had been far too long since her last in-person opponent. “How about chess?” The younger girl asked almost a little too excitedly, already going over to her closet to fish out the board game. “Booooring!” Delia denied with a fake yawn, leaving Catherine to turn back around with a dejected look “How about something more girly like dolls, house, or dress up? I brought some cute dresses you could try on!” “Ugh, no thanks. I’ll just read in my room the rest of the night. You don’t have to play with me.” Catherine turned to climb back on her bed only to be stopped by a grip on her wrist. Delia was holding her back, “Come ooooonn, it will be fun! Just one dress and I promise I’ll leave you alone for the rest of the night.” She pleaded. Clearly dress-up must be this girl’s favorite game. Catherine considered her options with great speed. Judging by the tone in her sitter’s voice she likely wouldn’t take no for an answer, though she considered it unlikely Delia would FORCE her to wear the dress if she repeatedly said no and refused to budge. But there seemed no harm in humoring Delia’s wishes if it gave Catherine peace for the remainder of the evening, she mused. It was a battle not worth fighting. “Alright, alright, one dress.” Catherine agreed, and was led by her hand down the hall and into the living room. Upon entrance to the room Catherine became acutely aware of the some subtle differences of the room. One was the oversized purse that leaned against the living room sofa. It was likely so large so that it could hold all these dresses and games that Delia had said she brought. Another was a faint smell in the air that was all at once familiar, but still strange and out of place. Before she had time to formulate as to why the room smelled like it did, her train of thought was broken by the feeling of Delia unbuttoning her shorts. “What are you doing!?” she demanded, though still not doing anything to stop her babysitter due to her state of shock and confusion. She hadn’t been undressed or dressed by someone else in years. It was a foreign and invasive feeling. “We’re trying on dresses, remember?” Delia stated matter-of-factly, sitting on her knees, while beginning to tug Catherine’s tight denim shorts down. “I can do that myself, and you said only one- WAH!” the little girl lost her balance after reaching down to resist Delia pulling her shorts off, only to fall backwards. A strong hand broke her fall. Delia had caught Catherine from falling with a swift hand on her lower back and gently lowered her to the ground on her butt. She wasted no time after that pulling her charge’s legs into the air and sliding the shorts off and over her sneakers. “Better be careful little girl!” Delia warned, now reaching for the younger girl’s shirt, “Why don’t you just let me, like, take care of the dressing, hm?” “No, really, let me do this myself” Catherine protested again, this time more sternly. Either Delia had not heard her through her muffled plea into her shirt as it was taken off, or she pretended not to notice. Catherine was uncooperative and continued to squirm, terribly uncomfortable with being so intimately touched and handled by a complete stranger as well as being nearly naked in front of one. It wasn’t long before Delia had her dressed down to just her underwear and shoes. She badly wanted to grab her clothes, which were strewn about nearby on the floor, though she knew that getting redressed was futile at this point against her new babysitter. “Alright, wait right here Cathy.” The babysitter instructed slowly as she lifted Catherine onto the couch. She then walked over to the large bag and began to fish through it for something, leaving Catherine awkwardly on the sofa slightly shivering from the cold. “Here we go!” Delia exclaimed as she pulled out what appeared to be a childish looking, white, lacy church dress complete with a big bow on the back fastened around the waist. Catherine’s eye went wide with horror at the sight of it. “No no no no no, I do not want to wear that!” she said standing up from the couch, pointing at the frilly garment and forgetting all about her shivers. She began to slowly back away from the older girl. The dress was much more girly than she envisioned it before actually seeing it. It had been some time since she had last worn a dress, and for good reason. Catherine hated feeling girly, dainty, or babyish. There was a twinkle in Delia’s eyes as she saw Catherine back away, like a predator cornering its prey. Catherine recognized it as the look of victory. She was rapidly thinking of an answer to get out of this situation without going back on her word in order to have Delia leave her alone for the rest of the night. There was not enough time however as Delia soon had her hands on the little girl’s waist, pulling her in and spinning her to face away. “Arms up, cutie!” The babysitter commanded with a tickle on Catherine’s tummy, causing her to involuntarily laugh. Her face was red with embarrassment as being made to wear such a thing, doubly so for how easily she had let herself be made to do it. Why hadn’t she talked her way out of it like she usually does? “New opponents can be so unexpected,” she thought to herself. “Do I have to?” Catherine meekly asked raising her arms regardless. Without answering, Delia took the action as compliance. Surely Catherine would enjoy and pretty and adorable she looked after seeing herself in the little dress. Sliding the dress over the head of the little girl she helped guide her arms into the tiny holes as the whole thing fell into place. Straightening up, Delia began tugging at the edges, fixing the sleeves, and adjusting where it seated on the shoulders. At last it was done and Catherine was spun about to face her tormentor. The whole process had left her feeling very vulnerable and childish. Catherine wouldn’t give Delia the satisfaction of seeing her humiliated in defeat, though. She reluctantly look up to meet her caretaker’s eyes and braced for the expected gushing all adults did over adorable little girls. “Omigosh, you look soooooo cuuuuuute!” the older girl said, beginning to rub her hands all over Catherine’s body and lifting the hem of the dress up to see the frills underneath. At this intrusion Catherine reactively began tugging the dress back down. “You don’t have to worry sweetie, no one is going to see but me.” Her babysitter’s words gave her no comfort. The act of her underwear being on display for anyone, anywhere, by any amount, was unsettling as well as distressing. Having had quite enough, Catherine lightly pulled away from Delia who was still fiddling with the edges of the dress. “Can I take this off now, please?” She asked still masking her discomfort well to fool Delia into thinking she didn’t detest the dress as much as she let on. “Not until you see yourself in the mirror!” Again whisked away in her babysitter’s arms, Catherine felt herself being carried toward what she assumed would be the bathroom. It logically was the closest large mirror in the house. Her prediction was correct. Delia stopped in just inside the door frame of the tiny washroom, carrying her looking like a tiny newlywed bride. Forced to see the image before her Catherine frowned and took in the full picture of herself in the dress that was chosen for her. The sleeves were short with a slight puff to them, complete with lacy frills along the ends. The skirt was composed of a couple layers of sewn on ruffles that followed down to the edge that was also adorned with lace, which seemed to only reach just above her knees. The bow around the waist was a sleek silk and stuck out significantly on either side. All of this was in stark contrast to the sneakers Catherine wore. Noticing her displeased look Delia nuzzled her face into the younger girl and said, “I guess you don’t like it, huh? Well you were so well behaved that I think you deserve a reward!” The babysitter smiled down at the babysat, cradled in her loving embrace. Skeptical and confused, Catherine looked up at Delia with a cocked eyebrow that demanded further explanation. “How about a game of chess?” She asked. Catherine did not think she would ever hear that coming from someone else, much less any babysitter of hers. Without even bothering to respond, she squirmed out of the older girls arms and through her legs bounding down the hall to fetch the game board from the closet, her shoes squeaking along the hardwood floor along the way. “I’ll take that as a yes!” Delia hollered after her, following slowly behind into her room. Soon the two girls were at the kitchen table, putting their pieces onto their respective squares. Delia seemed slightly confused, “Uhm, it’s, like, been a while since I played chess, is this right?” she asked, pointing to the configuration she had set up. It was close, and Catherine quickly switched the positions of the king and queen. “Oh thanks! Sorry if I don’t remember all the rules. You can just correct me if I do something wrong.” “There.” She said, having placed the final pieces. This was sure to be an easy win, as far as Catherine saw it. Sitting down, the cold wooden seat met her own seat and she was harshly reminded of her current clothes. She internally cursed herself for getting too excited over chess and forgetting to remove the dress. It didn’t matter anyway. All that mattered to her now was beating Delia in this battle of wits. Catherine usually held no mercy against newbie opponents and her babysitter, like all the others before her, would be no exception. Composing herself the younger girl suppressed a smile as she thought of the easy victory that lay within reach. She reached over to her knight on A2, “I’ll go first.” The tension in the room was high after a few moves. Currently it appeared as is Delia was winning by a significant amount. Catherine was is absolute shock over how quickly her plans were falling apart. To her, Delia’s moves seemed clumsy and random with no strategy at all. However, every time Catherine went to to punish any mistakes, it became clear that each move had an ulterior motive and it cost her dearly each time. Now that she was down so many pieces, Delia was allowed to march, no matter how tactless, all over the other side of the board. Catherine could not tell if her opponent was a chess genius, just plain lucky, or both. “I think that’s check…” Delia began, scanning the board to see if it was- “mate” moving her rook in line with Catherine’s king. It couldn’t be true. “Wait,” She said, holding up a finger. There had to be something. Just as Delia was about to insist on her victory, Catherine took the rook with a bishop that was hidden among other pieces. She did nothing to conceal her relief as she shrunk back into her seat, dress rustling slightly. Perhaps she could still turn the tides. “Oooh, I almost had you Cathy!” Delia said shaking her fist, her voice still ever-patronizing, “but…” Catherine saw her mistake only too late as the older girl gently slid her queen into the recently moved bishop and once again called, “Checkmate! I win right?” She looked over to her charge to verify her victory. Catherine remained silent as she desperately looked for any kind of rebuttal move, but none existed. Finally with a defeated sigh, “Yeah, you got me. You win.” The words were difficult for the little chess-enthusiast to say. “That was actually fun, Cathy, I’d love to play again sometime!” Delia said as she began cleaning up the game, obviously denying a rematch. “Well, that was a long game, let’s get you ready for bed, and I’ll make us some victory milkshakes to celebrate!” It was still some time before bed, but Catherine assumed ready for bed meant getting out of this dress. While it didn’t make sense to make a shake for the loser, she didn’t outright deny the opportunity. “I’m not allowed to have desserts on weekdays. Didn’t my mom tell you that?” Catherine questioned, helping to clean up the game. Closing the lid on the chess box, Delia looked over slyly to her charge, winking. “Well I won’t tell if you won’t.” This brought a smile to the younger girl’s face, and she winked back. She then turned with game in hand and returned it to her room. Catherine could hear Delia pick up the babysitting bag and follow close behind. While she was still frustrated over the loss, a milkshake wasn’t a bad consolation prize. Once inside the room, she placed the game back on the shelf of her closet where it belonged. Delia was close behind, setting the bag by the bed. The faint smell from before seemed to follow the bag, Catherine noticed. Before she could begin to formulate the origin of the smell, she once again felt herself being undressed. This time though, she did not fight it. The sooner out of that dress, the better. Delia also seemed pleased with her charge’s compliance. With her babysitter’s help the girly garment was off in seconds. Delia neatly folded the dress then lifted Catherine onto the bed, pausing awkwardly for a brief moment, and began to untie the young girl’s shoes. Once the shoes and socks were off, Delia calmly asked, “I know it’s still an hour before bedtime, sweetie, but where do you keep your pull ups?” That was just about the last way Catherine expected that question to end. “What?” She asked incredulously, sure she had heard her babysitter wrong. Mistaking the context of the response, Delia rephrased, “Oh, no pull ups? Where do you keep your night time diapers then?” Still not quite believing what she was hearing, Catherine thought a few seconds on exactly what Delia was implying. " I don’t… have diapers. I-" She was cut off by Delia talking while rummaging through the large bag, “Ohh, you’re mommy didn’t tell me you were out of diapers!” Catherine shrugged at the response, still confused. Why would her mother need to tell her babysitter that she was out of diapers? That seemed implied with all ten year old girls, didn’t it? She couldn’t think of any girls her age that weren’t out of diapers. “-Luckily,” Delia had fished a couple things out from the bag, held in each hand, “this mommy always comes prepared!” In her hands were a bottle of baby powder, and diaper that looked suspiciously large. Baby powder! That was the smell from earl- Catherine’s train of thought was interrupted once again as she felt a rush of cool air over her privates. It was one surprise and sensation after another as she looked and saw her panties being slid off her ankles, and having her legs lifted by Delia’s amazonian grip high into the air. Catherine only regained her senses and ability to protest after feeling the soft diaper underneath her naked bottom, “What are you doing? I don’t w-” Again she was cut off by her babysitter, who’s tone had changed for the first time that night, “I don’t want to hear it, Catherine.” Catherine was silent, still, and cooperative a moment at the harshness of her full name being used, even if that was how she usually liked it. “I deal with plenty of bed wetters when I babysit-” It was Catherine’s turn to interrupt Delia, “But, I don’t w-” she began reaching her hands over to stop her babysitter from sealing the tapes of the diaper only to have her hands slapped away with an instinctive yelp in surprise. “CATHERINE!” The older girl said firmly and strictly, stopping the diapering process and looking into the small girl’s eyes to show her seriousness. “I am your babysitter and you will listen to me,” She continued in a no-nonsense fashion, once again resuming to seal the reluctant girl in the cartoon-covered, plastic shell diaper, “As I was saying. I make sure to diaper all bed wetters that I babysit because I’ve had kids accidentally leak at night which has lead me to trouble with parents in the past. So I will be personally diapering you when I babysit you, just as a precaution.” The last tape was sealed snugly around Catherine’s waist. A sight she hadn’t seen in seven years since she switched to pull ups for her sporadic accidents. She could barely comprehend what Delia was saying through her embarrassment, disbelief, and fear, all while trying to rationalize what was happening. It was then that it hit her what Delia had meant by ‘out of diapers’! It was clearly a misunderstanding in the use of the words. Catherine cursed herself for not recognizing the mistake earlier. The babysitter continued talking as she looked in the closet for pajamas, “I know it’s still early, but I get all of my children ready for bed an hour or two before bed.” She had found a nightshirt and stepped fluidly back to the bed where the stunned, diapered, little girl sat. Catherine desperately wanted to insist that she wasn’t a child, that she didn’t like being interrupted, that she didn’t need help getting dressed, and most of all that she didn’t wet the bed anymore. Ergo, she didn’t need diapers or pull ups. Not nice four years ago. But she dared not speak until Delia seemed thoroughly finished lest she invite more yelling or whacking. “And for cooperating and getting ready for bed so early, and being brave by letting me diaper them…” Delia slid the nightshirt over Catherine’s already waiting arms, “I usually let them stay up an extra half hour” she finished with a wink, her good nature seeming to have returned. Delia then made another grab for her charge, who shied away slightly fearing another smack, gently pulling her into a cradling position once again. Her diaper crinkled loudly as the young girl was adjusted in her arms. Noticing the scared and confused look on Catherine’s face the insistent babysitter remedied the situation, “So cheer up! No one is here to see your diapees but me, and I promise not to tell anyone! Not ever, EVER!” Delia promised, lifting the nightshirt slightly and blowing raspberries onto the little girl’s tummy. This did not improve Catherine’s mood or answer her questions on why Delia thought she was a bed wetter and needed diapers. It did cause her to smile and laugh intensely, losing all sense trying to futilely push her babysitter’s head away. Her muscles refused to respond through the intense tickling. By the time she was able to open her eyes and stop laughing, she realized that she had been carried out to the kitchen. Catherine then remembered the promise of milkshakes. She was set down on the ground, her diaper crinkling as Delia’s arm slid past it causing her to blush. How had she let this happen so easily? Was it so hard to say a single sentence, “I don’t wet the bed?” No, this was not Catherine’s fault. It was Delia’s fault for being pushy, interruptive, and commandeering. Yet part of her did not want to confront her babysitter. She had so far been nice enough and generous, apart from the forceful diapering and dressing. It was just a misunderstanding. Still, it was better to nip this in the bud now than let this charade carry any longer. “Uh, Delia?” Catherine asked quietly, still minorly fearful of backlash from her babysitter. “Yes baby?” She responded sweetly. Requesting to not be called a baby at this point would simply be stupid, so Catherine ignored the pet name. She continued with a tone that would not come off as childish, and with a seriousness that would not make Delia think she was lying either, “I don’t wet the bed or need diapers. That’s what I was trying to tell you earlier.” The older girl had been looking in the freezer for ice cream, and stopped dead in her tracks. Everything was completely still and quiet, save for the hum of the open freezer. Delia then shut the freezer and whipped around, a horrified look on her face. “Oh. My. Gosh.” She began, sympathy showing in her face, much to Catherine’s relief. “I am SO SORRY!” The babysitter rushed over to the young girl and squeezed her in a heartfelt, apologetic embrace. Catherine’s face was pushed into the older girl’s bosom by a strong hand on the back of her head and on her bottom. “When I heard your bed crinkle with a plastic sheet earlier I thought you were a bed wetter. And all the children I diaper for bed complain when I insist on doing it. I guess I had just had enough arguingI’MSORRYI’MSORRYI’MSORRYI’MSORRYI’MSOSORRY” Blushing from her babysitter’s discovery of her plastic sheet, a remnant of her past bed wetting days, Catherine avoided extrapolating on the subject. “Mphmrrrahit” She tried to respond, ending the tide of apologies. After a moment, Delia finally let her breathe, “Don’t worry about it, I’ll just take this off and go put my normal panties on.” She turned to leave to do just that, only to feel a tug on the nightshirt stop her. “Well…” Delia began looking away, this time her turn to blush, “The thing is, Catherine, that you have to keep the diaper on.” she said, looking into the other girl’s eyes, still holding the end of the nightshirt. “… What?” Catherine asked, not quite believing what she was hearing. “Well, honey, diapers are expensive. If you take it off, it can’t be used again.” She explained slowly, knowing that the young girl would be outraged at the predicament. “It would be a waste if you didn’t sleep with it tonight.” Delia tried to appeal to the girl. Catherine was silent for a moment, searching for options out of this. She stared back at Delia while thinking. “Damn her!” She thought, “She has me cornered again!” One option was to resist completely, and blatantly remove the diaper against her babysitter’s wishes. This would result in her freedom, but at the cost of an unknown punishment from an unfamiliar babysitter. Better not to risk the chance of it being worse than a diaper. Another option was to fake an accident using a glass of water from the bathroom- no no that would be a terrible idea. Lastly, it was possible to simply accept her diapered fate for the night, the plus being no further conflict with Delia, the negative being her relinquishment to babyhood. Delia once again held her in checkmate. “Okay…” choosing the logically easiest answer, Catherine relented. Did that imply she would have to wet it if she needed to use the bathroom tonight or tomorrow? It wouldn’t come to that. She would simply take it off in the morning and throw it away, waste or not, once her tormentor had left. Finally releasing her hold Delia brought her charge in for a more gentle hug this time. “That’s very brave and mature of you. I’m proud of you, baby.” she softly said. Releasing the hug and standing up, she continued, “Now, I have a bit more bad news,” though her voice did not imply the news was that bad, “Looks like we’re out of ice cream, so we’re going to have to go out for ice cream!” Considering on protesting due to her state of dress, Catherine was preemptively stopped by Delia, “Don’t worry, you can go get pants on. I don’t plan on showing your diaper to the world.” Grateful for her babysitters foresight and for her decision to let her dress herself, Catherine walked down the hall experiencing the feel of moving around in her diaper for the first time. Not caring for the noise it made, or the awkward feel, Catherine kept a normal stride and pace. There were no other people around so she felt no need to be embarrassed, for now. Part of her wanted to switch back to daytime clothes if she were to venture outside, but she knew her shorts and tee shirt would run the risk of revealing her diaper. To her knowledge, the only clothes that would completely conceal the diaper were her nightshirt and other nighties. Catherine mulled over her options. “Actually, we won’t be getting out of the car. I know a drive-thru place for milkshakes, so you don’t really need pants” Delia paused, “-if you want. I swear no one will see.” Feeling backed into a corner again, Catherine considered the chances of having her diaper show. Looking at things objectively putting pants on would be a waste of time. If what Delia said was true then covering up really wouldn’t be necessary. She had gone out in the same pajamas before, sans diapers. Above all Catherine wanted that milkshake as soon as possible. “Alright, you promised!” she reminded her babysitter. The two girls walked one after the other to the front door, where Delia dug out her keys from the large bag, which Catherine now confirmed to specifically be a large diaper bag, and picked up Catherine to carry her out the door. The younger girl was fine with this as the ground outside was cold and she had no shoes. Delia also took extra caution to hold her in such a way to not let her long shirt fall open. After being situated and placed in the front seat, Catherine noticed