Rainbow Diapers

Love dbz. I always had a crush on Bulma

Magda: I and Peter changed into our ‘Sunday’ clothes; Peter put on a suit and I put on my dress. I knew that he and Milan would change back seconds after returning from the church. Neither of them liked the formal clothes. As for me, I didn’t mind it, but I had to cook after the mass, so I would have to change, too. “Ďakujem … merci,” I answered to Jo when she complimented me and stepped forward; it was time to go to the church already. While we were walking towards the church, we encountered our neighbors. They mostly knew about Jo and were not surprised by her presence. However, she was wearing a dress and looked different. We slowly entered the church and headed towards our usual seats. Milan: I was taken aback when I spotted Jo in her new dress. She was beautiful in those girlish clothes. I had to control myself not to stare at her. It would be impolite and make her embarrassed. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t mind if she put on a dress more often even if I understood her condition. She had a long way ahead to get used to her new gender. While walking towards the church, we flanked Jo as if we would like to protect her. However, there were few curious gazes only. Most villagers knew about her already.  

Hey everyone! Another chapter here. I might go back later and change some of the language with this chapter, but I think it came out decently with what I wanted to convey here. With this story, I wanted to showcase a few different elements and one of them I’ve been only hinting at for a while now. Nothing too direct, but that’s going to start to change. I have a reason for why to parallel with other things… which I can go into more detail later if anyone wants, but for now, just sit back and enjoy the chapter. Speaking of enjoyment… I’ve been a little nervous lately with how my stories have been received by you all. I know times are changing and the audience here might be different than even a year or two ago, but I’ve noticed less engagement with my last couple of stories. I know part of that has been the lack of consistency with them and another part of the subject matter, but I start to get a little nervous that maybe it’s my skill that’s not up to the task anymore. That feels funny to me, as some of my early ones that seemed more popular, I’ve been editing lately and they’re riddled with problems… but the numbers don’t lie. I’m not sure what it is and if anyone knows what it is, I would appreciate it in finding out. And don’t worry, I will always write, but I do question my longevity here somedays…   Now… last but not least and as usual, I hope everyone enjoys this next chapter of my story! Chapter 7: Bumps In the Night Everyone in the tent remained motionless, just staring back at Leo in shock. Kyle shifted forward first and glared back at Leo. “Now, don’t you go doing anything stupid. Escaping Camp Commune isn’t an option.” “But Kyle,” Sammy protested. “We’ve gotta try. I mean… look at me!” Everyone did as he gestured to himself and amongst the rest of us purple, Sammy as a blue cabin member was readily apparent by his height difference alone. If he was any other blue, plenty of other differences would have been even more readily apparent.   Kyle sighed. “I know buddy. I know, but…” He looked at him directly. “Do you remember what happened last time?” All the fire in Sammy’s eyes vanished like a puff of smoke on a windy day. “What happened last time?” Brian finally asked… the first in the group to break the silence. “You tried to escape before? Did something bad happen to you all?” Kyle shook his head. “No. No mauling’s or injuries… we were just caught.” “Wait… mauling’s?” I asked, a little nervousness bubbling up inside of me. I tried to suppress it, remembering back to what Uriah had told me in not bringing it up first. That was about impossible out here in the middle of nowhere now… so I covered. “Like a bear or something…?” Sammy looked at me dreadfully. “Or something…” “Oh! Will you quit it!” Kyle nearly shouted before catching himself and quickly lowering his voice. Nearest to the entrance of the tent still, I could hear Mr. King still telling ghost stories and other local legends around the campfire to the other cabin members. So, I quickly gave the thumbs up to continue without worrying about being caught, the six of us pretty drunk or tipsy by now. Kyle continued to glare back at Sammy. “You didn’t see squat! You hear?” There was a curl of disgust around his words… but also a lack of complete belief in them as well. “But that doesn’t matter.” He shook his head and his annoyance and frustration seemed to slowly dissipate. “What matters is that we tried going to the south and around the forest. And we were caught within an hour…” “Oh…” Leo seemed more disheartened by that notion than most of the rest of us. “Yeah,” Eric piped up, having remained quiet for most of the time so far. “We didn’t have a chance in…” He hiccupped and it evident that he wasn’t used to his smaller frame and metabolism to process the bootleg alcohol he had chugged tonight. “Whatever… doesn’ matter anyways…” He stood and swaggered to the front flap of the tent, slapping the material as he tried to look for the zipper. “Eric?” Kyle inquired. “Where are you going?” Eric spun around… too far to the point where I had to brace him to keep from