right away with annoyance, “Hey, I don’t need a baby car seat!” then mumbled to herself, “just because I’m wearing a diaper…” “It’s a booster seat, dear, not a car seat,” Delia countered, “And I’m not going to waste time taking it out. Don’t you want to sit in the front seat with me?” Silently agreeing, Catherine resigned to her fate. She surmised that Delia must take care of children of all ages. Looking in the back out of curiosity, she noticed a real child’s car seat. The older girl started up her nice new-smelling electric car and soon the two were on their way to get milkshakes. In the silent time that passed, Catherine started to rethink the events of the last hour. Everything seemed suspicious, from the dress that had perfectly fit her, not to mention the diaper, Delia’s deceptively impressive chess skills, and all the clever excuses she seemed to have in order to humiliate her. However, she couldn’t guarantee that what was humiliating to her was viewed the same as from Delia’s perspective. There simply wasn’t enough evidence for Catherine to crack the case and get the answers she wanted right now. “What flavor do you want, kiddo?” Delia asked. Apparently they had reached their destination already. Catherine recognized it as a local owned dairy/ice creamery she had been to once or twice. Thinking quickly on what she had ordered in the past, “small mint chocolate chip shake, please,” Catherine decided. “Make it a medium, Bish,” Delia winked at him, causing the young man taking the order to blush slightly. Catherine looked over in confusion as her babysitter leaned over and whispered, “I figure I owe you for the mix up with the diap-” “Thanks, but you didn’t have to.” She hastily interrupted, not wanting to be reminded of what lay just beneath her pajamas. Drawing her own attention to that area, Catherine noticed the car had heated seating which felt very nice on her bottom and thighs. She had to admit, while the idea of wearing a diaper was humiliating, the actual diaper itself was more than comfortable. Waiting for her milkshake, she began to adjust, lean back in the chair and relax, causing a quiet crinkle from her diaper. This made Delia look over and smile patronizingly. Her gaze caused Catherine to fidget more and try to find a less crinkly position, only to elicit more noise. “What?” She asked, annoyed, hearing her babysitter stifle a laugh at her predicament. “Nothing!” Delia meeped trying her best, but failing, to spare the little girl any embarrassment. She then looked out the window to see their milkshakes were being walked out to them. “Oh here they come!” Delia exclaimed, effectively changing the subject. The drive back was just as silent as the drive there, though this time Catherine was entirely focused on her milkshake. Finishing it just as they pulled into the driveway, the girl let out a happy sigh after the last long slurp. The sun had been set for a few hours, and thus is was getting colder outside by the minute. Hugging herself and bouncing on her tippy toes, Catherine made a dash for the front door avoiding being carried in by her babysitter again. “Thanks, Delia.” She added remembering her manners. “Sure thing sweetie.” Delia locked up the car with a click of her keys and marched toward the house. “Does this make me your favorite?” She asked sweetly, beginning to unlock the front door. “Wellllll” Catherine began, dramatically dragging out the response while bounding into her home, “You’re alright.” She then quickly amended, “Apart from being diaper crazy.” for added truth. “I guess I’ll have to butter you up even more to get you to warm up to me,” Delia accepted the compliment with a ruffle of the little girl’s hair. Setting the diaper bag down by the couch again, she stretched and laid herself along the length of the furniture and turned the TV on. Inviting Catherine over Delia patted her own stomach to beckon the girl to lie with her. Stifling a yawn, Catherine welcomed the invitation and lay down on top of her babysitter, bringing a blanket with her. Delia wrapped up herself and the much smaller girl under the blanket, shifting around to find a comfortable and warm position. After much shuffling of cloth over cloth and the rustling of a diaper, the two girls were on their sides facing the TV, and Catherine found herself being Delia’s little spoon. To her embarrassment, she noticed her babysitter had laced her hands over Catherine’s midsection, effectively lifting her nightshirt and leaving her diaper exposed. While she was still covered by the blanket, and no one would ever see inside the house anyway, it still left the poor girl feeling vulnerable to know her infantile state was so unprotected. Every time she attempted to remedy the situation, Delia would hug her tighter and tickle the little girl’s tummy. Feeling her eyelids becoming heavy, Catherine glanced at the clock to see she still had roughly 45 minutes left to stay up before being put to bed according to Delia’s rules. Certainly she had to take advantage of this treat and stay awake a long as possible! Despite her best attempts she drifted off into a deep sleep before even her normal bedtime. The combined rhythmic breathing of her babysitter, and her warm, comfortable embrace proved too much. Gentle rocking motions caused Catherine to stir. Her senses were muddled from the sleepy haze that still clung to her, making it difficult to process what was happening. It became aware to her that she was being carried, presumably to her room. The next sense that came to was the feeling between her legs. What happened to her underwear? Memories came flooding back, specifically memories of the diaper. Something else was amiss, yet Catherine’s senses eluded her. “Are you awake, sweetie?” Delia gently whispered, slowly setting the girl down on the bed. “Mmmnnnnn” Catherine moaned, unable to properly answer. She began grasping for pillows and sheets. She was once again picked up and assisted in standing. “I need you to go brush your teeth. Then I’ll tuck you into bed.” Delia instructed, waiting for her charge to get going. When she wouldn’t, she gave the little girl a firm pat on the bottom to get going. In that motion, Catherine was immediately jolted awake upon a certain realization. She rushed off to the bathroom as she was told and shut the door and locked it behind her. With shaky fingers and and apprehension, she looked to the mirror and slowly lifted her nightshirt to reveal the diaper underneath. It looked the same. Catherine couldn’t be certain though, not having inspected it greatly earlier. Holding her breath, the young girl reached down to feel it. It was wet. Her first accident in four years. Though it didn’t feel or appear to be much, it was an accident nonetheless. Tears threatened her eyes at the slow realization of the impact of the accident. Catherine didn’t want to think about what Delia would do knowing she had somehow devolved into a bed wetter in a single day. Perhaps she could hide it? The thought calmed her down somewhat. Surely Delia would have said something if she knew about the accident. All Catherine had to do at this point was make it back to bed without her babysitter seeing the accident. She would then remove the diaper, dispose of it, and pretend it never happened. Once her teeth were brushed, and nerves were steeled, she left the bathroom to enact her plan. Softly padding down the hall, her diaper less crinkly than before, she wondered if Delia would even be in her room. Of course, Delia was. “Come on, honey” The babysitter sat on the bed and held her arms out to pick up the girl, as usual, “I’ll help you up.” “Only babies need help up. I climb onto my bed by myself every day.” Catherine said stoically, despite truly feeling like a baby on the inside. She took the long way around to the foot of the bed to avoid the trap set before her. She continued climbing as Delia spoke, “Well you may not be a baby,” swiftly, she reached over to lift Catherine’s nightshirt up as the little girl was halfway up the bed, “but you sure look cute like one with this diaper!” Her wet diaper revealed, Catherine resolved to keep the farce going until she was called out on it. “Hey!” She whined indignantly, tugging the shirt back down as far as it would allow. Had she noticed? Delia’s plastic smile appeared unchanged. Perhaps she had gotten away with it. As Catherine began to pull the sheets up to let herself in, completion of her plan in sight, she was stopped by her babysitter gently grabbing her wrist. “We’d better change that diaper before you get all snuggled in.” Delia said gently and apologetically. Caught. In the end she was not able to get away with hiding her accident. Slowly turning to look into her caretaker’s eyes, Catherine began to sniffle, wondering what would happen now. She let the older girl assume all control considering she was in no position to protest or resist. On top of Delia’s domineering diapering ways, she also now had due cause to put Catherine in a new diaper. Four years of being dry at night amounting to nothing as Delia rifled through her diaper bag to get out what Catherine knew would be a diaper and not a pull up. She decided to make the request anyway, “Can I have a pull up instead?” Delia dumped a few items on the bed; a bottle of baby powder, a Ziploc bag, baby wipes, an item Catherine did not recognize, a folded changing mat, and a diaper that looked suspiciously thicker and more childish than the last, though it must have been Catherine’s imagination. “I’m sorry Cathy, but no.” Delia said sympathetically but seriously as she lifted the little girl’s legs by the ankles with one hand, and slid the chilly plastic pad into place with the other. “You leaked on the couch and me a little bit, so I need to make sure that doesn’t happen again.” A tinge of annoyance could be heard in her tone as she untaped the sides of the used diaper. Catherine’s eyes went wide at being told that. She gasped as she felt cold wipes were used to clean her diaper area. What would her mother do once Delia told her about the accident? She assumed she would be made to wear pull ups, or maybe even diapers at Delia’s suggestion, every night for weeks or months to come. The horror of the notion was enough to strip away what little pride Catherine may have had left. Turning her attention back to her humiliating diapering, she watched as her babysitter again lifted her legs sky-high to slide her dry diaper into place. Before the powder however, the young girl watched Delia pick up the unknown item and peel a tape off of it and then place it inside the diaper longways. It must have been an absorbent insert. Then came the powder, which the older girl did not skimp on. At long last the front fold of the diaper came up, and the four tapes sealed Catherine into the plastic prison. Sitting up, she thought asking wouldn’t hurt, if anything, “I’m sorry I leaked… Are you going to tell my mom?” Quiet for a moment, Delia answered slowly, “I’m going to have to. You may be sick and it’s possible you’ll wet your bed tomorrow or the next day. I’ll tell her to get you some diapers to protect your mattress.” Catherine’s worst fears had come to fruition. Launching herself at her babysitter and latching onto her, she begged, “No!! Please! You can’t! I’ll do anything!” A few tears let loose, “I haven’t wet the bed in four years. This was just a one time thing! I promise!” She continued to bargain. Delia embraced the crying child, rubbing her back and patting it. “Shhh shhhh it’s okay Cathy, shhh hushhhh” The hug continued like that for two or three more minutes before the older girl lifted the other away to see her tear-stained face. “If what you say is true, then maybe I won’t tell your mommy about this.” Hope glimmered and lifted Catherine’s spirits as she looked up at Delia smiling through the slowing tears. “You’ve still wet yourself and you’ll stay in diapers tonight,” Delia began to list her condition as she sank below the bed from Catherine’s view going through the diaper bag once again. The younger girl nervously waited above, playing with the elastic edge of her diaper. Coming back into view, the babysitter held up 3 pink pull ups, each with different princesses or cartoon characters on each. “You’ll wear these for the next three nights, just in case. That way, mommy doesn’t have to find out and your sheets are safe.” “Thank you thank you thank you!” Catherine said, taking the pull ups and sliding off the bed to put them into her dresser. While taking the short few steps across her room, she was able to confirm the increased thickness of this diaper. While she hated it, she also recognized the logic in wearing it. For tonight at least. Suddenly, though not unexpectedly, Catherine felt herself being lifted from behind and carried over to her waiting bed. “If you keep having accidents and use all of your pull ups,” Delia explained while pulling the covers over the small girl, “You’ll have to tell your mommy yourself that you’ve been having accidents. Okay?” She asked the younger girl to ensure she understood. Hiding all reluctance from her voice Catherine answered, “I will. Thanks again for covering for me. You are my favorite now.” She flattered Delia, hoping to eliminate all chance of her changing her mind and relaying the night’s events to her mother. “Awww! You’re my favorite too! I really hope I get to babysit you again someday soon!” If sugar, sunshine, and rainbows could spill forth from Delia’s mouth they would have during that sentence. She gave Catherine a little kiss on the nose before turning off the lights and standing in the doorway, “Sleep tight, and don’t forget! Be a good baby even after I leave!” Catherine groaned at being called baby for the elevendy-millionth time tonight as Delia shut the door and left her in the dark under her covers. It took Catherine several minutes of twisting and turning to find a remotely comfortable position with her thick new diaper. Not that the diaper was uncomfortable. It was actually very soft, but still felt foreign and intrusive between her legs. She reached down to feel it, still scarcely believing the night’s events. The plastic material, bunched, scrunched, and rustled with her every touch. Catherine had half a mind to rip the diaper off right now and replace it with her normal underwear. She could not force herself to, though. She was feeling tired anyway, emotionally and physically, despite her still active mind. After a fitful few more adjustments the little girl finally felt at ease enough to drift off into dreamland.   Author notes: [Thanks to everyone who gave this story a chance and read up to this point, or even skimmed! This is my first story. That being said, I welcome and appreciate any and all constructive criticism you may have regarding the story, writing, or format. Also special thanks to Astra for giving me writing tips and suggestions to clean this up before posting it!]                 Chapter 2     Sleep came and went for Catherine all through the night. Her dreams were fragmented, fuzzy, and forgettable. After breaking out of her slumber for the third time that night she groggily slithered off her elevated bed and padded down the hall towards the kitchen. There the girl grabbed the drinking cup she left for reuse by the sink and poured herself a glass. A common ritual done to help herself sleep at night. Drinking down two or three gulps and dumping the rest, she replaced the cup and turned to leave. At this point, after being awake long enough, Catherine once again became acutely aware of her diaper hearing it’s loud, telling crinkle. Looking over her shoulder to ensure her mother wasn’t there, despite the low chances she tiptoed back into the kitchen. Finding what she needed, the little girl pulled out one large Ziploc bag. She would need it to dispose of the diaper and its smell whether it was used by morning or no. No, it wouldn’t be used by morning. Carefully and quietly Catherine opened her dresser drawer and retrieved a pair of her normal underwear. She then slipped under the covers of her bed and began to slip the diaper off and down her hips. It wouldn’t budge. Delia had done a fine job of making the fit as tight as possible. The young girl lay there a few moments thinking how to detach the tapes without making noise. She had no intention of sleeping another minute in that diaper. Making her way to the bathroom, with Ziploc and underwear in hand, Catherine sat on the toilet lid and inspected the tapes in the light. Using the toilet flush as a noisy distraction, she seized her opportunity and ripped all 4 tapes off at once. While the tapes were loud, she hoped the bathroom fan and toilet provided enough cover. It seemed her babysitter wasn’t lying about the nature of the tapes. The plastic front was ruined, holes showed the stuffing inside the diaper where three of the four tapes were. It would be impossible to reuse the diaper after taking it off, like she had said. Not caring about the waste of a single diaper Catherine stuffed it into the plastic bag and sealed it. In the mirror she could see there was tons of powder residue left on her body. Using a damped cloth she cleaned up and replaced her normal panties. Back where she belonged at last. Not wanting to risk being seen carrying the trash back to her room Catherine left it hidden in the bathroom cupboard before returning to bed, where she fell into a pleasant, more comfortable sleep. Friday morning arrived with cracks of sunlight piercing through the small holes in the blinds of Catherine’s room. She was not woken, however, until her mother knocked on the door. “Seven o’clock, Catherine! Time to get up!” Awoken by Mrs. Soulland, the girl heard the footsteps tapping down the hall and away from her door. She stretched and hopped off the bed, her muscles stiff and unresponsive. Catherine went through her normal school day routine; shower, dress, and breakfast. Knowing her mother would be occupied in the kitchen, Catherine took the chance to sneak back the diaper to her dresser drawer. She would dispose of it more permanently, along with the pull ups, on trash day. Waking up dry that morning had been enough proof she wouldn’t need them “How was your movie?” Catherine asked while seating herself in front of the mini omelet that was prepared for her. “Margerie and I had a great time. We shared a bottle of wine with her brother after the movie and stayed up talking and catching up for hours.” She answered, sipping her coffee. The mention of Margerie’s brother reminded Catherine, “Oh, is Grant flying home for the holiday weekend in two weeks? He said he would try!” Her eyes were wide with optimistic hope at the chance to see her brother. Mrs. Soulland finished a bite of her toast and a gulp of her coffee. “You can call him after school today and ask him yourself. I haven’t heard from your brother in a few days.” That left Catherine grinning from ear to ear on drive the way to school and most of the day there. School went as to be expected for Friday. Students and teachers alike were looking forward to the weekend. The young girl managed to talk her algebra teacher into overlooking her missing homework. The teacher still implored that she keep up with studying and at least attempt partial completion of homework assignments. Catherine did not sit with the other students during lunch. Not that they wouldn’t have her. She simply never made the effort to join them. There were no bullying or snide remarks made behind her back, at least not to her knowledge. The neutral treatment of her made her feel less ostracized. When not finding a spot on her own, she would spend her lunch with a teacher once or twice a week. Catherine assumed they ate with her out of pity, but she still enjoyed the company. She preferred the company of the adults over her peers anyway. Towards the end of lunch Catherine went to wash her hands in the bathroom as she usually did. Through the running water and scrubbing of her hands she heard a distinct, familiar noise coming from one of the stalls. Could it be? It must have been her imagination. But again, through the noise of the hand drier this time, she heard the same noise. There was no mistaking it. Someone was changing a diaper in one of the stalls. Casually glancing over her shoulder Catherine only saw one other pair of feet in the bathroom besides her own. She exited the bathroom, knowing the girl wouldn’t risk coming out of the stall with a used diaper while she stayed there. Still, her curiosity was not satisfied. Standing inconspicuously nearby Catherine waited for her mark to leave the bathroom. Seeing the other girl leave at last, the inquisitive girl tailed her target. After three or four minutes of reconnaissance Catherine found the girl to be Jenny, a student she shared class rotation with. There was no mistaking the bulge under the girl’s jeans if anyone was looking for it. The bell tone sounded signifying lunch’s end. Catherine had no intention of confronting the girl about her diapers at the time. Instead of paying attention in classes she spent most of the time deep in thought formulating all possibilities to why she may be wearing diapers at school. All plausibilities seemed just as unlikely as Jenny wearing a diaper in the first place. Yet the proof sat less than fifteen feet away from her. These kinds of anomalies interested Catherine and gave her reprieve from the dullness of school. Final bell rang and students poured from the classrooms like water to go enjoy their weekend. Catherine lost track of Jenny in the crowd and had to abandon her research. The next hour was spent leaning up against a chain linked fence near the front of the school waiting for her mother to pick her up. Just after finishing one of her assignments Mrs. Soulland pulled into the pickup area. Catherine shoved her schoolwork hastily into her backpacked and fastened her seatbelt for the ride home. “Sorry I’m late today sweetie. Had to close out a sale. We’re going to the store to get groceries by the way.” Mrs. Soulland apologized and amended. It didn’t matter much to Catherine anyway. Her mind was preoccupied with the excitement of talking to her brother later today and the mystery surrounding Jenny. The woman and her daughter entered the supermarket together and immediately found the clearance rack, their favorite place in the store. While Catherine didn’t have to worry about money she had learned from her mother to always be frugal. After, disappointingly, finding nothing of use the family moved on to the rest of the store. “I’m going to look around, I’ll find you by the checkout when I’m done.” Catherine stated, beginning to walk away from her mother and the cart. “Alright, be careful!” Mrs. Soulland warned. She didn’t like to let her daughter run amok by herself in the store, but she was trying to force herself to let Catherine be more independent little by little. Catherine feinted going towards the toys section of the market before changing course and finding the aisle she was really looking for. There was an entire half aisle dedicated to diapers here. Surely she would find what she was looking for, but inspecting each package proved to be a time-consuming job. It had been some time before a voice from behind took Catherine by surprise. “Having accidents?” A teasing voice said gently. The little girl spun about to see her babysitter from the night before standing over her, a smug look about her face. She was interrupted before she could give any sort of response. “Delia! What a surprise!” Mrs. Soulland exclaimed as she pushed the cart full of groceries closer to the girls, “What brings you to the diaper aisle?” “Oh you know. I have to stock up on babysitting supplies from time to time. Toys, games, diapers, etc.” “Of course, of course.” Mrs. Soulland agreed. “I’m glad I saw you. I was actually planning on giving you a call once we got home. I have fly out for a wedding tomorrow and fly back on Sunday.” Catherine remembered how she had declined wanting to go when her mother mentioning the wedding some time ago. “I know it’s short notice,” The woman continued in a beseeching manner “and I know you probably have better things to do, but do you think you could watch Cathy for a day and a half this weekend?” Holding her hand up in a gesture to stop Delia smiled. “Say no more Mrs. Soulland. I’d love to watch little Cathy. We got along like sisters last night. Right