falling over. “To take a pee!” He thrust his finger out to emphasize his point, almost falling forward. “You gotta problem with that? You tryin’ to be my dad out here, huh?” “No! I…” Kyle blushed and seemingly retreated back into the group and seeing that Eric left without another word. “Shit,” Sammy muttered under his breath. “He might get us caught if he stumbles into the fire or falls into the lake. Damn guy never knew how to hold his liquor…” Brian stood up. “I’ll go check on him…” In a moment, he disappeared as well. Seemingly undeterred still, even with the notion of some of the members of the group being caught previously, Leo pressed closer to Sammy. “Sammy… do you think it’s possible to leave this place?” His inhibitions clearly lowered, Sammy shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t know… but I’m willing to try again. Can’t go alone though…” To no surprise, Leo nodded without the slightest hesitation. “I’m in.” He turned to me. “Miles?” I sighed. It was my idea to come here in the first place… but I was already having massive second thoughts about this place. It was outdoors and fun in that summer camp type of way and people like Ms. Peachy and Sammy were great… but the new rules and the foreboding sense of the other cabins I seemed to be beelining for in my own regression all left me with a sense of dread about my future here. Yes, I could stay and laugh my way through it all and eat s’mores and study butterflies and camp out under the stars… but it would all be to the point of my own possible eventual oblivion here. Eustace seemed a perfect example of that type of fall… and that wasn’t even counting whatever the heck was happening in the woods out here. “I’m in,” I nodded. For better or worse, I wanted to know if escape was even possible at this point. Leo smiled and nodded before turning over to the still resigned Kyle. “And you? I know you had your doubts, but maybe if we go…?” “No,” Kyle repeated with a finality that practically screamed ‘end of conversation.’ “I did this before and when we were caught, we were dragged back and Mr. Nancy put us on washing duty in the kitchen. My hands were pruny for a whole day!” He stood up as best he could in the tent and shook his head. “My answer is no…” He wavered for a moment. “So, if you’ll excuse me… I need to go lie down.” He just started unzipping the tent when Sammy reached out and stopped him. “I respect your choice, Kyle, but… please respect ours and don’t tell Mr. Na…” “Oh my god!” Kyle groaned. “Damn it, Sammy. Just because I’m not going doesn’t mean I’m some stupid rat. Is that what you really think of me?” Sammy winced, realizing his mistake with his good friend. “Well, no, but…” “But nothing!” Kyle scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Sometimes man… I just don’t know with you. I’m only not going because Mr. Nancy sees everything… and I mean everything.” He paused and sighed. “But just because I’m afraid of him catching us… doesn’t mean I’ll tell him. Got it?” Got it,” Sammy repeated resolutely like he was worried that any hesitation on his part would mean his words would mean the opposite or somehow insult his friend. “Good.” Kyle then saluted. “So… if you will, good night, gentlemen.” He then exited the tent without another word. “Eh, good riddance with him,” Leo practically spat after he left. “Careful now, Leo…” Sammy warned, suddenly becoming defensive of his old friend. “If I wasn’t so desperate to leave before I’m nothing, I’d be exiting right alongside him. After all… this isn’t just a walk in the park.” “No, but I’ve been thinking about that.” Leo then hobbled together some spare matches, sticks, and a few scraps of paper nearby to approximate the camp. “You all went south here…” His finger pointed to the area best representing the mountainside we had trekked up before and the adjoining southern part of the woods. “Yes,” Sammy confirmed. “Swarming with sensors and barbed wire all over. “It’s possible to do, but you’d need security clearances to shut down their defenses or wire cutters or…” Leo waved his hand. “No need to harp on it. We all know it won’t work. But that leaves two possibilities.” He paused. “To the north…” His hand then gestured to practically the mirrored set-up closer to him and by the sign listed as ‘Havenswood.’ “We know this area is swarming with the commune members and probably security forces of their own.” “Correct,” Sammy acknowledged again. “Plus, there’s talk of more wild things up there. Just stories but…” He winced and shrugged his arms. “Why take the risk?” “Sure…” It was clear that Leo didn’t believe in all that, but the presence of Havenswood seemed enough to deter him fully. “But that leaves the middle.” “The middle?” I questioned, trying to keep my tone steady and above the nerves I was already feeling about going through that part out of here. “Do we really have to go… there?” Sammy and Leo both looked at me in bewilderment. I shrank back a little realizing that I had just shown my fear to them out in the open so blatantly. Fortunately, if either wanted to crack a joke at my expense, they didn’t. “Yes, Miles,” Sammy nodded. “I don’t like it either, but these are the only ways. Going west through the water means stealing a boat and I’ve been told it leads to larger bodies of water, rushing rivers, or even more folds of mountains. Not a city that would help us out for at least two days…” “Exactly.” Leo leaned forward. “Now, we know that security is practically non-existent around here at night. I heard Mr. King talking the other day… mentioned only a few patrols and considering the grounds around here, I think we can slip past them easily enough.” “But you’ll need a map,” Sammy noted before turning to me. “You and Brian should go talk to Ron tomorrow. He did all the art in purple cabin. Should be a good way to slip in there to request a piece for your cabinet… but then also ask him for the map he did two weeks ago.” “Something special about it?” I was hesitant about including another person, because in my experience, including other people in breaking the rules always was a flaw in every plot or scheme I had ever been a part of. Someone couldn’t keep their mouth shut when it wasn’t in their own vested interest and foiled whatever plan it was. “Yes,” Leo said nodding. “I saw it the other day. Detailed portions and he always listens to rumors around camp and then goes exploring in his free time. I heard he even talked with Mr. Lehman about details in the woods. Chalked it up to some class project or whatever…” “Smart…” I sighed. “Okay. I’ll do it. I know Brian will want to come as well though. Consider him a part of this.” We were actual friends before all this and leaving him behind just felt wrong. The only reason he wasn’t here was because he was genuinely a good guy and making sure that Eric didn’t stumble and fall down in the dark. “I’m not leaving here without him.” “Very well…” Sammy leaned forward and started to gesture to the camp itself… when Leo spoke up. “Same goes for Dwayne…” His name was like nails on a chalkboard. “Really?” I could hear the shock in Sammy’s voice just as much as if I had said it myself. Of all people to bring along, he was the last I wanted. “Yes,” Leo emphasized. “I’m not going without him either. We made that pact before all this and I’m holding up my end.” I could see the strain on Sammy’s face. Dwayne was loud, mocking, and still not even in purple cabin yet. His reliability, apart from his loyalty to Leo, was questionable at best and his discretion always seemed to be lacking when it came to crunch time apart from his old job. With so many variables, I wasn’t surprised when Sammy nodded back with hesitation. “Okay. Just make sure to include him early tomorrow at lun…” “Back to your tents!” someone yelled from outside the tent. “Back inside and stay there!” Several panicked yells mixed in with shouts of barked orders followed after. The three of us still inside were frozen in panic and confusion. Sammy spoke first, his hands going for the front entrance of the tent to clearly open it up and look around. “What the hel…?” “Open up! Open up!” someone screamed, their voice getting closer to the tent’s front entrance. With Sammy’s help, we tore open then front, the zipper flying along its path to the top, only to reveal a clearly panicked and running Brian and Eric. Eric stumbled for a moment, but with a helping hand, both practically dove headfirst into the tent. “Close it up! Close it up!” Brian shouted, panicking fully now, his chest heaving in and out. Just as Sammy started to close the front as ordered, he turned back. “What happened? What’s going on?” More screams and shouts and cracked branches and twigs outside our tent echoed around us. A groan and what almost sounded like a growl stopped us cold… it was inhuman. Gnawing and deep, it visibly rattled each of us as it came back and forth, ebbing and flowing like a surging tide. “What the heck is that all about?” Leo asked. “Is it a bear?” “Something was moving in the woods…” Brian said, his eyes fixated and full of fear. “Mr. King and Mr. Nancy got their guns,” Eric explained, his fingers twitching and twirling with his sleeping bag, “while the Brooks’ are guarding the camp.” “What?” Sammy questioned in shock. “Shit! I gotta get outta here!” Sammy got up and fled the tent. “If the Brook’s catch me out here when we’re supposed to be in our tents, I’m a goner!” “Sammy!” I called. “Wait!” But he had already disappeared into the inky greenish black and blues of the nighttime in the forest. Creepily, the fire and nearly ever lantern was out. Not wanting to linger, I shoved myself back inside the confines of the tent. “You were saying they were defending the camp?” Leo questioned back to Eric as soon as I was back in and both he and Brian had calmed down considerably. “Yeah!” Brian exclaimed. “Must be a bear or…” Another growl and sticks breaking from outside cut him short. Blinking and undeterred, Leo looked back at him with curiosity. “Or what?” Brian shook his head. “Forget about it! Just… let’s get some sleep.” Not wasting a moment, he tossed out his sleeping bag and quickly buried himself in it. Leo frowned and turned to Eric. “And you?” To my surprise, Eric shook his head. “Forget it man. Just… get some sleep or whatever. Pretend it’s the wind.” He shifted out his sleeping bag as well. “And Miles? Close the flap, will you?” I looked toward Leo. Both of us were confused but I could tell his confusion was more from being pissed from a lack of answers, and I knew mine was from being more worried about what was lingering outside the tent. Still, despite that worry, I felt a gurgling pit in my stomach… one of morbid curiosity. The growling and the sticks breaking… ‘Could it be my monster?’ I almost didn’t want to know, but the greater part of me had to. So, I slowly stuck my head outside the tent and looked around. The slim moon was mostly obscured by the clouds, but the whole area was still dimly lit and yet blackened all the same. I could feel my heart pounding inside my chest. One beat at a time, I felt a lump grow in my throat. And then the growling and even something breathing. Heaving breaths and panted pain and terror, a slithering passing through the dead leaves and twigs. And I turned to my right… and saw two bright yellow orbs staring right back at me… less than ten feet away. I slammed the tent entrance closed and zipped it up as tight as I could. My hands clutched the entrance closed and I could hear the rustle and scraping of nearby trees. I shut my eyes. ‘Don’t be real. Don’t be real.’ Once again, I wasn’t fully sure of what I saw out there. It was just two yellow orbs staring right back at me from the darkness of the woods… but that image haunted me as I willed the beast to go away. It wasn’t real… it couldn’t be, but my eyes kept telling me to the contrary. Eventually, I heard the snapping of twigs and the deep breathing begin to slink off. Still terrified, I opened my eyes and laid down. With my companions having already passed out… I tried to join them and fall asleep as well. *              *              * The next morning, the cabin heads all gathered us around. Nearby, broken branches and claw marks littered the grounds around our tent lines. Closest to the perimeter of the densest part of the trees, three scratches marked a tree within spitting distance of our tent… but nothing closer. Mutters abounded with what it was, and even through the fear in their eyes and their white knuckles still gripping the bags that held their guns, they told us they were just bears at one point and coyotes at another point. “There’s no way coyotes made marks that big” was a common sentiment on the way back to camp. But the rest of the day went without incident. At arts and crafts, I spotted Ron creating an intricate web of weaving around popsicle sticks, his craftiness and creativity clearly not being confined to just to drawing. At computer class, Mr. Klassen droned on about search engines and the rise of AI. Considering that most of us had come from the tech industry or had viewed a computer that had been designed in the past five years… most of us nearly passed out from sheer boredom. Fortunately, at aquatics, while Mr. Mast kept a close eye on us, Brian and I elected to take a rowboat lesson from Ms. Fisher. For a week now, we were preparing to venture out on our own as part of the class, but for now, even being out on the open water with her and the fresh breeze felt exhilarating. Secretly though, I was also curious about using the boat as a means of escape… if it ever came to that. But no one knew about that motive. Before lunch, having looped in Brian at breakfast about the escape plan for tonight, we both made sure to stay a little after at the cabin and corner Ron. “Heya, Ron,” Brian started first, having already talked to him before. The colorful single sheet of The Beatles and their most iconic moments and album covers were all perfectly displayed on his cabinet already and testament to their prior interaction. “This is Miles. Think you could make a sheet for him like you did for me?” Ron stopped and smiled at me. “Absolutely. I was wondering when you were going to wander over here. See any artwork you like of mine?” “All of it,” I answered honestly… though admittedly trying to butter him up a little bit. “Hard to pinpoint a style, but it really adds to this room. Black cabin was so…” “Plain? Boring?” I nodded back to his question and he grinned.  “Yeah. It can be like that. ARV sucks in so many ways but letting go of some of those old boundaries that comes with regression works wonders for our cabin.” He then yanked a large notebook out and flipped to a page about halfway through. The left side and the top half of the right were already completely covered. “So… any ideas of what you want?” I wasn’t entirely sure, but considering I wanted his help today and that I had a love for art as well, I decided to challenge him. “I was thinking maybe a handful of artists… and maybe done in the style they’re famous for? Like an impressionistic Monet?” “Oh!” I could already see his gears turning as his face practically lit up with excitement. “A challenge! I…” He didn’t even finish his sentence and began rapidly scribbling out on the page in front of him. “Ron…” Brian started, edging into what I knew would be the request for the map. “About that map I saw you fiddling with… mind if I have a look? I kind of wanted to check out paths up the mountains. I think Mr. Nancy might love to take us up there and go birdwatching or…” Ron abruptly stopped and stared annoyedly back at Brian. “Brian… if you want my map… for whatever reason, you just have to ask me normally. Don’t lie to my face.” Brian blushed hard. “Sorry, Ron. I just…” “It’s okay.” Ron was already reaching into his bag before taking out a green plastic folder. “But let me guess… escape from this place?” With Brian mastering this line of questioning himself, I left him on his own… even when he was so flustered he only manage to make out a few sputtered single syllables before nodding dejectedly. Ron gave a tiny scoff and pulled out a single sheet