Cathy?” She called over. Catherine was not paying attention. She was transfixed looking at the wall of diapers. Where were they? “Catherine.” Mrs. Soulland said sternly getting her daughter’s attention. “Delia was speaking to you.” “Oh uh yeah. Delia’s really nice.” Catherine faked her enthusiasm towards her babysitter. Truthfully she held no preference for Delia over any of her other previous babysitters. “What are looking for here on the diaper aisle sweetie?” The mother asked her daughter in a quizzical tone. She had just now noticed the strangeness of this meeting point. “I was just wondering how diapers are made.” Catherine quickly lied. She hoped all the talk of diapers wouldn’t cause Delia to bring up anything about last night. Shehadpromised. The possibility still worried the young girl. “Well, we’ll let you go Delia. Again, thanks so much for agreeing to watch her. I’ll call you later with the details.” The older woman waved goodbye and began pushing the cart away. Catherine followed behind. The mother and daughter finished checking out and pushed the groceries across the parking lot out to the car. Catherine had convinced her mother to buy her a journal while at the store and she was already busy filling it up as soon as the car began moving. The drive home was pleasant. Mrs. Soulland played her favorite country radio station and cranked the heater up. Fall was underway and the trend of the weather began to show it. Autumn was Catherine’s favorite time of year. Autumn to her meant pumpkin pie, colorful leaves, warm coats, and best of all family holiday dinners. The loud crank of the parking brake sounded and the young girl let herself out of the car. After helping to bring the groceries in Catherine went straight for the home phone and dialed up her brother. Every drone of the dialing tone left her bouncing in her seat with giddy anticipation. Her brother finally picked up on the last tone. “Hello?” “Hi Grant!” Catherine responded with great enthusiasm. “Hey Einstein! How have you been? Play any good chess games lately?” Catherine omitted the game with Delia last night. She didn’t want any chance of having to recount any memories of yesterday. The siblings carried on catching up for nearly half an hour talking about school, their mother, games, the new dog Grant’s housemate got, and above all missing each other. Towards the end of the conversation Catherine finally dropped the question. “So are you going to fly out here for Columbus Day weekend?” The fact that he did not respond right away was enough to realize the answer. Catherine’s heart sank. “I’m sorry Catherine…” Grant began. “… but I do have some good news. I shipped your birthday present today!” Masking her disappointment the girl feigned her joy. “Ooooh what’d you get me?” “I’ll never tell! You’ll just have to wait. It’s still a month until your birthday and you can’t open it early!” The older brother admonished. “How are you going to enforce that?” She asked teasingly. Her interest was legitimately piqued now. “If I find the package before mom does…” “Don’t even think about it!” Grant knew his sister was kidding but still went along with it. “Besides, I’ll know when you open it.” “Whaaat? There’s no way you would know.” Catherine called his bluff. “I will. Trust me. Brothers have instincts with these kinds of things.” He answered smugly. “I have to go now alright? Be good for mom!” “I always am. I love you Grant.” She said solemnly, not wanting him to hang up yet. “I love you too Catherine. We’ll talk again real soon.” Click. Sighing in acceptance, Catherine returned the phone to its hook and retreated to her room where she wrote in her journal more. It would be a long two months until Thanksgiving before the siblings would see each other in person again. While writing in her journal the girl could hear her mother packing for her short trip. After about an hour there was a knock at the bedroom door. “Cathy, do you want to watch a movie with me tonight?” The mother spoke through the door without opening it. A movie sounded dull to Catherine. At least all movies her mother would approve of for a child her age sounded dull. Just the thought of eyes fixed on the television watching shows or movies put Catherine in a slump. Fifteen minutes of TV last night had been enough. “No thanks mom.” “…I guess I’ll just have to eat this whole pizza by myself thennnn.” Mrs. Soulland sang, her voice swaggering away. The door clicked open and Catherine was on her mother’s heels in an instant. “You drive a hard bargain.” She admitted. Take out was a rare treat in their home. The little family of two enjoyed pizza from the comfort of the couch while watching a short romance movie. Mrs. Soulland made sure to cover Catherine’s eyes during the particularly steamy scenes. Catherine would complain indignantly at the censorship. It wasn’t anything she hadn’t seen before. She and all the other 5th graders had to watch the puberty/sex education video during the first month school. She didn’t care much to see anyway. It was the act of her mother deeming her not mature enough that got to her. The movie was predictable right up until the end. Happily ever after. Catherine gave thanks for the pizza and excused herself after putting away the dishes. The rest of her night was spent switching between reading a book, playing Chessmates, and writing in her journal. Each entry in the journal was painstakingly written and took much more time than her normal writings would. Satisfied with the work she had done so far Catherine put the girly pink journal aside and pulled from under her bed a much nicer looking diary. She opened its leather cover by the metal corners to the place she had last left off. This was her real journal. The thoughts and musings she wrote on the pages of this journal were her normal style and form. In the new diary she received today, she tried her best to emulate the penmanship and grammatical mistakes of a classmate whose essays she had peer reviewed many times before. Many students sought her out in class for any sort of group work or evaluation because of her academic talent. It was nice to be looked up to sometimes. “Catherine honey, can I come in?” The voice came from just outside the door once again. “Sure mom.” Catherine calmly hid the black journal under her pillow and swapped it for the pink girly one. “My plane leaves at noon tomorrow, so I have to leave around ten.” Mrs. Soulland let herself in and took a seat next to her daughter. “I know you’ll probably want to sleep in since it’s the weekend. Do you want me to just say goodbye tonight and let you sleep in? I’ll tell Delia not to wake you.” She offered. If Delia were to see Catherine in bed without a pull up on punishment would surely follow. And she had no intentions of wearing one tonight, or the next two nights for that matter. “No, I’ll see you tomorrow morning. I won’t sleep in that late.” She said sweetly. “Okay then. Bedtime in half an hour by the way.” The woman smiled back and stood to leave. “I’ll see you tomorrow then. Goodnight sweetie.” The door was closed once again. “Love you. Night” Catherine quietly said back. Half an hour later the young girl was brushing her teeth and preparing for bed like she had been told. After getting on a pair of thick sweats and sleeper tank, Catherine went over to her dresser and gingerly brought one of the pull ups out. She didn’t need it. But what if she did? Was last night a fluke? Or would she wake up to a wet bed tomorrow morning? Without fully realizing what she was doing the girl slowly began to slide her pants down. It was just a pull up. Just a precaution. Nothing embarrassing about it. She stepped out of the sweats and stared at the childish thing she held in her hands. Her pride wasn’t worth the risk. With trembling hands she hooked her thumbs on the inside of the pull up and lowered it down to her feet- No! What was she doing? Catherine snapped out of her daze, angrily tossing the pull up aside, and put her pants back on. She then retrieved the pull up and put it back with the others. It still looked untouched with no evidence that she had succumbed to its humiliating embrace. Good. The lights were turned out and covers were pulled up to the little girl’s chin. She slowly began to fall asleep putting all thoughts of diapers and bed wetting as far out of her mind as possible. Instead she planned possible conversations with Delia and how she would disengage from her to spend her weekend in peace. “I won’t wet the bed. I can’t,” were Catherine’s last thoughts before sleep took her. Garbled words woke Catherine from her deep sleep. They sounded distant. Or were they underwater? “Come on Catherine, wake up!” Mrs. Soulland said, gently shaking her daughter awake. “Delia is here and I’m leaving.” Catherine was vaguely aware of a faint dampness in her sheets as her senses came into focus. Oh no! Her mother had already turned and left, seeing Catherine come to. The little girl lifted the sheets to inspect the damage. Nothing. There was no accident. The dampness must have just been from night sweats. She did have more blankets than was necessary that night. Satisfied at another triumph of proving Delia wrong, Catherine padded out to the front door to say goodbyes. Her bare feet slapped loudly on the hardwood floor in the morning quiet of the house. The two ladies were standing by the entryway talking when they noticed Catherine enter the room. “There’s my sleeping beauty!” Delia exclaimed, going over to the little girl and bringing her in for a hug. Perhaps it was just her imagination, or maybe because it was early, but Catherine could swear she felt Delia tug at the back of her sweats and stick her thumb just into the waistband of her panties. As if she were looking for something. “Alright Delia, I’ll leave the rest to you. Emergency contacts are in the same place as last time, I gave you the lunch and dinner money already, and… I think that’s everything.” Mrs. Soulland trailed off trying to remember if she had forgotten anything important. “Cathy can fill you in on anything you may need to find in the house or other small details. You be good for Delia, alright honey? You do everything she tells you to.” She said leaning down and placing a hand on her daughter’s cheek. “I will mom. I’ll miss you.” Catherine answered with a big hug. “I’ll miss you too. Call me if you need anything Delia!” The door swung open and the fluorescent glow of light filled the living room as the two girls waved goodbye to Mrs. Soulland. “Have a safe trip!” Delia called out as she closed the door. The babysitter turned to Catherine and squatted to her height and smiled widely. “So did you have any accidents on Thursday after I left? I checked you one last time before I left but you were still dry.” Of course that would be the first subject for Delia to bring up. “No. I was dry.” Catherine replied with noticeable self-satisfaction. Her voice masked the indignity she felt at having her diaper checked while she slept. “And did you wear your pull up last night?” Delia continued her invasive interrogation and pulled down Catherine’s pants enough to see the waistband of her underwear. “You’re not wearing it right now…” She said with an accusatory tone looking into her charge’s eyes. Pulling her pants back up and folding her arms Catherine quickly made up an excuse. “I didn’t want to risk my mom noticing so I took it off after she left the room. And no, I didn’t have an accident last night either.” “Just like a big girl! I’m so proud of you!” The older girl stood and picked up the large, dreaded diaper bag and slung it over her shoulder. “I guess I was wrong to diaper you on Thursday and make you wear pull ups Catherine. You’ve proven to me that you’re a big girl by doing what I asked and wearing protection the last two nights.” Catherine felt a beam of pride as she was praised by her babysitter. Even if it was based on a lie. It seems she had finally earned some respect, and the issues from two nights ago would be put behind them. “So you don’t have to wear protection any more. I’ll take back the two pull ups you didn’t use yet. I’ll save those for someone who actually needs them!” Delia began walking towards the little girl’s room. Fear shot down Catherine’s spine as she pieced together what was about to happen. She had to think of a way to inconspicuously stop Delia from going into her room, and fast! “You don’t have to go do that! I’m a big girl. I’ll go get them for you.” She continued with a suggestion noticing Delia’s pace was not slowing. “You can go unpack and make yourself at home in my mom’s room.” Perfect excuse! “That’s awfully sweet of you Cathy!” Delia stopped just in front of Catherine’s room. It seemed the plan had worked. “-but I really don’t mind” She opened the door and walked in, approaching the dresser. Catherine knew it was over by the point. There would be no getting rid of her the second she stepped foot inside the room. Time to face the music. With a heavy swallow she stepped in behind her babysitter and watched helplessly as she rifled through the dresser drawers searching for the pull ups. It was all Catherine could do but to stay quiet and stare nervously at the ground. It was another checkmate. Delia stopped in shock when she found the right dresser. “Catherine…” She said slowly turning to face the younger girl, holding the three clearly unused pull ups in her hands. “Do these look used to you?” The older girl held them out while asking the rhetorical question. Catherine still stared at the ground, too afraid to make eye contact with her babysitter. Fidgeting did little to calm her nerves much less get her out of the trouble she was in. “Catherine. Look at me.” Delia then gently brought Catherine to look into her eyes by lifting her chin. “Did you, or did you not, wear one of these pull ups last night?” Should she tell the truth to reduce the punishment? Would telling the truth even alleviate any punishment at all? “No…” was all Catherine could whisper out. “No, what, Catherine?” The sentence was left hanging. Delia clearly expected her to finish it. “No. I didn’t wear a pull up last night. And I took off the diaper Thursday night.” May as well come fully clean at this point. “But I was-” A firm finger on her lips silenced her. “You’ve betrayed my trust Catherine.” The older girl’s words were slow, heavy, and sad. She reached down and began to lift Catherine off the ground. At first she thought that Delia had been coming in for a hug. That somehow all was forgiven. That was not the case. Delia hoisted her little body over her tall athletic shoulders and carried her out to the living room. Catherine was scared and left to wonder what bizarre punishment lay in store for her. Soon Delia stopped and lowered Catherine to the ground. She still wore the angry and disappointed face that marked betrayal. Once again the little tried to apologize and defend her point of view. “I’m sor-” Catherine was interrupted by Delia putting a finger to her lips to silence her again. Before she could protest or whine Catherine felt herself being forced into the corner of the room. There, Delia grabbed both of Catherine’s hands and placed them on the wall, making sure the girl’s nose was well close to the corner. “You will stay like that until I say you can move. Understand?” She said coldly. Catherine was afraid to respond, unsure if the question needed an answer or not. When she felt a light smack on her bottom she yelped, “Yes! I understand!” Footsteps faded away as Delia sighed and walked back towards the hall. Left alone with her humiliation, Catherine fought back tears. She was in a terrible place. Catherine shifted uncomfortably from the awkwardness of the position she was in. On top of the corner time she was receiving, she felt terrible for deceiving Delia. If only she had worn the pull up last night like she was told to! She cursed her pride for getting her into this situation. If she had any thoughts of crossing Delia or ignoring her instructions before, she certainly didn’t now. The sound of footsteps coming caused Catherine to hold her breath. Delia didn’t stop to dish out more punishment though. Instead the footsteps continued on into the kitchen. For the next twenty minutes Catherine could hear what sounded like a meal being prepared. She couldn’t be sure. There were bags and containers being opened and closed, the light clank of silverware, and pouring of liquids. An involuntary gurgle came from the little girl’s stomach. She hadn’t eaten breakfast yet and it was beginning to show. Another ten minutes passed until at last Delia called out from Catherine’s room. “Catherine, come in here.” Her tone sounded less angry and harsh now. Doing exactly as she was told, the little girl took a few precious seconds to stretch her sore body before rushing off to meet Delia. She entered her room cautiously, fearful of what awaited her. Looking around, she noticed nothing out of place except for Delia and the diaper bag. She cleared her throat at the sight of it. “Sit down with me Catherine.” Delia patted the place on the bed beside her. “I like you Catherine,” The babysitter said as the little girl sat beside her. She wrapped her arm around her charge. “You’re a smart, sweet, little girl. But you need to understand that when I tell you to do something, you do it whether you like it or not. I am your babysitter and I know what is in your best interest.” Her grip around Catherine’s waist tightened a bit. “I could have told your mommy about your accident and you would be wearing diapers every night. But I didn’t. I did you a favor.” Delia rose off the bed went to Catherine’s dresser. Surprise struck Catherine when she saw Delia reveal a pull up from the dresser. Why had she put them back? Delia began to push her onto her flat onto the bed and remove her pants and panties. Catherine dared not resist and simply let her babysitter do all the work. Once her bottoms were off, the older girl patted her thighs and held the pull up open for her to slip into. Taking the hint Catherine slid off the bed and into the padded underwear. It felt better than a diaper, though not by much. The feeling of it tightly hugging her butt confirmed its babyness as memories of the last time she wore pull ups surfaced in her memory. “There,” The babysitter said with a smile finally returning to her face. “You’re going to wear this for the rest of the day until you get ready for bed tonight. This is what you owe me for not wearing last night.” Glad that her babysitter seemed to be happy again, Catherine reluctantly accepted the terms of the punishment if it meant no more corner time. Embarrassing underwear was something she could deal with. And unlike the diaper, this still allowed her to use the bathroom. Catherine embraced her babysitter in an apologetic hug, “I’m sorry I lied to you, Delia. It’ll never happen again.” She promised. “I know you won’t baby” The hug was returned and Delia patted Catherine’s bottom as if to remind her of the difference in authority. “Let’s get you out of those pajamas and into some daytime clothes, okay?” Delia had already begun pulling off the tank top her charge wore without getting a confirmation. It was less of a question than a statement. Allowing her babysitter to choose the clothes for the day, Catherine let herself be dressed in a black tee shirt and jeans; a surprisingly normal choice. She had honestly expected to be forced to wear the cutesy white dress from Thursday. Though to her dismay Catherine noticed in the mirror that her pull up would peek out of her jeans if she ever crouched or bent over. Delia then took her by the hand and escorted her out to the kitchen where lunch waited. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches! They even had the crusts cut off. Catherine scarfed down the sandwiches while the older girl was content to eat the crusts. Every moment was one way or the other with Delia. Catherine couldn’t quite place how she felt towards her babysitter. On one hand Delia had made more effort to interact with her than any other babysitter before. She was even kind, sympathetic, and generous at times. On the other hand Delia was also intimidating, controlling, and her oppressor. If Catherine kept in line and stayed observant she was sure she would be able to suck up and flatter Delia into being the perfect babysitter for her. A lot of adults were like that. All it would take is time. “Thank you so much for lunch Delia!” Catherine said in a sing song voice while snuggling up behind her babysitter. “My my, someone sure is affectionate today!” She cleaned off the dishes while she spoke. “So where do you want to go today?” “Erm, I was just planning on playing chess on the computer or reading a book today. I don’t really want to go out.” Catherine did her best to disengage the proposal. In truth, she would like to at least go to the library to check out new books and return old ones. Ever predictable, Delia was having none of it. “Of course you want to go out! We’ll go wherever you want first, then we can go get you a better shirt to cover up this.” The babysitter said, expertly plucking the pull up into view out from the backside of Catherine’s jeans. “Okay okay.” She tore away from Delia. “I know a couple places I want to go. The library and the downtown park. I need to return some books and see somebody.” Catherine answered cryptically before running off to get her books.   Author notes: Thanks again to everyone for reading and the kind comments. Sorry this chapter is a bit later than I anticipated. It was really hard finding a stopping point between here and the next chapter. If I had it my way I would have kept chapter 2 and 3 together in one super chapter, but I’m not sure when I’ll be able to finish the next part. As always if you have any suggestions, comments, or criticism please don’t be shy! Hope you all continue to enjoy the story. I do have the intent to finish the story! I’ve just lost the initial spurt of inspiration after writing the first two chapters. Nearly done with chapter 3 but I’m not sure when I’ll have the time to finalize it, what with my offline life taking up my time. I leave parts of the story, inner monologues, and dialogues intentionally vague because I have plans for twists and revelations later in the story, so I don’t extrapolate too much on details for certain parts. But if you do think I’m not being descriptive enough, please point it out and I will better try to use that advice in future chapters!         Chapter 3         The car engine gently hummed to life and the girls began their day out. Delia had teased Catherine earlier by asking if she needed a change yet or if she had gone potty before they left. Luckily that teasing had served as a good reminder to use the bathroom for Catherine who had taken full advantage of the suggestion. In the car, surfing through the radio channels, Delia tried to find some music both of them would like. After getting rejections from One Direction, Miley Cyrus, and Justin Bieber they eventually settled on a random mixed genre station. Catherine did surprisingly well navigating them towards the library, their first stop, which Delia commended her on. It was a short walk from the sparsely occupied parking lot to the library entrance.   “Ooooo hello Catherine!” A dusty, old, kindly voice called quietly out from the main desk as the pair walking into the library.   “Hi Marta!” Catherine called back similarly. She hefted eight books onto the counter with a little effort. “Plenty of returns today.”   “Oh my! Read all of them in just two weeks?” Marta asked while she scanned the books one by one and took them to a shelf behind the desk.   “I only read seven. I hated the Hunger Games and couldn’t finish it.” Catherine stuck her tongue out to show her disgust.   Once all the books were filed away, Marta returned to face the two. “Oh where are my manners? I’m Marta. And you must be…?” The elderly woman held out a handshake for Delia.   “I’m Delia; Catherine’s babysitter-” Marta, Catherine, and at least 3 other people seated in the library turned in her direction and sharply shushed her, “SHHHH” Delia slowly held her hands up defensively. “Sorry!” Her tone corrected for the appropriate volume.   “Well” Marta broke the silence. “You can check out a full ten books again dearie. Let me know if you need any help finding something.”   Nodding and quietly rushing off, Catherine began winding through nearly every avenue of books. Her babysitter quietly followed behind. If Catherine had bothered to look she would see Delia’s clearly bored face. Still, the babysitter followed every which way that the little girl went. The pile of books she had picked out thus far was beginning to stack up. Catherine used the begrudging Delia as a pack mule for another hour before finally being satisfied with her choices. The two made their way over to Marta’s desk.   Scanning in all the books, Marta handed them back to Catherine with a big wrinkly smile. The young girl grinned back and thanked her from behind the tower or books that nearly obscured her face. The elderly woman said her cheery goodbyes as the pair left the library. Catherine hefted the books into the back seat of the car into the baby car seat and buckled herself back into the child’s booster seat in the front of the car.   “Oh! We forgot to return a book!” Delia exclaimed while grabbing for a book near Catherine’s feet.   “No no no, that’s not a library book. That’s mine.” The younger girl reached out to stop Delia from grabbing the book while she spoke.   “Oh, why did you bring it then?” Her babysitter asked curiously. Catherine remained cryptically unresponsive as the car started up and sped down the roads towards the downtown park. Despite asking several more times, Catherine would still not give Delia a straight answer regarding the book. It irked the older girl, and Catherine reveled in it. It felt to her as a sort of pseudo-revenge to annoy her babysitter so.   The car grinded to a halt in the gravel parking lot and the two girls exited the vehicle. The younger girl had brought along the book with her as they began to trek down the paved path that winded through the green park. Delia found her mind wandering as she watched children at play in various parts of the playground, seeing them on the swings, playing frisbee, or running around the playground.   “Don’t you want to go play on the play-structure?” The babysitter legitimately suggested to Catherine, noticing she was still walking on the pavement with a purpose.   The little girl responded indignantly, “I came here to meet someone, not play baby games.” She clutched the book ever tighter.   Once they had passed the play structure, Delia saw Catherine’s true goal come into sight. They slowly approached several public stone, checkered tables where four old men sat playing their games.   “Hi Smitty!” Catherine called out to one of the older men, rushing over to him with her arms outstretched for a hug. The aging man turned, seeming confused for a moment, and warmly returned the girl’s hug.   “Ooooh Catherine! So good to hear from you!” Smitty murmured in a raspy voice. “Do you have time for a game today?” He adjusted his dark, outdated sunglasses as he spoke.   “Of course I do!” The young girl answered without giving her babysitter so much as a glance for approval, though Delia did not mind. The three of them made introductions and small talk as the two old men finished their current chess game.   Once Smitty had soundly beaten his opponent, Catherine sat down to take his place. She had never beaten Smitty before and was already working to suppress her nerves. Today might finally be the day she toppled her greatest opponent. Smitty fumbled with his pieces slightly, carefully feeling the shape of each piece, and Catherine helped him set up his side of the board after hers. At last the game began. The two raged a silent intellectual war, each taking great care before making a move. They also called out the positions and piece’s names before moving the tokens. Neither player had lost a single piece even after twelve turns.   Delia noticed something odd about the way Smitty played. He would call out his move, but Catherine would be the one to move the token most of the time. The man was old, but Delia still felt it was rude that he make the younger girl do all the work. It was still an interesting match to watch. The older girl noticed that Catherine was playing completely differently from their own match two days ago. She was left to wonder why in silence.   At last some pawns and others began to be taken from both sides. It looked as though Catherine was gaining the upper hand. “A2 Bishop to C4. Check.” The little girl breathed cautiously as if even a slightly wrong inhale could throw off her game. It was obvious that she was nervous but focused. Victory was within sight.   Smitty scratched his chin loudly and looked forward, as if looking behind his opponent. “King to E5.” He said gruffly. The old man’s face betrayed to trace of his strategy. The thick glasses helped make for one hell of a poker face.   Catherine gave chase to the enemy king, putting Smitty in check nearly every turn for the next several moves. If the older man was worried, he showed no signs. Suddenly the tables were turned when Smitty called out his own check; his queen threatening the enemy king. The young girl was completely unprepared for the counter attack.   Two more moves and it was over, “Queen to A1. Checkmate.” Smitty said with a smile. Catherine reluctantly moved Smitty’s queen into place with one final ‘tack’ from the stone table. “You shouldn’t give chase like that. Not when I still had so many options.”   “But I thought that–“ Catherine tried to defend her tactics. She was cut off when Smitty held up a hand for silence.   “Forget what you think!” The old man gave his sagely advice, “You need to be worried about what I think when you’re playing! Now, do you have my prize for winning today?” He rubbed his hands together with excitement.   “Of course.” The young girl answered, “I always bring it. It’ll probably be years before I beat you.” She loudly tapped the book that she was holding.   “Don’t sell yourself short kiddo. You get better every game.” The elderly man consoled her and stood up with some effort and assistance from a cane he held.   Only then did Delia make sense of the odd old man. He was blind.   Delia silently walked with Catherine and Smitty to a nearby bench. There, the young girl opened the book and began reading to the old man. It warmed the babysitter’s heart to see such a kind and sweet scenario. She could hardly believe that this was the same girl she had punished earlier today. It gave her the slightest sense of guilt. Delia suggested they get going after half an hour of reading. “We still have a few errands to run, why don’t we get going soon?”   Catherine denied the suggestion. “We’ll go when I finish the chapter.” She had said and continued reading.   Taken back by the assertiveness of her charge, Delia suppressed her annoyance at being told what to do by the younger girl. It was her own fault for phrasing it as a suggestion rather than a command. She patiently waited until Catherine was done reading. The girls said their goodbyes to Smitty and walked back through the park to car.   The car was silent a while as it drove on to its next destination. “That was a really nice thing you did back there Catherine. Reading to Smitty” Delia broke the silence.   “Yeah.” She took the compliment flatly not knowing what to say. “Where are we going anyway? Home is the other way.” Catherine pointed out.   The car turned a corner and the destination came into view. “We’re going to do a little clothes shopping.” Delia pointed to one of the buildings in the shopping center. Two minutes later the car was parked.   Opening the car door to let herself out, Catherine stood up and felt an odd sensation. It felt as though she had forgotten a drink on her lap and now felt it spill over her pants. Shock struck her as she realized what had happened. She had an accident in her pull up. It was difficult to tell, but the accident felt like it wasn’t too bad. But that wouldn’t be how Delia would see it, she thought. How had this happened? She just used the bathroom two hours ago and had nothing to drink since then! This wasn’t an accident- it was a loss of control. She hadn’t felt it coming at all, and that terrified Catherine. She kept pace with Delia, wondering how she would hide the accident and keep it hidden.   Once inside, the babysitter led her charge over to the juniors clothing section, much to her surprise. “Why are we in the junior’s department? I thought for sure you would try to get me to wear toddler dresses.” Catherine admitted.   “Do you want to go try on little dresses?” Delia asked with surprise, making a grab for Catherine’s hand. “I was just kidding. There’s plenty of cute things for you to wear here too. As long as we can find some in extra small.” She said continuing to look the clothing racks.   The shopping trip seemed more for Delia than it did for Catherine. While Delia picked up shirts, pants, and dresses for Catherine to try on, the little girl stood by the side trying to ignore her accident and formulate a defense against any possible confrontations with Delia. While absentmindedly following her babysitter, Catherine noticed with horror that they were headed to the changing rooms. She grimly thought that changing rooms would soon have a double meaning in her case if Delia saw her pull up.   “Alright let’s see how cute you look in these!” Delia said while dumping the new clothes into a pile on the floor of the small dressing stall.   “You don’t have to help me try these on. I’ll just come out and show you after I get them on myself.” Catherine tried to push her babysitter out of the stall only to find she wasn’t nearly strong enough to force her out.   “I know I don’t have to, but I want to!” Delia shut door in spite of Catherine’s protests.   The young girl was running out of options as she saw the first item Delia was unfolding were a pair of pants. She made her decision. “Delia?” the girl said quietly tugging on the older girl’s shirt.   Delia leaned down to better hear Catherine’s hushed words. “What is it, honey?”   Nearly choking on her words, Catherine whispered, “I think I had an accident.” She fought to hold back the tears, dreading what may come next.   “Awwww, Cathy…” Delia sympathized with the younger girl pulling her in for a hug.   Catherine genuinely returned the hug. It made her feel better. Though she immediately felt worse as Delia began to unbutton her jeans and slide then down mid-hug. She stood in front of her babysitter with a wet pull up on and pants around her ankles, feeling very small.   “Oh, honey, we’ve got to get you changed right now.” Delia said as she checked the pull up. The diaper bag was unslung from her shoulder and set on the floor of the changing room.   “Right now? Catherine whispered hoarsely. The ceiling appeared to have no cameras and the stalls adjacent to hers were empty putting her immediate concerns to rest. “It was just a little accident…” She tried to convince her babysitter to stop searching through the diaper bag for what she feared. Catherine’s fears were confirmed as Delia produced the same items that she had used two nights before and set them on the bench after clearing off the new clothes.   “Let’s make this quick Catherine. Accidents are accidents and you need some new protection.” Delia patted the plastic changing mat that she had laid down.   “No! I’m not going to wear a diaper during the day! I’ll just wear another pull up!” Catherine hissed, trying to bargain a way out from be diapered. If she wasn’t able to talk her way out of this she would end up just like Jenny; with a telling bulge under her jeans.   Delia gave a short frustrated sigh and grabbed Catherine’s wrist, reeling the girl in to her doom. “Be a big girl for me, Cathy. Lay down.” Her voice became more stern with every word.   It was no use. If she continued to resist she would surely be punished. There was no way out. Catherine left herself be pushed onto the changing mat and stared at the wall in shame. She couldn’t bear to look at Delia as the older girl disposed of the pull up and began diapering her.   The changing was done in very short order. Delia had not been kidding about making it quick. Soon Catherine was standing in the center of the changing room wearing nothing but a diaper and socks, feeling very much like a doll as Delia helped her to try on various outfits. She took much care to control her movements and prevent the diaper from crinkling whenever other women entered the adjacent stalls.   Twelve outfits and twenty minutes later they were done trying on clothes. Catherine actually found an outfit she particularly liked. It was a red mini dress that halted at the top of her knees and a black canvas half-jacket. Ordinarily she would find the dress to be too short, especially for fear of her diaper poking out, but when she saw herself in the mirror she felt very… mature. It was enough to cancel out the feeling of the diaper between her legs.   “Are you sure about buying this for me? I feel kind of guilty just taking it from you.” Catherine asked while helping to fold the rest of the clothes.   “Don’t worry about the money. I know a girl here.” Delia winked at the girl to reassure her. “Besides I couldn’t let you wear your old clothes out of the store. Everyone would be able to see your… you know.”   Catherine blushed at being reminded of the diaper she wore beneath the short dress. It was still a better option than the clothes she came in with. Based on how the diaper seated around her waist she assumed it would have been impossible to conceal with her jeans or shirt. Catherine thanked her babysitter for the clothes, but was still frustrated that Delia had forced her to wear a diaper. She followed the older girl out of changing room and helped her to return all the other clothes she had tried on. Delia led Catherine away from the checkout stand to find her friend. Catherine was a bit nervous walking around the store wearing clothes with tags still on them. She expected to be accused of stealing at every turn.   They approached a short girl folding clothes. “Hey Brook!” Delia called out as they walked up to the employee.   “Heyyyy girlfriend! What a surprise!” Her unusually deep voice surprised Catherine. “And who’s this you have with you?” Brook asked as she smiled down at the younger girl.   “Brook, this is Catherine; my latest little one to look after.” The babysitter explained condescendingly. “We’re here getting her these hot new clothes. Think you can cut us a deal?”   Brook tapped the rim of her thin glasses and smiled mischievously. “You know I’m not allowed to use my discount on friends…” Brook said sarcastically. It was clear she would make the exception anyway. The girls were led to different checkout stand where there were no other customers. “Come behind the counter for me sweetie.” Brook beckoned Catherine over with her hand.   Catherine nervously did as she was told. She felt strange and out of place going behind the counter. Everything looked very different from that side. Was that what the employees saw every day? The little girl was ripped from her daydream as Brook began gently tugging at parts of her outfit, looking for the tags and scanning them with the laser reader. After each tag was scanned, the older girl would rip them off. It took Catherine completely by surprise when Brook lifted her dress slightly to find the tag that was attached to the inside hem. She was too mortified to even respond as the dress stayed lifted a moment longer and the tag was pulled off. Had Brook seen? If Brook had seen, she made no mention of the diaper.   After the items were all paid for Delia and Catherine said their thanks and goodbyes and left the store. As they passed people on the way out of the store and to the car, Catherine tensed up. With each encounter she slowly became more and more comfortable with the idea of walking around in a diaper in public. She tried to convince herself over and over that no one could possibly see it and that it was highly unlikely that anyone would hear it beneath her dress. Assuring herself of all that helped to alleviate some of the embarrassment. Looking at it logically proved to her that is was less of a big deal than she was making it out to be. But at the end of the day, she was still a ten year old girl wearing a diaper; not something to be particularly proud of.   Delia was more talkative during the car ride back than she had been during previous drives. She droned on and on asking Catherine questions about school, boys, and family. Catherine was bored of the conversation and usually gave one word answers until family was brought up. She took control of the conversation and talked about her brother most of the way home. It seemed Delia had finally found an avenue to get Catherine to be open about. Her love for her brother seemed infinite, at least. The car brake cranked loudly again as they pulled to a stop in the driveway.   “So what do you want to do now? We could play house or dress up!” Delia suggested as she opened up the front door and laid the diaper bag by the couch.   Unsure of how to respond, Catherine paused for a short moment. She had originally planned to retreat to her room and read until dinner, but Delia had so far been… entertaining. Never had she bonded with any babysitter so much before. While it was partly Catherine’s fault for never reaching out to them, Delia had made the effort where other babysitters had not. Still, Catherine owed nothing to her babysitter. The older girl would likely just find more ways to humiliate and babyify her with her stupid games and rules.   “I’m just going to go read my new books.” Catherine hefted the pile of books she carried to obviously point them out.   Not seeming satisfied Delia remained persistent. “All by yourself? What am I going to do for fun then?” The young adult whined.   “I don’t know.” Catherine shrugged. “You can play dress up by yourself.” She called over her shoulder coldly as she trudged back to her room. Catherine heard an indignant ‘humph’ from Delia as she tossed the books onto the bed and closed the door.   Getting comfortable, Catherine found a book and nestled into her pillows against the wall and began reading. The story took her mind off all the things that were bothering her: her diaper, school, missing her brother, and accidents. Turning each page lazily passed the minutes into hours. She had finished nearly a third of the book by the time dinner rolled around. It also occurred to her that she had to use the bathroom. This presented a problem. Did Delia’s rule of not removing the diaper still apply? If so, how was she supposed to use the toilet? The diaper was secured again in such a way that made it impossible to slide down her hips. Surely Delia didn’t expect her to use the diaper. Then again, Catherine had a sinking feeling that was the case. The only thing left to do now was decide if she should ask, go, or defy the rules.   With a sigh Catherine left her room and went to go find Delia. “Um Delia?” She called out trying to find her babysitter.   “Yes baby?” The voice called back from the kitchen. Catherine found her eating an apple at the table while browsing through her phone.   Leaving no time to build up her nerves, the younger girl got straight to the point. “I have to use the bathroom.” She braced herself for whatever Delia’s response would be.   Letting the words hang in the air, Delia took another crisp bite of apple. “You’re wearing a diaper, Cathy.” She said with her mouth full.   Catherine didn’t like what that answer implied. “But I don’t want to use it! That’s not fair.” She said calmly, doing her best not to sound whiney.   “How is it not fair? You shouldn’t waste things when they can still be used. It’s not a real accident if you know that you’re going. Just sit on the toilet while you do it.” Delia continued to eat the apple and carry on the conversation as if it were common sense.   An answer came into Catherine’s head. “You made me wear a diaper after I…” She paused for a moment, embarrassed at what she had to admit. “-After I had an accident in my pull up. Now you’re making me wet my protection again on purpose. That’s not fair.” She crossed her arms to show her disapproval.   The babysitter stopped mid-bite in her apple. It unnerved Catherine slightly. “Remember what I said this morning Cathy? About being your babysitter and knowing what’s best for you?”   “I do.” Catherine took a deep breath before saying what she had to say next. “But I also think you’re wrong. This isn’t what’s best for me. I’m not going to wet this diaper.”   The chair made a loud noise in the silence that followed as Delia stood up to approach Catherine. For a brief moment the young girl feared that she would get more corner time, or worse. Instead Delia squatted down to look Catherine in the eyes, face to face.   “I’ll let you wear your normal underwear.” Delia began.   The younger girl was shocked at the response. She was getting what she wanted, but the success of her actions still took her by surprise.   “-If,” The babysitter continued with her condition. “If you can look me in the eyes and tell me that you will not have another accident. That you truly, honestly, one-hundred percent believe that you don’t need to wear a diaper. Think about it Cathy. What’s worse, a wet diaper or wet pants?”   Suddenly Catherine was not sure of herself. Delia raised a valid point. She felt increasingly nervous as she was forced to stare into her babysitter’s eyes and make a decision. Would it really be so bad to wet her diaper? Delia would change her shortly after, and dry diapers weren’t so bad. She couldn’t ask what the consequences for wetting her pants would be; that would give away her lack of confidence.   “I’ll…” Catherine’s hesitation already gave away her answer. “I’ll wear the diaper.” She said in defeat. Delia once again held her in checkmate.   Something must have softened Delia’s heart because what she said next made Catherine do a double take. “That’s very mature of you Cathy. Go ahead and throw away that diaper and use the potty.” She patted the younger girl’s bottom to signify her to get moving. Delia called out as Catherine took off down the hall. “I’ll be in your room to change you into a new diaper when you’re done!”   The prospect of being made to wear another diaper didn’t exactly excite Catherine, but it was good news nonetheless that Delia decided to let her use the toilet after all. Perhaps all of her brown nosing was starting to pay off. As long as she did what Delia wanted her to do, she would be able to skirt around the rules more often like this. But that had a cost; Catherine was reminded when she walked back into her room. Her babysitter sat waiting on the bed, with diaper and changing supplies laid out neatly. Catherine approached slowly, prolonging the inevitable.   “Lift your dress for me sweetie.” Delia asked.   Catherine gladly did so, grateful for the opportunity to disrobe herself instead of Delia doing it for her. She wished that Delia would allow her to change herself, but she knew that would likely never happen. At least not any time soon. The whole diapering process was just as embarrassing as the last three times. This time however the young girl knew what to expect and instead of focusing on the dreaded diaper she stole a few glances at Delia. The older girl appeared to be particularly enjoying herself despite doing what Catherine would have categorized as a chore. She appeared especially gleeful when sealing the four tapes and straightening up the diaper. Before Catherine could formulate any more suspicions, Delia lifted her off the bed and went to work under the dress to fixing the seating of the diaper further, signaling the end of her diapering.   “All done, cutie!” The babysitter tickled her charge on the sides. “Where do you want to go out to eat tonight? Your mommy left us enough to aaaanywhere you want.”   “Out? Can’t we just eat here?” Catherine suggested, instinctively tugging down the edges of her dress. She wanted to avoid any more outings in her diaper if she could help it.   “No one will see your diaper, if that’s what you’re worried about Cathy.” Delia answered as if reading the younger girl’s thoughts. She then reached for Catherine’s hand and firmly grasped it as she began to lead them to the front door. Apparently her decision had already been made for her.   