which he handed directly to me. “I think I’m going to trust you with this more than ‘sputter and spaz’ over there…” As if to prove his point, Brian only could stumble through what was clearly supposed to be a retort… before giving up once again. “Yeah…” Ron then put his binder and the folder back in his backpack. “But study the map before you go and keep it safe. I keep it updated regularly and I have a copy, but that’s your best bet. And also… pay attention to the shift changes. If you don’t, you’ll be caught just as you leave the cabin tonight or whenever.” With a nod from both of us, without a scrap of judgement, Ron left. With the cabin now empty beside Brian and I, we poured over each and every detail Ron had managed to scratch into the sheet. Shift changes and cameras… point of views from windows and patches where shadows were most prominent at night. It was a perfect guide to the place, and on the back was something even better. A perfectly planned way out of camp via a singular trail right through the middle of the woods. “This is it!” Brian finally managed to burst out after looking at the map and tracing the route out of Claw Woods to the other side. “This is what we need to…” “To escape this wretched place, huh?” a chilling and deeper voice sounded out from behind us. Both of us turned and our mouths nearly fell open in shock. “What? So surprised to see me here?” Dwayne asked, now already sporting a new uniform with purple stripes on it… a question we could only nod to. “Well, don’t be. That stupid Mrs. Galen rechecked her results from yesterday, and boom… now I’m here.” “W… welcome…” I managed to spill out. I knew with Leo’s request last night, Dwayne would be with us, but if this failed, I at least had the good hope that we could come back to a place without Dwayne in it. Now, those hopes seemed dashed before they could even begin. Meanwhile, Brian stood motionless and as silent as the grave. While Dwayne had said something evil-hearted and nasty things to me, due to Brian’s slip under 18 before him and his mild nature, plus not being Leo, Dwayne had practically become a bully to him when he left. Now, it was clear that the hatchet hadn’t been buried yet between the two. True to his nature, Dwayne scoffed. “Save it. I know we weren’t best of pals, but now… that doesn’t matter. Tonight, we’re getting out. So, come on. Lunch is already started and I’m not going to miss it because of you two.” We both nodded and I carefully slid the map into my own backpack before scurrying out with both Brian and now Dwayne. And much to my dismay, as soon as Dwayne met back up with Leo, it was all smiles and open-armed hugs. Within minutes, Dwayne had ingratiated himself amongst the new populace. Only Brian and I didn’t seem amused at his return. *              *              * That night, just as we had planned during lunch, the four of us soon crept out of purple cabin. Looking outside the window, from the map that Ron had given us, the one staff member patrolling the perimeter of the cabins took at least a few minutes to pause on the far side of them. Add in a few minutes from him pacing the sides of the long structures and we had our window. Sammy joined us as well. Blue cabin was just right next door and unlike red and yellow, monitoring of the cabin was kept to a minimum. Apparently, the biggest worry he had was if one of his fellow campers had a nightmare… apparently a commonality with some as they regressed. And as if to emphasize the wide differences between purple and blue, we were all nearly stunned into motionless silence as Sammy approached. “What. Is. That?” Dwayne finally spat out in questioning, his tan and bony finger pointing to the object that Sammy was now carrying with him. “Oh. This?” Sammy looked down and held up the object like it was practically a trophy. Leo didn’t take it as such. “Yes. That.” Sammy smirked. “It’s Hubert… he’s a backpack.” As if to prove the giant teddy bear was more than just the stuffed animal we all saw him as, Sammy tipped him over and showed both the straps on one side and the zipper on his front. “Needed a way to transport things, and besides… if we’re caught, I can play dumb with this thing.” “Play dumb?” Dwayne asked, clearly trying to belittle our friend. “Hey,” I interjected, trying to defend Sammy. Yes, a teddy bear was strange, but at this point I truly didn’t care. All I cared about was the map and the fact that it noted that in less than a minute, a staff member would be back here. “Save it for later. We need to get out of here.” Everyone nodded and we all trotted off. Just in case, we had all agreed to memorize the map while we were at Havenswood… or at least the major directions we needed to take to get out of here. Most important was the entrance. Once that was clear, the only other major sections were either detours or apparently well-marked with a signpost. “Here we are,” I noted, scrambling quick to the entrance of the trail. Getting here, we had to cross the large open field in front of the main building, dining hall, and the computer lab. “Are we really doing this?” I hated to ask, but looking ahead, it was hard not to remember the yellowish orbs I had seen twice now… or the larges scratch marks on the trees we had almost all seen earlier this morning. Plus, Mr. King and Mr. Nancy didn’t just bring guns for show last night… something was out there. But no one objected, and nodding, we all entered the woods with a jolt to our steps and a hope in our hearts for the possibility of freedom. With the world opening up more and more every day for ARs, it felt like we were missing out here. It seemed everyone had their own reason… but leaving this place was now our one and only goal. Gratefully, each of us had done our parts according to the plans we had laid out last night and again at breakfast this morning. Brian and I had snagged the map. Leo had bagged some food, and even Dwayne, despite our hatred of him, actually did his part and managed to bring a flashlight. And to tie it all together, Sammy had the various connections to ensure that each of us did our parts and got the items from the right people. Motivated and still mature but discreet as well. Now, navigating the trails, I stuck close by to the rest of the group. Every twig break and crunch of leaves caused my heart to race within my chest. I swore that every shadow that moved in the distance beyond the yellow beam of the flashlight was something ready to kill us. “Miles…” Brian called to me, his voice shaking and unhinged. I could already tell that he was going to have a problem. “Just another step in front of the other,” I reminded him. “Don’t focus on the woods. Focus on me.” Brian whimpered and raced up to me, almost bumping into my back. “But I thought I saw a pair of red ey…” “No.” I cut him off outright. I didn’t need another monster filling my head out in these woods. “Whatever you saw… it was just a trick. Nothing more.” “Will you two shut up back there?” Dwayne hissed at us from the front by Leo. “Quiet! All of you!” Sammy snapped, his fingers practically burying themselves now into Hubert. If I hadn’t known that he was a backpack… I would have sworn that Sammy was holding him more for comfort than anything else. “We need to keep moving. It’s at least six miles to the other side…” I didn’t need to hear that. I knew it was long, but over six miles of hiking in the pitch black with only a single flashlight to light our way in a forest called ‘Claw Woods’ was anything but fun. Additionally, signs listing ‘Warning! Exposure to Mist Still Possible Beyond This Point’ and ‘Beware the Trees!’ had me equally spooked. “Damn trees,” Leo cursed, batting another branch away from his head. “Should’ve brought a machete or an axe or a…” “They’re locked up,” Sammy noted. “The old group tried that. I was in charge of investigating. Had a week back then to plan… but everything was locked or held back by an alarm. It would just be time we don’t have that would only end in failure or one of us getting caught earlier.” “Still…” Leo whacked another pine branch from his face. “Dang it!” Despite Dwayne just arriving in purple cabin today, Leo was still the tallest. Skinnier and a pimple on his left cheek that popped up after last night… but still a force and a leader of our group. Step by step and tree by tree, we passed through the twisted path. Overhead, branches encircled the pathway like long claws reaching down to snatch us up. Shrieks and the groans of old growth beyond our sight echoed throughout and fluttering and what almost sounded like whispers drifted toward us. “Just the wind… just the wind…” Brian kept trying to tell himself. He was the consummate ‘scaredy cat’ of the group… even before the mist. Back before Orange Day, it just meant he was cautious and that led to few poor decisions. Problem is… he often made no decisions. “Keep it together,” I tried to encourage him, despite my own breathing slowly increasing with each minute that passed by as were surrounded in all sides apart from the narrow pathway we were currently on. “How much longer?” Dwayne asked a few minutes later, complaint clearly evident in his voice. “My feet are killing me!” I glanced down at the map in my hands. Despite being all hand drawn, Ron had a real knack for these things. Already, I had to flip the sheet over to look at the overall stretch of the camp and the mountains, lake, and forests beyond. Almost looking like an hourglass, the forest caved in on the west side to accommodate for the camp and Havenswood, and fortunately for us, it also caved in on the west side leading to the main road and route 72 West. But looking at the map with notations for distance, I saw the truth. “Shit… not even halfway.” I double-checked our position, and while it was hard to fully estimate considering the lack of alternative paths out of here, we still hadn’t come to the first major intersection. “We’re looking for a branch in the road. Should be soon… Once that happens, we should be a minute or so from the halfway point.” Everyone groaned, but sure enough, about ten minutes later, we all stopped at the fork in the road. “Okay… which way?” Leo asked after looking and failing to see a sign. “And why’s there no sign or blaze or anything like that?” “Fuck… did you get us lost, Miles?” Dwayne asked accusatorily. “No. I didn’t.” I knew I had to stand my ground but also show them my evidence. It was the same back at work, and it was a pain in my butt, but I understood it… at least back then. Today, I just didn’t have the energy to fight back. Curiously, despite my extra energy during the day, I felt doubly tired at night lately. Turning the map around, I pointed to where we were. “See here? Small little bypass… but this is where we have a choice to