As she was strung along by Delia, Catherine could swear the diaper she was wearing now was thicker than the previous one. It assured her more and more with each step that she did not want to leave the house with any sort of noticeable waddling. Done with being polite and calm, Catherine tore her hand away before they got outside and yelled childishly. “I don’t want to go out!”   Big mistake. “Catherine lower your voice!” Delia sharply silenced the girl. “If you don’t want to go out, you can tell me quietly like a big girl.” She admonished, once again showing the duality of her personality. “What’s the real reason you don’t want to go out?” Her tone softened again as she leaned down to the other girl’s height.   “It’s the diaper…” Catherine admitted, quietly this time. “This one is way thicker than the last one I was wearing!” She asserted. She instinctively brought her thighs together to affirm the increased thickness again.   Shaking her head, Delia denied it. “You’re just being self-conscious sweetie. It’s the same as the last one I put on you. You can’t stay shut in the house all day just because you’re having accidents.” The babysitter leaned in and slowly enclosed the embarrassed girl in a firm hug.   Catherine tentatively returned it, mumbling weakly. “What if someone sees me waddling though?” She received no answer, but instead felt herself being picked up and carried off. She had been betrayed! “No! Let me go!” The girl squirmed in resistance against her babysitter, though it was difficult from the way she was being held.   The front door was opened and Delia carried the wiggling girl out to the car. “Catherine, if you don’t settle down I’ll put you in the car seat.” The older girl threatened. “You’re acting like a child.”   Still desperately not wanting to go out to dinner, diapered as she was, Catherine continued to struggle. It was a sacrifice to carry on acting like a child as Delia had labeled her, but to Catherine the small chance of escape may be worth it. Her efforts bore no fruit though as she felt herself being deposited into the baby car seat and the tight pull of the seat harness over her chest. Catherine stared blankly ahead regretting her decision to resist as Delia shut the passenger door.   The babysitter walked around the other side of the car, her shoes clacking audibly on the pavement, and situated herself in the driver’s seat. She adjusted the mirror to look back at the defeated Catherine. “Where do you want to eat sweetie?” Delia asked nicely, trying to break the tenuous silence that hung in the air. The car began backing out of the driveway stealing away whatever hopes Catherine may have had for escape from the seat.   Unsure of whether or not to bother answering, Catherine remained silent a moment. Her arms were folded and face contorted into a pout as she stared out the window. The car seat was surprisingly big and accommodated her better than she thought; or perhaps she was little compared to the seat. The thought made Catherine shift uncomfortably against her restraint as if the attempt would make her feel bigger. It only served to affirm her babyish state as she felt the diaper shift beneath her. With reluctance, the young girl apologized quietly. “I’m sorry I was being a brat earlier, Delia. Can I come into the front seat?”   A genuine sympathetic look came into view in the mirror. “Thank you for apologizing, Cathy. But you can’t come up here while we’re driving. You can sit up here on the way back.” Delia negotiated. Her sympathetic look shifted into a condescending one as she added, “You look super adorable back there though. All that’s missing is a pacifier and a stuffed animal!” Catherine blushed and looked away. Without apologizing for embarrassing the girl, Delia continued and asked again, “Have you decided where you want to eat?” They had been driving in the general direction of downtown with no particular destination.   “I guess we could eat at The Hopper.” The younger girl finally answered thinking of the delicious grill restaurant she and her motherly rarely went to.   “Oooh I love The Hopper! Good choice!” Delia said as she switched lanes on the road.   With enough prompting and pestering, Delia managed to get Catherine talking more and more as they drove to their destination. The two girls laughed together and got to know each other a bit better. Catherine learned that Delia was studying to be a childcare worker and hoped to run her own daycare someday. She was taking babysitting jobs to pay her bills in the meantime. Likewise Delia learned from Catherine more about her brother, her interest in science and mathematics, and her ambitions to play chess professionally one day.   They pulled in to the parking lot and exited the car, Catherine with some reluctance. Delia had assured her over and over as they drove to the restaurant that no one would notice anything out of the ordinary with her diaper hidden underneath her dress. While she still didn’t entirely agree, Catherine had resigned to her fate and concentrated more on making her walk look normal. With a little effort she was able to keep her legs in a normal stride even though it made walking slightly uncomfortable. Together the girls walked the short distance across the parking lot and made reservations for a table. A quick twenty minutes later they were seated.   Dinner was pleasant. Catherine had to admit that she had a great time filling up on soda and greasy food; things that were uncommon when her mother was around. She and Delia had even shared a mini dessert. Holding her bloated stomach in content, Catherine sighed happily “Ooooh I’m so full!” She slouched in her booth.   “Me too!” Delia mimicked her after putting cash on top of the receipt for the dinner. “This was a great choice Cathy. Thanks for picking it.” They lay there slumped in their seats a moment longer. “So, ready to go?” The babysitter asked, already getting her keys ready.   “Ugh, okay.” Catherine agreed as she got up out of her seat with difficulty.   Delia walked alongside her charge, putting an arm around her shoulder. “Can you make it to the car? I can carry you.” She offered.   Protesting her independence, Catherine declined. “Err no thanks. I can walk just fine.”   While walking back to the car, Catherine once again felt a strange sensation. To her horror she felt the familiar dampness of her diaper absorbing an accident. It had come so fast and without warning. She felt powerless as she tried to stymie the extent of the accident, but her bladder muscles seemed to be unresponsive. There was no way those sodas should have gone through her system so swiftly. She had only drunk two anyway! Thinking quickly, Catherine decided it would be best to lie and tell Delia she had purposely used her diaper rather than letting Delia find out later and correctly assume it was an accident.   Making sure no one was around to hear Catherine glanced up at her babysitter. “Uhm Delia? I had to use my… diaper… during dinner.” It killed her to admit out loud that it was her own diaper, but it was a necessary evil in this position. She was unsure of how else to phrase the statement than to just announce the situation to Delia and let her handle the rest.   Calmly using the clicker to unlock her car, Delia answered without even looking back at Catherine. “I’ll change you when we get home then. Thank you for telling me sweetie!” She patted the younger girl’s back. Apparently the lie had been accepted without a second thought. The babysitter then went to work in the passenger seat and began unbuckling the booster seat. “There we go, no more baby seats for Cathy!” Delia pronounced cheerily, setting the seat in the back.   Forcing a smile and a thank you, Catherine hopped into the front seat. Even being out of the booster seat and baby car seat, and in her new more adult clothes, she still felt very much like a baby due to her accident. She had assumed the worst, fearing Delia would change her in the parking lot right then and there, but was thankful it didn’t come to that. The car ride home was mostly silent as Catherine disengaged all of Delia’s attempts to start conversation. Delia eventually accepted it and resigned to using the radio to fill the void.   Once the duo had returned home, Delia ushered her charge back to her bedroom and began to array the changing supplies out on the bed. Catherine made no pleas or bargains as Delia changed her, fearing that a diaper was perhaps the best decision right now. During the changing, the young girl again observed the smaller details of the process before. She was once again suspicious at the design of the diaper. It was one she had never seen before and couldn’t find at the local supermarket when she searched the day before. Its size especially struck Catherine as strange, seeing as it fit her well and she was of average proportions for her age. She continued to formulate suspicions as Delia dressed her in her sleeper tank and sweats. It was barely past sundown, but Catherine recalled her babysitter’s rule about getting ready for bed early. The diaper peeked out of her sweats by a good two inches, but Catherine made no attempts to conceal it. There was no point in hiding it while there was no one around to see.   “Can we play chess again?” Catherine asked hopefully as she felt herself being led out of her room. Delia agreed and let the young girl go fetch the game. The game board was quickly set up compared to their last match. It seemed Delia had retained the board setup configuration as she finished her side without assistance. The younger girl calmed her nerves and began postulating strategies to reclaim her victory over her babysitter.   Deciding on an incredibly bold strategy, Catherine moved her first pawn up two spaces. Silence hung in the air as Delia deliberated over her first counter move. Her hand hung hesitantly over several pieces, yet she backed away each time. The young girl fidgeted slightly in her seat as she waited for her second turn to come. Catherine noted that Delia seemed much more serious and into the game this time compared to the last. She- wait.   Delia was making her move. Could it be? The anxiety was killing her as Catherine followed the movements inch by inch with her eyes in disbelief. The enemy pawn had mirrored her exact move, leaving the enemy king perfectly exposed for the classic Fool’s Mate. Catherine had won in the quickest possible way thanks to her opponent’s botched move. Taking time to gloat, the younger girl pretended to be preoccupied with deciding her move and perfectly concealed her grin. She placed her hand on the queen piece that would bring her victory as she glanced over at her opponent to witness the moment of realization where she knew she had lost.   But it never came. Why? Did Delia not understand she had lost? She had to have. Catherine hesitated and kept her hand on the queen trying to figure out why Delia showed no signs of despair. Was Delia letting her win? But why?   “Maybe…” Catherine thought reluctantly, “Maybe there’s more than just winning and losing.” She begrudgingly released the queen and moved a different piece.   The game went on for a long time. Longer than most games Catherine played. She had to admit it was more fun than most too. There were points when either girl could have claimed victory, but instead they resorted to wacky tactics and mimicking one another intermittently. In the end, Delia had won by cornering Catherine’s king with her own king and a pawn. The defeat didn’t feel like one at all though. It was a fun match, something she had thought was impossible without winning or being completely serious.   “That was fun Catherine.” Delia said as she began cleaning up the pieces, with Catherine helping. It seemed she was done with chess for the night. “What do you want to play next?” She asked excitedly once the game was put away.   Her babysitter’s energy was boundless. Catherine groaned inwardly. She was feeling relatively tired tonight despite how early it was, though she resolved to stay up as long as Delia would allow. Extended bedtimes were not something to be wasted!   “I’m just going to go back to my room now.” The younger girl responded. Staying out in the living room with Delia would end with her falling asleep for sure.   “But what are you going to do in there? You can’t have fun just shutting yourself all alone in your room!” Delia persisted.   Clearly Delia did not understand Catherine’s idea of fun. However, she didn’t want to tell her babysitter that she would be writing in her journal the rest of the night. Avoiding any possible invitation, the girl dismissed the question with a lie. “I’m going to go read again.”   Giving up, Delia let Catherine walk off while calling out with a disappointed, “Okay.” She then added, “I’ll be in to check you and change you if you need it at ten”   Suppressing a wince, Catherine returned to her room without a response. She threw herself onto her bed and whipped out her black diary and began writing. Pausing thoughtfully between sentences, Catherine carefully pondered each word she wrote down. Her handwriting danced with the ink across line after line. After about an hour of jotting down her thoughts, a neatly written list lined the page of Catherine’s secret journal. She reread it to herself to ensure she had not made any mistakes.   “Delia is my newest babysitter as of September 24th 2013. From the two times she has watched me, I’ve noticed several inconsistencies and oddities in her behavior which I have listed here. – Why did Delia have a dress in my exact size the first time she watched me? – Why did Delia buy me new clothes of her own free will? – Why does Delia carry around diapers and pull ups in my size? – The diapers Delia uses are a brand I’ve never seen in stores, even after searching for them. Are they special ordered? If so, then why? – Why does Delia enforce me to use diapers when I am capable of using the bathroom? – It seems that Delia likes to humiliate me at every possible opportunity. Maybe it’s just my imagination. But I’ve noticed the condescending look she gives me while changing me. – Why does Delia insist on being the one to diaper me? I’m more than capable, and I don’t believe her excuses for not letting me do it myself.   The pen stopped flying across the pages as Catherine paused a long moment before making her final accusation in the journal.   – Why do I only have accidents when Delia is around?   She closed the pages abruptly with a loud thwack and hid her secret journal away.   The remainder of Catherine’s evening was spent fighting her fatigue and reading through one of her newly rented books. Her mind would occasionally flicker back to what she wrote in her journal earlier. The confrontations with Delia earlier in the day and Thursday plagued her mind, in addition to the thought of what torment lay in store for her tomorrow and the weeks to come if Delia stuck around that long.   A knock at the door interrupted the young girl’s thoughts. Before she could answer to allow Delia in, her babysitter opened the door and let herself in of her own accord. Catherine was annoyed and took the initiative to speak before Delia, already knowing what she would want.   “Could you knock and wait for me to call you in before you let yourself in next time?” She tried to conceal her annoyance, but the tone still seemed to carry incredulousness as if it were a fact everyone should already know.   “But I did knock…?” Delia answered, seeming to miss the point as she looked back at the door reflexively.   Remaining calm, Catherine tried to correct her. “I meant that it’s rude to come into someone’s room without their permission.”   Delia furrowed her brow and appeared to have something negative to say, but her facial expression changed and she apologized. “Ooooh, sorry! I’m just here to check you and tell you that it’s bedtime.” She approached her charge, reaching for the waistband of her sweats.   “I’m dry.” Catherine said quietly to stop her babysitter, though she still put her hands up defensively to ward off any potential humiliating diaper checks. “But I do have to go to the bathroom…” She trailed off hoping Delia would let her off the hook again. Her urge to use the bathroom wasn’t very strong at all, but Catherine was taking precautions to avoid wetting the bed and giving Delia further reason to make her wear diapers or pull ups tomorrow.   If Delia was disappointed at missing the chance to inspect Catherine’s diaper, it didn’t show. She straightened her posture and told Catherine nonchalantly, “I’ll change you tomorrow morning then,” ignoring the implication the younger girl was trying to convey.   Deciding to challenge her babysitter, Catherine responded without whining. “I don’t want to have to use… this diaper.” She didn’t want to refer to the diaper as hers.   “You know my rules, Cathy.” The older girl countered, “It’s a waste of diapers. I won’t count it as an accident since you told me. You won’t be punished for it.” She tried to reassure the younger girl.   Expecting that answer, Catherine saw her opportunity and leapt. “But it’s not a waste.” She said flatly. Waiting for her words to sink in, she tactfully waited to cut off Delia just as she was about to respond. “If I have to go… you’ll have to take off the diaper one way or another. The only difference is when.”   The words hung in the air as Catherine stared back at Delia, trying to think how she might respond. She searched her babysitter’s expression to glean what she may be thinking. For a split second it seemed Delia was going to deny Catherine’s logic anyway. Catherine could almost feel Delia frantically searching for an appropriate response.   Finally, the silence was broken. “I guess…” Delia began slowly, “I never really thought about it like that. You’re a smart one, aren’t you?” She praised Catherine and ruffled her hair. Lifting Catherine off the bed, Delia set her down and let her run off. “Go ahead and brush your teeth and use the toilet.”   Containing her euphoria, Catherine did as she was told and went through her final nightly routine. She now had ammo to use against Delia if she ever had to get out of a situation like this again. As she was brushing her teeth Catherine couldn’t help but smile widely. Her plan had worked, thanks to Delia’s flawed logic and her own planning and problem solving. It certainly helped her to think writing down all her thoughts earlier.   Catherine brought the unused diaper back into her room with her. She had the foresight to know that her mother may see it in the bathroom trash if she left it there. Delia seemed to understand and wordlessly accepted the diaper from her charge and stuffed it into a Ziploc and tossed it into the diaper bag. Hopping back onto the bed, Catherine laid herself down and began pulling her sweatpants off expecting to be diapered again before bed. She stopped herself though after noticing Delia had not pulled out any new diaper supplies.   “I’m going to give you a choice, Catherine.” The babysitter said, scooting herself closer to the young girl. “You said that you don’t wet the bed, but you’ve had an accident today.”   The accusation made Catherine cringe slightly.   Delia continued. “But that might have been just a one-time accident. If you think it was, I won’t make you wear a diaper tonight. But only if you are absolutely certain you won’t have another accident.”   The decision was laid out for Catherine. On one hand, she had actually had two accidents today, giving her good reason to doubt her own abilities to stay dry overnight. On the other hand, Catherine would hate to admit that she needed a diaper. She could only imagine the repercussions if she had an accident without protection that night.   “Can I wear a pull up instead?” Catherine tried to compromise. Her choice betrayed her lack of confidence.   In that lack of confidence, Delia had her answer and began to lay out the changing mat and diaper supplies.   The young girl futilely protested as she slowly inched away. “Nooo, please, I won’t have an accident. I swear!” Though she knew her pleas would fall on deaf ears.   Ignoring the minor struggle, Delia gently but firmly pulled Catherine back towards her. She went through the expected routine; lifting Catherine’s legs high in air by the ankles, positioning the diaper, powder, and finally securing the tapes, symbolically imprisoning the little girl and condemning her to humiliation. Delia checked the waistband and tugged at the leg holes, confirming a job well done, and pulled the sweatpants back up to hide the diaper and its cartoon prints.   It was all Catherine could do but to keep from blushing redder than she already was. She cursed herself for not lying in the first place. Her hesitation ended with her admitting that she needed to be diapered for the night. Deep down though, Catherine convinced herself that this was probably for the best, and tried to reassure herself that no one would know about this but herself and Delia.   “There.” The babysitter announced proudly, placing her hands on her hips. “If you need anything tonight don’t be afraid to come get me, Cathy. Goodnight” Delia said as she slowly backed out of the room and switched the light off. The door swung into place and the handle clicked loudly as the older girl left.   Once again, for the second night out of three, Catherine tossed and turned trying to get comfortable with the bulky diaper secured around her waist. Every movement, no matter how small, reminded her of the importance of her ability to stay dry on this particular night. If she awoke dry, she may be free from Delia every trying to diaper her or baby-ify her ever again. If she woke up wet… Catherine pushed the thoughts away, trying to think of other things. Still, her thoughts always came back to the diapers. Delia seemed insistent that Catherine wear them at every possible opportunity. Sleep began to take its hold on the little girl and her eyes ever-frequently fluttered shut and open as dreams began to blanket her consciousness. Catherine’s last thoughts were of how she could possibly take revenge on Delia for humiliating her so.         Chapter 4     Morning came just as fast as sleep had. The birds chirped loudly outside, but they were desperately ignored by the groaning, half-asleep girl inside. Senses slowly focused Catherine’s thoughts as the Sunday morning became too difficult to ignore. With much effort, she was able to slide partially off the bed and force herself to stand with some support from the bed frame. In a slight stupor, Catherine instinctively walked in a trance down the hall towards the kitchen.   The young girl sat at the table with a light crinkle. She had opted to not bother taking the diaper off, unsure of Delia’s rules regarding taking it off. The diaper felt dry anyway and Catherine didn’t need to use the bathroom at the moment. The light tinkling sound of hardened sugary cereal pouring into a bowl was deafening in the silence of the Soulland residence. Noticing the time on the clock, Catherine mentally shrugged surprised that Delia was not up yet. Some babysitter she was turning out to be.   Catherine finished her meal and put away the food and dishes before heading towards the bathroom to shower and prepare for the day ahead. Before she could make it though, Delia stepped out of the guest room to block the younger girl’s path. If death had a physical form, Delia looked like it. Catherine felt chills down her spine just looking at what she was unsure was her babysitter. Morning clearly did not get along with Delia.   “Coffee.” Delia stated gutturally, shuffling past Catherine as if she weren’t there.   Steering clear of her babysitter, Catherine began to backpedal towards the bathroom while keeping a fearful eye on the visage of what she assumed to be her babysitter. She took a moment to breathe after making sure the door was locked. After some deep breaths and convincing herself that Delia was in fact not a zombie, Catherine resumed her normal morning routine, showering and drying herself off. She tip-toed back to her room and set about dressing herself for the day.   Catherine stopped when reaching for her normal underwear though. What would Delia expect her to wear? She had spent most of yesterday in a diaper, but without incident as far as her babysitter was concerned. Surely Delia wouldn’t expect her to wear another one. Come what may, Catherine decided to accept whatever consequences came and donned her normal underwear as she did any other day.   “Good morning!” Delia called out cheerily sipping her steamy coffee as Catherine entered the kitchen.   “Good… morning?” The young girl replied suspiciously. It seemed Delia was back to her usual chipper disposition, though her appearance still resembled something ghoulish. It made sense that she wouldn’t have had a chance to use the shower since Catherine occupied it earlier.   The two exchanged normal morning pleasantries as Delia finished her coffee and breakfast. After a while however, the babysitter inquired about Catherine’s diaper last night. The younger girl reported that she was indeed dry that morning, trying her best to mask any sassiness at the indignation of her babysitter implying that she doubted Catherine’s ability to keep her bed dry. Despite the exception three days ago, her record in that area was not spotty at all and she intended to make that clear to her babysitter. The maturity Catherine tried to assert was a fruitless effort as all she received from Delia was a patronizing exclamation of “Good girl!”   The older girl excused herself after wolfing down the rest of her breakfast to finish preparing for the day. She came back, hair wet, soon after.   “So what do you want to do today Cathy?” She once again left the decision of the day’s activities up to her charge.   “I want to play dress up!” Catherine had a cheeky plan, surprising her babysitter with the suggestion.   “You… do? Okay then.” The answer had caught Delia off guard as she walked towards her room to retrieve the overnight bag to fish out the few outfits she had brought along.   “Yeah, I want to see what cute outfits you can wear!” The little girl proposed. “Let’s see how she likes being dressed up.” Catherine thought deviously.   Delia had to stop and process what Catherine was prepositioning her with. “Uhh I don’t really have any outfits that can fit me Cathy. It would be more fun if you tried on some of these dresses I have. I brought them for you.” She tried to reason.   “But I think it would be more fun to see you try them on.”   “I told you they won’t fit, Catherine.” Delia insisted.   “Have you even tried? Can we please try? For me?” Catherine did her best puppy eyes and pouted adorably, pleading to her babysitter.   Frustration began to show on Delia’s face. “The answer is no. We’ll find something else to play if you don’t want to play dress up.”   Disappointed that her plan had not worked, Catherine excused herself to go play in her room alone. She booted up her computer and played Chessmates Online for a couple hours. Every victory fueled her with self-esteem and the rush of a power trip for every clever move. She found herself using tricks and changing her normal strategy based on her games with Delia and Smitty yesterday. Playing against opponents that could give feedback after the game proved to be a great learning experience. Maybe when Catherine next asked her mother she would finally be allowed to find and enter a local junior chess tournament. Mrs. Soulland had been reluctant to allow Catherine to compete, for unexplained reasons.   A knock at the bedroom door pulled Catherine out of her little world and shook her concentration. Delia let herself in once again without permission and announced that lunch was ready. At that point, Catherine didn’t even bother to remind her of the rules about knocking on her door and awaiting permission before entering. It seemed like a waste of time to try to impede Delia from doing things her own way. It was unlikely Catherine would see her much more anyway, given how fleeting any babysitter was in the Soulland house.   Delia seemed uncharacteristically quiet as the two girls enjoyed their sandwiches. It seemed she had surprisingly run out of things to say. Catherine told herself that she didn’t care much, but as the silence bore on she felt the increasing need to say something. With a bit of reluctance and uncertainty she quietly spoke, “Um, Delia? Are you okay?”   “Huh? Oh, yeah. Nothing’s wrong.” Delia answered unconvincingly.   “… You sure?” Catherine pressed for an answer.   “Well, Cathy, to tell you the truth, I was thinking about what’s going to happen when your mommy comes back this afternoon.” There was a pause. “I’ve been thinking about the accidents you’ve had when I’ve been watching you…” She tried to breach the subject lightly, seeing Catherine blush at the mention of her accidents.   “I think it would be best if we told your mother about them. I’m worr-”   “No!” The younger girl cut Delia off in protest.   Calmly reaching over with a napkin, Delia began to wipe off bits of sandwich from Catherine’s face that she had accidentally spit in her outburst. “It’s the right thing to do Cathy. I believe you when you say that you don’t normally have accidents, so you might be sick and need to get a checkup at the doctor’s.”   Catherine continued to plead, “Please, my Mom already treats me like a little girl. Telling her I’m having accidents will make her never trust me with any responsibility ever!” The look on Delia’s face told her that she was beginning to sympathize with her plight.   “What if you have another accident though? You need to see a doctor to find out the cause of this.”   “I won’t have another accident!”   “You’ve said that before. But accidents are accidents, and you can’t always see them coming…”   The retort crushed Catherine. In desperation she volunteered a last effort solution, “I- I could wear pull ups during the day until my accidents stop.”   It wasn’t enough though. “That may work Cathy, but I can’t be the one to keep supplying you with protection. Two or three diapers or pull ups is one thing, but we don’t know how long this will go on. Your mommy will have to buy some for you herself. Plus what would other babysitters say if you had to keep this secret without me?”   “You promised you wouldn’t tell my mom though!” Catherine cried.   That gave the older girl some pause. Apparently the appeal to her honor had stirred a response in Delia.   “… Well. I did promise, didn’t I?” She began. “But I’m not really sure on where to go from here Catherine. I can’t have your mommy thinking I’m covering up your accidents without telling her. That would end up bad for both of us.”   “She’s coming home this afternoon. I’ll tell her myself, only if it comes down to it. I just need one more chance to prove it to you that those other times were flukes.” Catherine held her breath after her proposition.   The silence and Delia’s thoughtful stare gave Catherine nervous butterflies as she awaited her babysitter’s approval, or denial.   “Alright,” The older girl started, “But any more accidents on my watch and this won’t be up for discussion. Deal?”   “Deal.” The girls shook hands as a sign of agreement. There was no going back on their words now.   Delia continued, “You can keep the two pull ups I left in your dresser drawer. How you use them is up to you. You may want to save one for school tomorrow. Just in case.”   With that the two finished their lunches and spent the rest of the day watching TV, reading books together, and occasional chatter. Catherine was plagued with worry over the thought of having another accident all the while. Perhaps Delia had been right assuming she was ill. It was a plausible explanation. She was not too deep in the lie to think of a way suggesting a visit to the doctor though; all it would take is a few more white lies. In the meantime, Catherine constantly reminded herself to beware of her bladder as time pressed on. One more accident and that would ruin all the bargaining she had fought for earlier. Despite her concerns it felt great to be out of pull ups or diapers and in her normal underwear for the first time since yesterday morning. She aimed to keep it that way by taking plenty of bathroom breaks throughout the day.   Mrs. Soulland returned later that evening, just before dinner, to relieve Delia of her charge. Catherine and her shared a parting hug and with a sly wink, the babysitter was gone. Catherine and her mother talked briefly while dinner was prepared about how their weekends were and other family talk. Mrs. Soulland was surprised to hear that her daughter had gotten along so well with Delia, comparatively speaking. Usually she had nothing much to say at all about any given babysitter, much less positive remarks.   “So would you want to me hire her again next time you need a babysitter?” The mother asked her daughter while chopping some vegetables.   Catherine evaded the question “Can’t I watch myself yet?” She felt she already knew the answer, but it was always worth asking.   “Not a chance, Catherine.”   The young girl breathed a soft sigh and pouted at that. It wasn’t like she needed constant attention and care. How hard could it be taking care of herself? She didn’t press the matter any further though. There was little room for negotiation when it came to her mother. Mrs. Soulland’s question still remained unanswered though.   “Delia’s… nice” She said slowly. Truth be told, she would rather avoid Delia if possible. There was something fishy about her, though she couldn’t quite place it. And that is what changed Catherine’s mind. It was a mystery that needed solving, and she was the girl to do it.   Her mother nodded in confirmation and finished preparing the dinner for two. The little family sat together and ate their supper together. Halfway through the meal Mrs. Soulland reminded Catherine to finish her homework as soon as her meal was finished. Knowing that she did indeed have to finish her schoolwork, the young girl reluctantly acknowledged the duty and soon after excused herself.   Homework was dull as usual for Catherine. To keep from being consumed by apathy and boredom, she wrote in her black journal between problems. Words spilled from the fine pen as ink dragged across the pages. She wrote more about her suspicions of Delia, how she would approach Jenny about the diapers if at all, and a lengthy description of the wonderful feeling she had from toying with an enemy player in a chess match earlier. But soon Catherine had to abandon her journal and secret it away again, as she knew her mother would be checking in soon to ensure her homework was done just before bed time. That was the purpose of her pink journal; it served as a decoy journal to protect her black journal. No one would think to look for a second diary after finding the first one. To her knowledge, no one had found either yet, so her secrets remained safe.   Under the pressure of time Catherine quickly finished the last of her work and preemptively prepared for bed. Her mother was knocking at the door just as she had finished changing into a nightie. Catherine called her in and said goodnight. Mrs. Soulland took her daughter’s laundry basket before exiting. Taking a book to bed with her, Catherine spent the last 30 minutes of her night reading and pondering in-between pages and chapters. She spent most of that time worrying if she might actually be sick and whether or not she ought to tell her mother. That brought her attention to the worry of possibly wetting that night.   Swallowing her pride, Catherine quietly slinked from her bed to her dresser and extracted one of the pull ups Delia left behind. Leaving no time for hesitation, she quickly swapped her underwear for the padded training pants. Catherine let out a defeated sigh. The feeling of the pull ups hugging her waist was an unwelcome feeling and left her dwelling on the familiar padded sensation she had been feeling all too much of in the last few days and nights, though the pull-up was infinitely more comfortable than a diaper. Still, if everything went according to plan, and she was indeed not sick, Catherine wouldn’t have to worry about it ever again. On that optimistic thought, the young girl hopped into bed and drifted off into a peaceful slumber.   The days following the pleasant holiday on Monday were back to business as usual for Catherine. She had woken up dry as expected on Monday morning, solidifying her belief that she was not sick. She never bothered to mention anything of the weekend’s awkward events to her mother. It seemed that Delia had been wrong once again, further fueling her suspicions about her overbearing babysitter. School dragged on Tuesday as usual for the bored girl. Halfway through the week however, at lunch, Catherine nearly ran face first into someone as she had just finished washing her hands in the bathroom.   “Oh, sorry!” She had said, stepping back and allowing the other girl to walk past her into the bathroom.   “It’s okay.” Jenny replied and walked into the bathroom.   Jenny! Of course! Catherine had nearly forgotten about her with the eventful weekend she had. Stealing a quick glance over her shoulder, she could not confirm if Jenny was wearing a diaper or not as she appeared to be wearing a skirt today. Caught in the moment, Catherine tried to size up the opportunity that was presented to her. To her knowledge, no one else was in the bathroom but her and Jenny at the moment. It was a perfect chance to confront her about why she was wearing diapers. But would it be right? Catherine knew the other girl would be terribly embarrassed, but her curiosity began overpowering her will. Without thinking, Catherine turned and exited the bathroom, leaving Jenny in privacy. This wasn’t the time nor place to satisfy her curiosity.   “But how to approach her then…?” Catherine inwardly mused to herself. The lunch bell rang just as the girl had come up with a daring plan, signaling the start of next class would be soon. Catherine had put herself into Jenny’s shoes and imagined what such a confrontation would be like. She assumed the only way Jenny would open up would be to have great trust in another person. What greater symbol of trust could there be than another person sharing the same struggles? It would be risky, and extremely embarrassing if she were caught, but Catherine decided she would have to wear one of her pull ups to school the next day and show Jenny as a gesture of trust to ask her about her own diapers.   The rest of the day went by quickly for the little schemer as she daydreamed in class about the terrifying thought of being caught wearing a pull up the next day by a class mate or teacher, or worse yet her mother, and how she could react. Her habit of overthinking the plausible situations caused the girl to be called out and put on spot by teachers that doubted she was paying attention. Catherine was able to answer some, but left to be snickered at for blatantly wrong answers by some of her classmates during other questions where she was left stuttering and fumbling.   The final bell for that day was a welcome sound and sensation to Catherine’s ears, as she nearly shot up from her desk while frantically packing away her notebooks and pencils. In truth she had no reason to hurry since her mother wouldn’t be there to pick her up from school for another thirty minutes at least, yet still, a classroom was the last place Catherine wanted to be. Sitting up against a chain fence, the girl’s boredom eventually got the best of her and she got a half-hearted start on the week’s homework while waiting for her ride. Mrs. Soulland pulled up in her white car at the normal time, 3:30 on the dot, and drove herself and Catherine home.   When the family arrived at home there was a package at the doorstep. Catherine knew it to be her present from Grant, but also regretted that she had no way to smuggle it in without her mother knowing before she would unlock the door.   “Oh, what’s this?” Mrs. Soulland inquired as she noticed the fairly large package, approaching the front door.   Holding up the package Catherine answered, “This is Grant’s birthday present to me. He told me it would be coming soon.”   “Well put it in the closet then.” The mother replied, audibly jamming her keys into the door lock as she spoke, “You know your birthday isn’t for another three weeks. You can wait to open it then.” She swung the door open to let herself and her daughter inside.   “Okaaaaay” Catherine relented, dejectedly, and took the package down the hall towards her room and stashed in the closet as she was instructed. “How am I supposed to wait three weeks knowing the best present ever is twenty feet from my room!?” She thought frustratedly before putting away her backpack in her room.   Afternoon passed into evening as Catherine enjoyed playing a few games of Chessmates, winning all of them with deadly precision and tact. Her time spent having fun however was cut short with the announcement that dinner was ready. Mrs. Soulland pointedly reminded Catherine to finish her homework after dinner was done before playing any games. Catherine deemed none of her assignments worth doing and acknowledged her mother, lying her way into a free evening.   She spent the rest of the night before bed reading and some occasional jotting in her secret black diary. Most of the notes outlined her concerns and intent about approaching Jenny the next day. Catherine’s stomach tied in knots just thinking about it, but she knew it had to be done.   The next morning found Catherine filled with butterflies. She lay awake in bed before her mother even came in to ensure she was up in time to get ready for school. Allowing no time for hesitation, the young girl took the first steps of her plan and brought them to reality.   Mrs. Soulland was surprised to see Catherine already dressed at such an early time, and coming out for breakfast without needing to be awoken. “Perhaps she’s showing signs of maturity after all” The mother mused as she set plates and silverware on the table. Pancakes and eggs were served before the two ladies packed up for the day and set off in the car.   Catherine masked her discomfort at the odd sensation between her legs well. She felt a small bit of familiarity from having worn the same pull up just a few days ago, thanks to Delia, but the infantile underwear still bothered her slightly. More so than the unusual feeling, Catherine was much more concerned over constant threat of her mother, and soon her peers, seeing what she was wearing. What would they think if they saw? What would they say? What would SHE say if someone called her out? The best way to avoid all of those unsettling outcomes would be to never be discovered in the first place, Catherine resolved. She pushed those unpleasant possibilities out of her mind as she kissed her mother goodbye and entered the proverbial frying pan.   It seemed that all of Catherine’s wracked nerves were for naught, as no one said or word or gave any indication that something was amiss for the first two classes of the day. There was even a moment where Catherine briefly forgot she was wearing a pull up. Just two more classes, then her opportunity to speak to Jenny would be in sight. There was no guarantee that she would get the chance though. What if Jenny didn’t need to use the bathroom during lunch that day? Well, that wouldn’t make sense. She was wearing a diaper right? Couldn’t she just go whenever she needed and change later? Catherine was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she only noticed at the last moment that Jenny had been excused from class to go to the bathroom.   This boded terribly for her lunch plans. Almost without thinking, the young girl shot her arm into the air with desperation. “May I go to the bathroom please?” Catherine asked with the slightest touch of feigned urgency.   The instructor had a look for frustration and annoyance. It was commonly known that most teachers only allowed one student to leave for a bathroom break at a time. “Make it quick, Catherine.” The woman said curtly before returning to writing something on the whiteboard.   The younger girl let out a sincere thank you, ignoring the hushed laughter of her classmates, before quietly bolting out the door and into the hall. It seemed that never asking to use the bathroom, as well as performing well in class, had afforded her some leniency with restroom privileges. Power-walking towards the bathroom, Catherine mentally prepped her for the confrontation she was about to have. Entering at the perfect time, Catherine saw Jenny just leaving her stall and moving to wash her hands.   “Oh Jenny, hey.” Catherine said casually, getting the girl’s attention.   “Hi,” Jenny paused for the slightest of moments before saying her name, as if she had trouble remembering, “Catherine.”   Things would quickly turn awkward from here so Catherine jumped right into the subject, “I…” she trailed off. “wanted to ask you about something.” Her eyes flicked down towards Jenny’s shorts for the briefest of seconds.   Jenny’s smile noticeably dropped as she saw Catherine’s eyes dart down. She blushed a little and asked, “A-about what?” stuttering slightly.   “I couldn’t help but notice,” Catherine began, before going in for the kill, “why are you wearing diapers?”   The other girl avoided eye contact and evaded the question, “That’s none of your business!” she hissed, not even bothering to deny the implied accusation.   “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” Catherine apologized profusely, “I just…” She prepared herself for the moment of truth, and looked over her shoulder before lowering the waistband of her jeans to show Jenny. “I-I’ve recently had to wear these to school sometimes and I thought that we might… have something… in common?” Catherine trailed off a bit, fully feeling how lame her attempts at espionage were now that she said it aloud.   It seemed to work however, as Jenny stood shocked at the revelation of another girl standing before her in nearly equally infantile undergarments. “I… um.” She still stammered, unsure of how to respond as Catherine hiked up her pants and buttoned them. “It’s a-uh long story, I mean, not really, it’s just that-” Jenny appeared to be nearly literally tripping over her own words, struggling to form a coherent sentence.   “I get it, it’s okay. You know your secret is safe with me, Jenny.” The girl put a reassuring hand on Jenny’s shoulder, before Jenny pulled her in for a tight hug.   Jenny smiled, her head resting on Catherine’s shoulder, “Thank you for understanding.” She said softly. Her words came out slowly, but more confidently now, “Why don’t you sit with us at lunch? Me and Juan sit at the benches on the side of the B building. Maybe I can tell you there.”   Catherine called after Jenny as she left the bathroom, “Oh-okay!” Everything went much better than she had expected. Perhaps she would finally get some answers. The girl made an effort to use the toilet to validate her visit to the restroom and washed her hands. It seemed that her plans at deception had been successful, in no small thanks to her wild card.   Class drudged on as it normally did for Catherine, upon her return to the classroom. She spent a majority of the lesson working on the homework that she already understood, even though it wouldn’t be due until Monday, a few days from then. The bell for lunch sounded, and Catherine sidled up alongside Jenny as they left the classroom to get their food. Already having a brown bag lunch lovingly packed by her mother, the young girl kept Jenny company in the cafeteria line as she picked her daily lunch from the buffet-like line.   Conversation came awkwardly at first. Neither girl knew particularly much about the other except the secret they now shared, and the lunch line was certainly no place for that discussion. As time went on however, they began to exchange normal pleasantries that grade school girls would, talking about which boys were cool and which were dumb cootie factories, their favorite cartoons, and perhaps most importantly to Catherine; their idolization of their older siblings and cousins. Catherine prattled on almost too much about her brother Grant to her new friend until they joined Juan at the benches.   A bit shy, and a bit short, Juan gawked at Catherine’s presence as the girls joined him until Jenny spoke up, “Juan, you know Catherine. She’s sitting with us today.”   On that note, Juan relaxed if only somewhat. “Okay, hi Catherine.” Juan said in a bit of squeaky voice, pushing his large glasses into place. Making himself busy, Juan then buried himself in his food to avoid any potential awkward conversation.   Catherine responded with a polite, “Hi Juan.” She also pretended to be busy by stuffing her face with her lunch.   The group was silent for a short while before Jenny broke that silence, wiping a bit of mustard from her mouth. “So… why are you wearing… you know…” She began slowly, implying the obvious as she gestured at Catherine.   Thinking up a clever lie, Catherine replied haltingly with a vague answer. “… I’ve… just had some accidents over the weekend and I think I might be sick. So I’m wearing my old… bed wetting… protection.” For sake of her pride, she added, “just in case!” with a blush.   “So your mom and dad don’t know?” Juan asked curiously with a sniffle. “You’re lucky.”   “Why?” The pale girl asked, not yet realizing the implication.   Suddenly confronted, Juan struggled a moment with how to respond. Catherine picked up on what he meant before anyone said anything. This boy must be wearing diapers too. One lightning quick glance down to his waist confirmed her suspicions. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t…” She fumbled.   “It’s okay.” Juan started, seeming to relax a bit. Still not making eye contact, he began again with a deep breath, “I guess you can know. A couple months ago I started having accidents at night. I don’t know why but I did.” The young boy stopped to shakily take a drink of water and wet his parched mouth. “Then it started getting worse every night until it started during the day too. My mom and dad already had me wearing… these at night, so instead of taking me to the doctor they just made me wear them during the day too. And well… here I am.” He took a bite of his sandwich, blushing, still having trouble making eye contact with Catherine.   Not knowing what else to do, Catherine placed a reassuring hand on Juan’s shoulder, “I’m sorry that happened to you.” She could feel him shaking slightly. Her words wouldn’t help him at all in his situation, but she at least felt it would make him more comfortable.   At last the boy looked up at Catherine from his food and smiled. “Thanks.”   Leaving little time for silence, Jenny jumped in and spoke next. “Since we’re all on the topic of confessions I guess you want to know how I ended up like this now.” Jenny said as she gestured slightly down at herself.   It was true; the curiosity was beginning to figuratively kill Catherine as she hid her anxiousness. “A little,” she admitted.   Jenny spoke more confidently than Juan had. It seemed she was much more confident with her disposition. “Alright, so my story is kinda the same as Juan’s. I had an accident during the day first, but my babysitter said it was only going to be a one-time thing. And I thought so too.”   Catherine’s blood ran cold at the mention of Jenny’s babysitter. The scenario sounded disturbingly similar to her own. Could it be more than coincidence? She looked to the other girl and continued listening.   “… But it wasn’t a one-time thing. Obviously. I began to have accidents more and more. And my babysitter, Delia, was really nice about it. She helped me hide my accidents and convinced me to start wearing pull ups during the day. It helped a lot. But eventually I was having accidents all the time and we had to tell my parents. You know where it goes from there.” Jenny concluded.   Delia. Catherine was almost too stunned to say anything. Her thoughts were racing, trying to piece together what she had just heard. “There’s no way Jenny and me would have the same babysitter and be in the same situation.” She thought. “Delia is going to do to me what she did to Jenny. I’m going to be stuck wearing diapers like her.” Shifting her weight on the bench, Catherine was reminded of the pull-up she was wearing. Only then did it hit her just how deep she was in Delia’s clutches already. She felt sick and wanted to throw up.   Speaking up, Juan asked “Are you okay?” noticing Catherine’s nausea.   “Y-yeah I’m fine.” She answered, her voice started shaky but gained composure. “I was just thinking about what’s me. I hope my accidents don’t get worse like you guys.” Quickly adding, “No offense.”   The other two nodded sympathetically.   Rubbing Catherine’s back, Jenny comforted her. “You’ll be fine. Just go the bathroom all the time even if you don’t feel like going.” Juan nodded in silent agreement.   Being reminded to use the bathroom by two people still in diapers was almost more than Catherine could handle. She politely excused herself. “That’s a good idea. I’ll go right now. See you guys in class.” Hastily grabbing her backpack, Catherine walked off for the bathroom.   Locking herself in a stall, Catherine sat on the closed lid of the toilet, hands shaking as she hung her backpack on the stall hook. Everything made sense to her now: why Delia had diapers her size, why Delia made excuses to get her to wear diapers, her accidents. It was all Delia’s fault, somehow. Her fists were balled up in an effort to keep them from shaking, but it was doing little good. She felt powerless. She felt scared.   In that moment, admitting that she was frightened, something snapped into place. Her fear was gone, but she was swelling with a new emotion. Anger. Anger at Delia for trying to do this to her. Anger at herself for not seeing the danger sooner. Anger for not being strong enough to stop it. Or was she?   The bell rang signifying the end of lunch, pulling the pale girl out of her thoughts. Taking a minute to begrudgingly use the toilet before leaving, Catherine gathered up her things and started to head to class. Her anger had since subsided but her thoughts still dwelt on Delia. Why? Why was the only thing that really bothered her. Why would Delia go to the trouble of getting her and Jenny into diapers? What was her angle? Did this have something to do with Delia’s dream to run her own daycare? Catherine shuddered at the thought of Delia being in charge of a daycare, diapering up any poor unsuspecting child she wished. Perhaps it was an exaggeration, but the thought still left a bad taste in her mouth.   The rest of the day passed in a blur as only one thought occupied Catherine’s mind. How to stop Delia? It was no longer a matter of if she could, or not.       Chapter 5       The days flew by faster and faster still as the date drew ever closer to Halloween, something Catherine was very much looking forward to. The issue about Delia was slowly receding in her mind, especially considering she hadn’t needed a babysitter for almost two weeks. The young girl counted herself lucky that her mother had chosen to stay at home for so many days in a row. In fact, that scenario was near unprecedented. She still needed time to come up with a brilliant plan to expose Delia. If she was guilty, that is.   After her initial reaction to learning why Jenny was wearing diapers, Catherine had had a long while to think on the matter. All signs pointed to Delia being guilty, but still Catherine felt a nagging feeling that a small chance existed that her babysitter was innocent – patronizing and controlling, but still innocent. Her ideas and plans so far were too short sighted and flighty for her to be pleased with. Catherine knew, like a good chess game, she needed to anticipate Delia’s next moves, and act first if she were going to win.   Two weeks had passed since Catherine had properly met Juan and Jenny, and over those couple weeks the young girl had grown to know them more and more as close friends. She had even spent the afternoon with either of them a few times after school. Conveniently, both of Catherine’s new-found friends lived relatively between her own home and the school and each of the children’s parents got along well enough. In some cases too well. To Catherine’s great dismay and embarrassment, her mother took every opportunity to shamelessly flirt with both Jenny’s and Juan’s fathers whenever their wives weren’t around. She felt the need to rescue to the poor men at times from her mother’s relentless advances by stepping in and about leaving as soon as possible.   Juan was the shyest of the three friends, and only relented to ask Catherine over to play at Jenny’s insistence. The two had awkwardly undergone a quick house tour and introduction to Juan’s room when the tension was at last broken at Catherine’s suggestion to play with a display of action figures on her friend’s dresser. The small boy had been taken by surprise and delighted at the suggestion, transforming his demeanor to much more outgoing as he quickly showed off each toy and listed their names. Creating their own stories and worlds, the two immersed themselves in imaginary play.   Catherine had returned to Juan’s home on three separate occasions to play again. In her time there, there had been two awkward incidents when Juan’s parents had come in to check on him, and twice she had to see him be led away to be changed. For the short times he was gone, Catherine could only think about the horror of herself being in the same position in the future if Delia had her way. Catherine had managed to convince her friends that her sickness had passed and she no longer needed ‘protection’. The two children never spoke of the awkwardness directly and opted rather to continue their imaginary games.   Jenny was much different and less sensitive to the subject of diapers. The two times Catherine had been over to the other girl’s home, Jenny had needed a change several times and was unashamed to ask her mother or father for one right then and there in front of her peer whenever the need arose. Jenny’s parents seemed, to Catherine, to be very much the same in that they both seemed slightly disappointed and annoyed in Jenny for blatantly opting not to use the bathroom. At the very least, there wasn’t the gushing, tender love and care that the young girl had expected that an adult might have for such a babyish and gentle task.   During her visits, Catherine and Jenny went back and forth suggesting things to play. Most of Jenny’s suggestions involved more traditionally girly activities like tea parties and dress up, to which Catherine had to politely decline. The afternoons spent together usually were spent playing board games, at Catherine’s insistence. Jenny proved to be of little challenge to other girl, though Catherine made sure to do her best in letting Jenny get the upper hand ever now and then – if only to make things interesting.   The trio spent their lunches together every day since the confrontation between Jenny and Catherine, and they grew ever closer as friends with each meal. Catherine hadn’t been unhappy with her social position in the past, but for the first time in a long time she was more than content. Happy, even. With Halloween in just a few days, the young girl began to think of ways they might spend it together as friends. Group trick or treating maybe? Or would that be too childish?   The Monday before Halloween, it was all the school was talking about. Mrs. Soulland had questioned Catherine the day before on what she wanted to dress up as on Thursday, to which the girl simply shrugged.   “Well you’ll need to decide today or tomorrow.” Her mother had lectured, “I won’t be taking you costume shopping the day before, so have an idea before school ends on Monday.”   At lunch that Monday, Jenny eagerly asked her friend the same thing.   Still not having any good ideas, Catherine directed the question back to her. “I don’t know yet. What are you guys going as?”   “I’m going as the headless horseman.” Answered Juan, quietly.   “You don’t know yet?” Jenny asked incredulously. “I’m going as a baby this year!” She said with her mouth full of sandwich.   Face scrunching up, Catherine questioned in disbelief, “What? Why?”   Forcing down her sandwich quickly, she answered, “Babies are cute.” The other girl shrugged. “Some other girls in our class are doing it too, I heard. Plus it’s an easy and quick costume when you already have the pieces for it lying around.”   ‘How convenient.’ Catherine thought pessimistically as she finished her lunch. That’s precisely what Catherine imagined Delia saying in an effort to coerce her or her friends to wear diapers.   It was two days until Halloween, and the Soullands were discussing the holiday towards the end of dinner. The two were working together to clean the dishes dirtied by their meal, a practice upheld by the household for as long as Catherine had been able.   “Maybe I can make my own costume?” Catherine propositioned.   “I don’t know if there’s enough time left before Halloween Catherine, what did you have in mind?” Her mother asked skeptically. She knew that despite the way her daughter had phrased the proposition, it would be her doing the majority of the work.   Shrugging her shoulders, Catherine answered slowly, “I don’t know… a black or white queen?”   Mrs. Soulland seemed to withhold a sigh. It was clear the older woman did not share her daughter’s enthusiasm for chess and all things related to it. “That sounds like a lot of work Catherine. I’m not sure-”   “It wouldn’t be!” The young girl interrupted, “I would just need a dress and a crown, and maybe some jewelry…” She trailed off.   Her mother seemed to contemplate it, staring off somewhere above Catherine’s head. “Alright, that doesn’t sound too hard. I’ll see what I can do.” She kissed her daughter’s forehead and left the room with a final remark. “Don’t forget to finish your homework before you play tonight. I don’t want to see any bad marks on your progress report because you didn’t feel like doing homework.”   The girl’s spirits were lifted at her mother’s semi-approval of her costume idea. She dreamt with wonder at how fabulous the costume may be. Her daydreaming was dashed by the harsh reminder of her schoolwork however. “Okayyyy” She relented. “Thanks mom.”   Homework went quick enough when Catherine focused on it in earnest. Though tonight was not one of those nights, as the girl’s mind often drifted in thinking of other things, such as Delia, Grant, Halloween, and her new friends. Thinking of Halloween and her friends, Catherine began to wonder if she ought to ask to trick-or-treat with her friends rather than her mother. It would be the first time in a while she had done that with anyone besides her family. After her schoolwork was done she decided to ask her mother if that would be allowed. Before she could get up from her desk, however, there was a knock at the bedroom door. “Yes?” Catherine called out.   “Can I come in sweetie?” Mrs. Soulland called out. She let herself in after receiving the go ahead. “I forgot to tell you sweetie, Delia is going to be watching you tomorrow night. I’m going out with some of the girls for an early Halloween event. Is that okay?”   ‘As if I have a choice’ Catherine thought to herself bitterly. “Yeah sure mom.” She forced herself to say, convincingly. “Oh,” She added, suddenly remembering her question, “Can I go trick-or-treating with Jenny and Juan on Halloween?”   Her mother seemed pleasantly surprised at the question. “Your new friends? Well I don’t see why not. Are their parents taking them?” She asked.   Catherine hadn’t heard either of her new-found friends mention anything specific of their Halloween plans, she had no idea. “I don’t know.” For hopeful measure she added, “Probably.”   “I’m going to need better than that Catherine.” Mrs. Soulland answered while taking her earrings out. “Ask them tomorrow at school and get their home phone numbers so I can call their parents and find out if it’s alright.”   “Okay, thanks mom!” The young girl said in earnest as her mother left and closed the door. She would have to remember to ask Jenny and Juan tomorrow, she reminded herself frequently that night.   As the night drolled on after her homework was done, Catherine found herself unable to concentrate on anything but seeing Delia again tomorrow evening. She was afraid of being made to wear a diaper again, or being made to have an accident. She wasn’t sure which one was worse. ‘Both of them together,’ Catherine answered herself grimly. Taking out her black notebook, the young girl began to scrawl across the pages with plans to figure out how Delia was making her have accidents, and why. She also drafted the pros and cons of confronting her babysitter on the matter. The conclusion pointed towards no confrontation, for fear that she may be wrong as well as putting herself in a worse position in opposing Delia. Lastly Catherine began to plot all the ways she could take revenge for the humiliation she endured. The nerve of it all! Being forced to wear a diaper, being made to believe she was sick and/or having genuine accidents, being babied and coddled! How would Delia like it if that was done to her?   A knock at the door interrupted Catherine’s thoughts. She closed her notebook and swapped it for her girly decoy diary as quick as lightning, though it proved unnecessary as Mrs. Soulland called through the door, “Bedtime Catherine, brush your teeth and lights out.” Her footsteps could be heard heading away down the hall.   Her planning would have to wait until another day. With her nightly routine done, the young girl drifted off to sleep thinking of the next two days ahead.   ——————-   The next day at lunch Catherine asked her friends about the details for Halloween. They were of course very much willing, and excited even, to have Catherine with them for the holiday night. It seemed as though her new friends had become enamored with the young girl. They both always seemed silent and bored at the lunch table until Catherine herself arrived. Afterwards the conversations all seemed to be driven and focused around Catherine and all that she had to say. It was a new sensation to her, to be the center of attention and in control of social scenarios, but she soon found herself thriving on it and reveling in it. ‘I could get used to this’ The young girl thought smugly.   Jenny said, “I can’t wait for us all to go trick-or-treating together tomorrow. It’s going to be so much fun! My babysitter is going to take us all tomorrow, you’re going to love her!” She hesitated a moment, suddenly self-conscious at her exclamation. “That’s not too babyish is it? My parents are going to be out of town so they can’t take us, and Juan’s parents work late.”   Jenny’s statement make Catherine’s blood run cold. Delia would be taking the three of them out for Halloween tomorrow night. If her other friends were going to be diapered by Delia, she could only think in horror how Delia would trick or convince her to wear one as well. ‘Just in case’ Catherine mocked to herself morbidly. “No, that’s not babyish.” She reassured. “As long as we get candy and have fun right?” A wave of relief washed over Jenny’s face at the approval from her peer.   “Yeah!” Juan added in agreement. “I hope we don’t get any toothpaste or floss this year.” His face scrunched up in disgust. The girls agreed and made similar faces.   Her face lighting up with an exciting idea, Jenny suddenly spoke, “Hey, my babysitter is already watching me Halloween night for when we go trick-or-treating, and we don’t have school on Friday, so why don’t we make it a sleepover?!” She suggested excitedly.   “You mean all of us?” Juan asked shyly, “But I’m a boy!” He protested, his introverted nature shining through.   Catherine found herself unable to respond immediately, imagining another night and morning spent with Delia as her subject of humiliation.   Reassuring the shy boy, Jenny put a hand on Juan’s shoulder. “Boys and girls can have sleepovers together. I’m sure our parents won’t mind. Ask them tonight guys, seriously! Please please please, it will be so fun!” She was practically bouncing out of her seat, her diaper softly crinkling, trying to convince the other two.   Juan and Catherine were less than convinced, though they both promised to at least ask their parents, though both admitted they were not hopeful about being allowed.   ——————-   “Of course you can go to Jenny’s sleepover.” Mrs. Soulland had answered with glee, much to Catherine’s dismay. It seemed she would not be able to use her mother as a scapegoat to escape committing to the sleepover. “I’m glad you’ve been making friends this year Cathy. This sleepover will be good for you. Did you get Jenny’s home phone number? I’d like to speak to her parents about tomorrow night to get all the details.”   Catherine acquiesced and recited the number from memory. She excused herself to her room to play games while her mother called Jenny’s parents. She played Chessmates for a few minutes to pass the time until she would inevitably be told to get started on her homework.   During one particular match, Catherine had the foresight to see an opponent trying to corner her queen. The queen piece was always Catherine’s favorite, and it was often a central part to all her strategies. This time however, in a stroke of brilliance, she allowed her queen to be played into the trap as it was chased across the board. All the while, Catherine subtly positioned her other pieces patiently to corner the enemy king. Her plan had worked flawlessly. Using the queen to wreak havoc caused the opponent to shift all attention towards capturing it, leaving the king unprotected. To Catherine, it was one of her most satisfying wins yet, despite losing her favorite piece before achieving victory.   ‘…That’s it!’ Catherine thought, ‘That’s how I’ll get Delia! The last thing she expects is for me to do exactly what she wants.’ The more she pondered it, the more sure of herself she became. ‘If I just let her treat me like a baby, and even give her excuses to, she’ll let her guard down. And that’s when I’ll turn the tables on her.’ With that thought, Catherine laid out her pink diary and began to write feverishly in it.   “Catherine?” Her mother knocked at the door, “Delia is here, come say goodbye to me.”   The young girl steeled herself for the night ahead, putting away her diary, and went out to meet her mother and babysitter.   Delia was cheerful and peppy as ever, greeting Catherine with a loud exclamation of, “Cathy!” and open arms for a hug.   Keeping up appearances, as well as furthering her plan, Catherine played her part well and jumped into Delia’s arms gleefully, laughing with delight.   “I was just talking to Delia here about your little sleepover on Halloween, Catherine. It sounds like you two will be seeing each other again tomorrow night!” Catherine’s mother announced.   Chiming in, Delia explained. “I watch Jenny and Juan sometimes too. Not so surprising that you all know each other, there are days where it feels like I babysit for every kid in the city!” Addressing Catherine, Delia added, “Don’t tell the others, but you’re my favorite, Cathy.” A wink was thrown in for good measure.   “Oh I’m sure you say that to all the kids,” Catherine added sarcastically, playing along. In truth, the comment made her lose some nerve in her plans to bring down her babysitter. ‘Creepy,’ She thought to herself.   The two younger girls said their goodbyes to Mrs. Soulland as she left and soon they were alone.   “So what do you want to do tonight Cathy?” Delia asked at last, slinging her babysitter bag off her shoulder.   Her first instinct was to say she had homework to do, but her plan (and desire to avoid homework as well) called for ignoring that. “Ummm how about dress up?” She forced herself to say.   Delia was once again skeptical, but had a different response than Catherine was expecting, “Oh, sorry Cathy. I thought you didn’t really like playing dress up that much, so I left behind my play dresses tonight, but…” She trailed off.   Taking the bait, Catherine pushed. “You look like you have an idea though.”   “Well…” The older girl looked a little bit embarrassed, but continued, “It’s kind-of like dress up. See, the only things I brought in my bag tonight besides my computer is diapers and baby stuff. Soooo we could play house I guess, and you’ll be the baby?” Delia said tentatively, clearly not expecting Catherine to be thrilled at the suggestion.   The proposition was simultaneously exactly what Catherine wanted, and what she dreaded. It was the perfect opportunity to let Delia think she had her in her clutches. However, that plan still involved letting herself be diapered and babied in earnest, as well as having to look as though she wasn’t completely loathing it. The tiniest part of Catherine protested the idea, giving her the nagging feeling that this was some sort of trap and she was playing right into Delia’s hands. Even still, Catherine masked her fear and doubts, resolving to see her plan through.   “Okay, that could be fun.” The younger girl said in such a way that was agreeable, but still not overeager.   The babysitter wasted no time in questioning whether or not her charge was sure about their little game and began to pull out all the necessary items from her Mary Poppins-esque bag. “Alright, let’s get started then sweetie!” There was no need to affirm who would be playing what role in their game of house.   Catherine watched with apprehension as the Catherine-sized diapers were laid out, noting again their childish design that was not native to common supermarkets and their convenient presence in Delia’s bag. Still she kept a mildly happy face, reminding herself that it was just a game; One that she planned to win in the end. Yet she felt very little like a winner as Delia began tugging down her pants and underwear, folding them up to be put away, and being lowered onto the crinkly diaper she was soon to be stuck in, at five in the afternoon no less. Catherine gave Delia obligatory glances as she sprinkled baby powder on her diaper area and moved to seal the four tapes over the pastel cartoon shapes and characters. Delia simply smiled back. It seemed an eternity for Catherine as she was finally back into another diaper after being free of them for nearly two weeks. ‘The first of many more’ she thought grimly.   “Don’t you just look adorable!” Delia exclaimed, tugging at her charge’s shirt in an effort to neatly arrange the toddler ensemble she had constructed. “Oh! One last thing to complete the look.” She produced a pacifier from her bag of goodies and unceremoniously stuck it in Catherine’s mouth. Of course. The babysitter also gave Catherine a little tickle, to put a smile on the girl’s face.   Catherine could not stop herself from giggling, and accepted her fate for the evening with an incomprehensible mumble from behind her pacifier. Her pacifier she had to admit. It was officially hers now. Her diapers, Her pacifier, Her idea. ‘What have I gotten myself into?’ Catherine wondered in despair.   Taking the pacifier out, Catherine asked, “So what now?” Apparently there wasn’t much to playing house other than being dressed the part.   “Whatever you want,” Delia suggested with a shrug.   ‘Lame,’ The younger girl thought to herself. She would need more info on exactly what Delia wanted if she were to play into her hands. Extreme caution would be necessary though, to avoid falling too far into the older woman’s clutches. “You’re the expert here, mommy” Catherine remarked pointedly with a smirk.   “Well,” Delia began, “First thing would probably be not mouthing off to your mother like that.” She accentuated her point by taking the pacifier from Catherine’s hand and replacing it in her charge’s mouth. “How about some cartoons to get my baby into character?”   Catherine knew at once she didn’t have a choice as Delia moved to scoop her off the ground and hoisted her onto her hip, much like a baby. Determined to still be in control of her own fate, Catherine came up with an excuse. “Can I have some pants? I’m cold” She asked through the pacifier. The request may not succeed, but Catherine still opted to try though she feared she already knew the answer.   “Babies don’t wear pants,” Delia said expectedly and dismissively. Her expression changed though, as she seemed to realize something. “But…” She began, building the anticipation and hope within Catherine. “Maybe you have something age appropriate among your clothes?” Delia suggested as she stopped in the hall and looked over at Catherine on her hip for obligatory approval. Though she obviously needed none.   Catherine reasoned that it was better than nothing. She maintained her strategic aloofness and shrugged at the idea in a way that wordlessly conveyed, “I don’t care.”   The girls wound up in Catherine’s room, with Catherine laid onto the bed while ‘mommy’ Delia rifled through the other girl’s clothes, presumably looking for the most humiliating outfit to couple with the diaper. The young tactical genius smiled to herself knowing Delia’s search would bear little fruit. Catherine loathed infantile or overly feminine clothes, so she knew Delia was not likely to find anything too embarrassing. She did have one large oversight, though.   Delia emerged from the closet holding up the last unused pull up of the three. Catherine’s heart sank to the deepest pits of her stomach as she realized her mistake. She had thrown away the second one after wearing it twice, despite it being unused. In hindsight, the younger girl knew she should have just thrown both of them away, but her own doubts had led her to keep the last one. Just in case.   “Did you use one of the pull ups I left you, Cathy?” Delia interrogated slowly.   Wracking her memory, Catherine struggled to remember everything that Delia knew, or what she presumed she knew, in order to make up a clever lie that would get her out of this mess. The situation was bad, Delia holding the proverbial smoking gun and herself on the bed in an obvious diaper looking very much like someone who was likely to have had an accident recently. “No,” was the best she could summon up at the moment.   “So where’s the other one? I left you two.”   Catherine’s heart raced. She was trapped! Unless…   “I don’t know.” She began meekly.   Unsatisfied with the answer, the older girl pressed on. “Diapers don’t just disappear, honey. Did you have an accident?”   Continuing with her shaky plan, Catherine responded indignantly, with a stutter for effect. “N-no! I didn’t I promise!”   “But you did wear it,” Delia accused, neither refuting nor accepting Catherine’s denial.   “Okay fine I did,” The younger girl pouted, crossing her arms and turning away from Delia. Her babysitter would be less likely to detect a lie if she hid her face in feigned embarrassment. Steeling herself for the huge lie, Catherine thought to herself, ‘here goes nothing.’   “I sorta…” She gulped. “I kinda liked wearing it.” Catherine did her best to look innocent as she turned back to Delia, squirming in her seat causing her diaper to crinkle loudly. Hopefully Delia would take the bait. “But I didn’t wet it I swear!”   The accusatory facade seemed to melt from Delia’s face as she listened to Catherine’s short explanation. “Hmmm, I think I get it now. That’s why you wanted to play house, huh?”   Still playing the role, Catherine fidgeted silently and looked away to hide a legitimate blush.   “I had a feeling you might have been enjoying this,” Delia said.   Apparently the lie had worked, allowing Catherine to breathe an inward sigh of relief. “You’re not going to tell my mom, are you?” The younger girl asked tentatively, her nervousness at the prospect evident.   The babysitter relented, “I believe you. We don’t have to tell her if you don’t want.” Taking a seat next to Catherine, Delia began to rub the girl’s back. “Must be kind of embarrassing huh? Don’t worry though; your secret is safe with me.”   “Thanks.” Catherine offered shyly. She then made a poor job of stifling a yawn.   Delia seized the opportunity and popped Catherine’s pacifier back into her mouth as it closed. “Looks like someone is a wittle tired, hm?” Delia patronized. “I think it’s time somebody had a nap!”   “But it’s still light out!” Catherine complained.   “Babies,” Delia emphasized, “have naps during the day all the time. At least just try to rest your eyes while I get started on dinner.” She urged.   Reluctantly, Catherine let herself be helped under her covers and tucked in. Delia wished her sweet dreams before retreating out of the room. The lights were turned out, but the sun shone through Catherine’s blinds making it hard for the girl to fall asleep. Not one hour into her plan and Catherine was already regretting the situation she was in. Having to voluntarily admit that she actually enjoyed being babied to any degree was certainly not in her original plans. She had half a mind to rip the diaper off and tell Delia she was done playing. Yet that would only result in Delia getting mad at her wastefulness, and the end of Catherine’s plan to play into Delia’s hand. No, she had to do everything she was told this evening for it to work. But still sleep did not come easy to the little girl as she tossed and turned from side to side, her thick diaper crinkling all the while until she finally felt somewhat comfortable with her arm hanging off the bed. The pacifier was also unnatural in her mouth, she knew it would fall out if she fell asl-.   Catherine felt something on her back. It was moving. Her senses were sluggish as the feeling continued. She noticed the pacifier had surprisingly stayed in her mouth as she realized she was waking from her nap. As her vision, hearing, and feeling all came into focus Catherine realized what was happening. She was not sucking on her pacifier, instead she was being bottle fed by Delia and cradled in her arms. In reflexive defense of her pride, Catherine forewent her plan and began squirming away from the bottle, releasing it from her mouth.   “Wakey wakey, sweetie,” came Delia’s sickly sweet voice through Catherine’s post sleep haze. She tried to reinsert the bottle, pressing it annoyingly against the other girl’s lips.   “Mmmnnn- No!” Catherine complained, still resisting the bottle. As soon as she opened her mouth to protest, Delia wormed the nipple of the bottle into place. Defeated, as well as remembering her plan, the younger girl gave in and continued nursing from the bottle, though she crossed her arms for good measure. The thought that she was drinking involuntarily in her sleep gave her pause and frightened her somewhat. Probably another one of Delia’s tricks.   Content that her charge ceased to be fussy, Delia held the bottle in place and spoke down to the girl in her arms. “You slept for almost two hours. Will you be ready for dinner after you finish your bottle, honey?”   Taking stock of her situation, Catherine noticed they were in the living room. Delia was feeding her on the couch. She finished the bottle of what tasted like warm milk and replied that she would indeed like some dinner.   A fully prepared dinner awaited the two girls. Delia had whipped up some classic spaghetti and meatballs, with no tomato sauce for Catherine, just how she liked it. The younger girl had to admit, Delia was quite the cook; this particular dinner was even better than her mom normally made it! The delicious taste of the meal did well to distract her from the foreign feeling of being in a diaper and tee shirt at the kitchen table. Catherine wolfed her meal down hungrily, thankful that Delia hadn’t suggested something embarrassing like insisting on feeding her. The baby treatment did come, however, when Catherine was about to excuse herself and put her dishes away, Delia told her to stop, citing that babies only crawled and didn’t need to worry about silly things like dishes. It was a small surprise to Catherine as she realized she hadn’t taken single step on her own since Delia arrived that afternoon. She had been carried back and forth between the rooms since then and it had never occurred to her. Resolving to be passive, Catherine did as she was told and sat back in her chair, waiting for Delia to finish and take care of the kitchen.   After dinner was done with, Delia proposed that Catherine should watch some TV while she cleaned up the mess from dinner. Catherine agreed and allowed herself to be carried out to the living room and plopped down onto her diapered butt in front of the screen. Like Catherine expected, Delia turned on the TV switched the channel to something much too infantile for her tastes. The little girl was proud of herself for predicting Delia’s moves though, giving herself a mental pat on the back. Delia placed the pacifier back in Catherine’s mouth and told her to stay put until she returned from cleaning. Catherine acknowledged the instructions and let her mind drift as she watched the cartoons, not quite paying them any close attention.   A pressure began building on Catherine’s bladder. The sensation sent a small wave of panic through her body. From what she could tell, Catherine felt as though she was about to have another accident! Neglecting Delia’s rules about crawling or staying put, the girl made a dash for the bathroom. Her diaper rustled loudly all the way, making her feel very immature like some toddler struggling to keep her diapers dry. The sound must have tipped off Delia too, because the older girl called after her, though Catherine ignored the call in lieu of more pressing concerns. She locked herself into the bathroom and immediately went to work on the tapes, her bladder crying out in pain more and more as she came closer and closer to freedom. Removing the tapes ripped the outer plastic bits and at last the diaper was off! Sparing no time at all, Catherine practically leapt onto the toilet as she lifted the top off.   “Catherine, are you okay?” Delia called from behind the door with a knock.   Bracing herself for a chastising, Catherine replied, “I’m fine. Just had to go potty.” She forced herself to say the childish word in an effort to please Delia. Knowing her babysitter would see the ruined diaper, and aware that she had nothing to wear on her bottom half, Catherine called out to Delia. “Could you get my clothes for me?” Ensuring Delia could not sneak another diaper into her wardrobe, the girl added, “I think I’m done playing house tonight.”   The older girl confirmed the request and returned with Catherine’s normal clothes, much to the young girl’s pleasant surprise. Catherine was even left in the bathroom to dress herself in private. The situation seemed fishy, putting the girl ill at ease. Despite her anxiety, Catherine felt leaps and bounds better for being back in her comparatively comfortable panties and jeans. Delia was waiting back in the living room when Catherine returned.   The girls resolved to play board games until it would be Catherine’s bed time. Catherine of course voted for chess, and Delia obliged. They played a couple intense games, making their battle of wits tangible. Piece for piece was taken across the checkered battlefield, game after game. The younger girl proved her mettle, coming back from near losses with surprising tactics. Delia one the first of three games, but the last two were Catherine’s, boosting her self-esteem after a night of babying and coddling. At least she could still best Delia intellectually, it seemed.   “Alright,” The babysitter announced. “I think it’s time for bed.” She said as she finished boxing away the chess set, handing it to Catherine.   The younger girl did her best to argue the notion. “Aww, come on! Already?”   “Yes, already.” Delia commanded, a bit sterner. “March.”   Catherine gave an embellished hmph, crossing her arms. “And I thought you were cool.” The younger girl said while walking away in an effort to wound the other girl’s pride, though not so seriously.   Taking the remark in stride, Delia called after Catherine as the girl walked towards the bathroom, “Following your mom’s rules is cool!”   Grumbling, Catherine went to work brushing her teeth and readying herself for bed. She had just gone to the bathroom only an hour or so earlier, so she made no effort to try again. Teeth thoroughly brushed, and yawns threatening, Catherine retired to her room where Delia was waiting. She allowed herself to be helped into PJ’s, especially since Delia seemed to have no intention of forcing a pull up or diaper on her this time.   “All set to go beddy-bye?” The older girl asked in a sing-songy voice, hands on her hips.   Rolling her eyes, Catherine refuted, “I’m set to just go to sleep, like a normal big kid.” She went to let herself onto the bed, but was stopped by Delia making a grab for her.   Delia reached down and clamped her hands around her charge’s waist and began hoisting her into bed. Something gave her pause though.   As soon as Delia lifted Catherine off the ground, the younger girl felt an incredible pressure on her bladder from her babysitter’s hands pressing on the edge of where she assumed her bladder was. The shock was too great, however, and the flood gates broke. Catherine began wetting herself in earnest, finding herself unable to stop it as Delia held her at arm’s length. She was too stunned and surprised by the event that Catherine found herself unable to speak.   Silence pervaded the room for a tense moment.   “Let me down!” Catherine shrieked, fear, humiliation, and anger swelling together. She violently struggled against Delia’s hold and broke free. Not even giving her babysitter a second to react, Catherine bolted out of her bedroom towards the bathroom.   “Cathy, come back!” Delia called, worry and empathy evident in her voice. Catherine had already slammed the bathroom door and audibly locked it.   Sealed safely inside for the time being, Catherine faced her teary reflection in the bathroom mirror and inspected the damage. Her pajamas were soaked and clung uncomfortably to her hips, tinged a tell-tale yellow. In truth, the accident didn’t seem bad enough that she would need a shower, but it was impossible to play it off as a small incident. Frustrated, Catherine wrestled the wet clothes off her body and began wetting a rag in the sink to clean herself. She knew Delia would insist on helping, but she had every intention of finishing it herself before it came to that.   Almost as if on cue, Delia was knocking at the door. “Catherine. Honey, let me in, I’m not mad.” She said softly, jiggling the locked handle.   Forgetting all her tact, Catherine responded hotly, “I am! You’re going to tell my mom about my accidents!” Tears threatened the little girl’s eyes as she heard herself say the words aloud. She knew Delia would make good on her promise. It was likely all part of her sinister plan.   Delia made no response at first. It was a confirmation that Catherine was indeed right about the accusation. “Cathy… It’s okay. It’s not a big deal.” She urged gently.   It was a big deal, though, Catherine knew. Soon she would be in diapers like Jenny and Juan, a stupid little pants-wetting baby that fell for all of Delia’s tricks. No, not yet. Losing one battle didn’t mean the war was over. She just needed time to figure out a way to come back. Not just get back though, no, the young girl wanted more than that. She wanted revenge. She wanted to win.   The doorknob jiggled again. “Sweetie, you have to let me in. You know that.” Delia tried again to reason with the upset girl.   Not wanting to admit it, but knowing it to be true, Catherine dried her tears. She cinched a towel around her waist and unlocked the door for her babysitter. She dared not meet Delia’s gaze, merely keeping her eyes downcast and averted.   “I know you’re upset, Cathy,” Delia reassured, reaching down to place a hand on the girl’s shoulder.   “Don’t touch me!” Catherine shouted, surprising both herself and Delia as she swatted the arm away and ducked the gesture.   “Okay,” The woman relented. “It looks like nothing in your room got wet. Do you just want to just go to bed?” She suggested.   Catherine only stewed and said nothing, keeping her distance from Delia.   “Let’s go then.” Delia exited the bathroom and held the door open for the young girl.   Reluctantly, Catherine followed. She suddenly remembered all of the excuses Delia had made to get her to wear diapers to bed previously. Surely a similar fate awaited her now, and worse yet Catherine could not think of any plausible excuse to deny the treatment. Defeating herself in every possible mental argument she could formulate, Catherine felt like crying again as she followed after Delia back to her room.   “Catherine,” Delia stated soothingly once they arrived in the bedroom. She knelt down to the younger girl’s level, straining to see her downcast face. “It’s just a couple of accidents. Lots of kids your age have accidents. You shouldn’t be ashamed of things that are out of your control.” The babysitter allowed the words to sink in, knowing that Catherine wasn’t in the mood for talking.   Catherine’s mind was elsewhere. She paid no attention to Delia’s useless consoling. It was all an act, she knew. Any second now Delia would be making excuses as to why she ought to wear a diaper that night.   “Go on and get some new bottoms.” Delia suggested softly.   Catherine did so. She had to admit to herself that she felt somewhat better being in dry pajama pants and underwear.   “Hop on into bed,” Delia peeled away the covers for the second time that night.   Suspicious, Catherine scanned the room for any sign of Delia’s diaper bag before helping herself up onto her bed. Still sulking, she let her babysitter help her under the covers and tuck her in. There was still the pull up in her dresser making her nervous. She just knew Delia would be extorting her into it before she was left alone.   Delia made no moves to indicate that she would be producing any protection for Catherine. Instead, she gently leaned down and gave the younger girl a gentle kiss on the forehead. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Cathy. Sweet dreams.” On that note, Delia turned out the lights and took her leave.   Surprisingly left alone with her thoughts, Catherine lay awake comprehending what had just happened. She had felt no warning for her accident at all, leading to her being unprepared for stopping it. Catherine thought it no coincidence that she had her accident right as Delia grabbed her. She still had no idea how the older girl was doing it though. It had to be the case though as the evidence stacked higher and higher against Delia. Her accident just now, the deal they had struck a couple weeks ago, the suspicious diapers, and Delia’s dealings with Jenny and likely Juan. Evidence…   ‘Of course!’ Catherine buzzed to herself, her mood momentarily lifting. She may have been in a tough situation, but Catherine’s resolve renewed itself with the new idea she had.   Blackmail. Blackmail was how she would get her revenge on Delia. All of the girl’s brainstormed plans thus far had been too difficult to execute, unlikely, or not severe enough to her liking. Lording something over Delia would provide her the freedom to execute whatever kind of revenge she saw fit. It was perfect, if only she could get the appropriate blackmail. Catherine, Jenny, and Juan’s coerced diapering would make for good leverage, but she would need proof.   As Catherine thought back to the several total hours she had spent with Delia, the little girl realized just how clever and diplomatic Delia had been in her schemes. She could not think of any instance where her babysitter had done anything overtly wrong that couldn’t be dismissed as a faulty memory or misinterpretation of the situation. Catherine noticed herself tightly gripping her sheets as she realized that she was dealing with one hell of a clever tormentor. She resolved that she would tell her mother some choice bits the next morning to ensure she had precedent to condemn Delia if it came down to it. It would take some skilled negotiating, since she had no idea how much information Delia would share with her mother after that night. She would need to tread carefully.   Exhausted by her emotions, Catherine felt sleep claiming her slowly. Her thoughts still churned like a little machine until nature took its course and lulled her closer and closer to sleep. A final pang of worry came to the forefront of Catherine’s mind as she prayed to wake up dry in the morning. Official End

California is still one of the highest I think 🤔. But we are down to about $5.50 range for regular.. But we don't drive if we don't Have to...I am just glad I don't have to do the drive to work every day anymore..

when the XXL came out they were only available online or at Walmart stores so I got 3 boxes.  it took a while for my inventory to go down so I finally got a box of XL 95-120 lbs version to try.  as far as I can tell they are the same as the 95-140 lbs version.  the XL may be better for me.  the XXL has a longer crotch and seems to be more prone to sags and gaps which leads to leaks.

The plot thickens Guilend. So, are you suggesting that she would have had to have followed the Emergency Fostermom who took Heather and Becky from the Police at the mall when the Sargent arrested Diane on suspicion of Little Trafficking? Yup, definitely a downside for Heather if that scenario plays out, you will get your wish and Heather will be doomed to a second babyhood for the rest of her natural life.