make.” “How so?” Sammy questioned. “I don’t remember having a choice to make when I looked at the map before. Something I didn’t see?” I nodded. “Probably just saw the two paths, but we have two directions here… but they end up in the same place.” I handed the map to Brian temporarily and bent my hands so that only the base of my palms and the tips of my fingers were touching each other. “It’s like this. We’re at the bottom by my palms, but… we can go left or right to end up back on the exact same path… like where my fingers meet back up.” “No differences?” Leo asked. I shook my head. “No… unfortunately not. That’s where the choice comes into play.” I took the map back and pointed to the notation on the side of the bypass that Ron had scribbled in. “We go left and the path is shorter but there’s a potential blockage… doesn’t say what exactly. It does note you might be able to go around… but it says all this is based off an overheard conversation and the date is marked… 30 April.” Considering it was already the end of May, that timestamp might have been already out of date.   “And the other?” Brian queried next. I nodded and pointed to the other path. “A little longer but no obstacles. It’s the bypass and there’s no notes. Just a straight shot.” “Oh, screw that!” Dwayne shook his head in disgust. “Shorter way all the way. I’m not going to be out here all night, and besides, we need to get through these woods as fast as possible and put as much distance as we can between us and the camp come morning. They catch us before we can speak to our lawyers and we’ll wind up right back at camp. We argue with the authorities before then and we can just be marked as losing our minds or whatever!” It was a compelling argument, and I could already see Brian and Sammy both hesitating. Leo sighed. “He’s right, Miles. I say we go left.” I looked out into the woods and saw their pure black state and was once again reminded of last night and the two yellow orbs I saw. Despite the advantage of the left, I shook my head. “No. Longer path. The left could be blocked and there’s no way I’m stepping into the woods to go around if they are.” “Agreed…” Brian said shakily. “I… I don’t want to be out here longer, but the woods…” He trailed off and I saw only fear in his eyes as he glanced behind him and the pitch-black hole that we had just come from. If one didn’t linger, the path looked almost like it had been swallowed up by the nothingness that remained. “Then we split up,” Sammy suggested. “Map shows it’s only a hundred yards or so at most.” He reached into his bag and pulled out another flashlight. Older and smaller, but he clicked it on to confirm it still worked. “You all go right… we go left. Whoever gets to the end first… they stop for five minutes.” Dwayne snarled. “We stop and…?” “Yes,” Sammy emphasized, staring at him as if he was about to punch or smack him in the face. “We do this together. After five minutes, we call out. Should be able to hear each other at that point.” I nodded. “Agreed.” I then sighed and took the flashlight before heading off to the right. “Good luck…” Leo and Dwayne were already disappearing behind the trees on the path. Sammy sighed and looked back at us one last time. “Same to you all…” In a moment, he disappeared as well. Sighing and hating that the party split up, I continually encouraged Brian to follow along. I was at least grateful for the flashlight, though I did curse myself that only two were brought. Personally, out here especially, more than one felt like a necessity. ‘Maybe next time… if this doesn’t work…’ I knew I shouldn’t have been so negative on myself, but with each step forward, I began to feel an unearthly presence shift in the woods. I wanted to play it off as purely my imagination. Split-up. Only the two of us. Multiple ghost and monster stories around a campfire several times a week. And the two orbs. It was a lot. And all those things haunted my dreams and my waking hours. I had half a mind to question Ms. Peachy about them or if anything else could produce something so vibrant and bone-chilling out here at night… but my nerves always got to me before I could. But now… I desperately wished I had. It would have at least been one thing I didn’t have to worry about anymore. But I didn’t. So, each cracked branch… each scratch along the bark… each gnarled and nobbled tree that bent over like it was twisted by Satan himself, made my stomach lurched. A creak here and a groan there, Brian shot to my arm and clung for dear life. “What was that?” he asked me, his breathing just as labored as it had been the night before when he ran into the tent from whatever was out there then. “I don’t know… just keep moving.” One of us had to be strong. One of us had to keep a clear mind and keep pressing forward. And, with any luck, within a few minutes would be reunited with our friends and be over halfway through the woods tonight. It had seemed so far-fetched… more like a dream really, but we were doing it. But the noises persisted in the dark. Snapped twigs turned into broken branches and the thuds of splitting logs falling away after being broken in two. The thumps of something out there… looming and steady and heavy pushing through the vines and the dense thicket of the forest. Something breathing… soft but deep. Distant still but there by us all the time now. I looked up and the path seemed to stretch forever before us. “Dang it,” I cursed, stopping and looking back down at the map. “It shouldn’t be taking us this long.” I sighed and found where we were where the path twisted back to the left to eventually meet back up with the left path within twenty or thirty yards now… or at least that’s what I guessed. To be sure though, I kept my eyes down on the map.   “Miles…” Brian pestered me, shaking my shoulder, something fearful biting at his voice now. “Hold on,” I said, still trying to remain calm and get us out of here without getting turned around. The sooner we were back with the others, the better. Besides, Brian had been panicked almost from the start… so I blew him off for a moment. Whatever he wanted could last another minute. “But Miles…” Brian called to me again, shaking me more abruptly like he had to pee or vomit or something. “What?” I practically spat at my friend, my fear, my tiredness, and my impatience with these woods starting to catch up with me. His hand slowly raised as his other hand clung to me in sheer terror, his whole body “Look…” So, I did. Two big yellow orbs… and a single blink was looking right back at us… the form of something large behind both. My stomach twisted. I could feel my soul leave my body and my heart plummet to the floor in horror. It was real. The monster of legend… the Ghoulmoth was really real and now it was staring right back at me… breathing and blinking and growling. It seemed upset… angry… hungry. I only had one thought on my mind and my lips. “Run!” Brian didn’t need a second to process my command, and we both high-tailed it out of there. Behind us, the growling turned into roars that shook the very forest floor. The branches around us moved like talons descending in on us or like the crushing prison bars of a cage set on capturing us for a monster’s dinner. More branches cracked… snapped in two by the monster’s weight. More breathing… roaring. Ten seconds later, I saw the moving flashlight from the other branch of the pathway… followed by three mortified and confused faces. “Miles?” Sammy questioned, Hubert now clinging to him like it was his only safety net in a pitched sea in the middle of a violent storm. “What’s…?” A deathly, mountainous roar echoed from behind us… seemingly closer and gaining. “Run!” I yelled. I didn’t even stop that time to see if they understood or even if they were running. I just ran and ran and ran. My heart pulsed rapidly and I felt faint, but my limbs propelled me forward. Fear and adrenaline pumped through me and I didn’t look back. Fearing what I might see, I couldn’t.   

For reasons known only unto my deranged psyche, pee dreams are “back” this week.  Somebody asked about them somewhere on the forums.  Perhaps my response was some cue.  On such pee dream springs to mind as I could recall it so vividly. In it, I’d travelled to another city interstate on a business trip: something I haven’t done now for six long years.  I suspect it was some kind of corporate staff meeting as we were staying in a rather complicated set of inter-connected villas and all of the common areas were infested with plague proportions of colleagues. I hated those corporate staff offsite events.  They were designed largely to stroke the fragile little egos of the sales force (of which I was not a part) and invariably seemed to finish up with excruciatingly bad drunken karaoke at midnight on day #1 and endless powerpoint slides viewed through hangovers on day 2 before a red-eye flight home. Strangely, my beloved was with me (this almost NEVER happened in real life).  I was dimly aware that it was a two bedroom villa and my beloved became very cross when a co-worker took up residence in the other bedroom.  I wasn’t so bothered.  It wasn’t as though it was a shared hotel room (which I’d eventually drawn the line at subjecting myself to).  Shared multi-bedroom units happened (depending on location) at these events sometimes and since every bedroom had a private bathroom and was pretty much self-enclosed, I didn’t mind. The bigger problem I had was managing my nappy use to remain within my budget of nappies that dominated my suitcase.  That was real enough.  I can recall numerous corporate travel trips where I was the only guy with a suitcase for the 3 night trip.  It was full of nappies. I’d gone to the bathroom to change out of my night nappy before enduring a day of PowerPoint torture and too many conference mints.  My beloved would presumably spend the day sightseeing in the exotic locale to which my employer had flown us but provided zero scope in the agenda to allow us to see for ourselves (this DID actually happen in real life with depressing regularity). Mid-change, transiently pants-and-nappy free at the sink I suddenly realised I was about to pee.  Now.  I hadn’t even got as far as turning on the tap: the usual cue for pee these days. Looking before me I realised the sink was filled with some socks and t-shirts that I was probably planning on washing there (this did NOT happen in real life).  For some ineffable piece of dream logic, instead of just allowing myself to pee in the sink (given the urgency of the situation), I grabbed that washing and held it against myself like a nappy.  It NEVER occurred to me to find a toilet (which logically, must have been close by) but I was aware that I did not wish to start my working day in a nappy that was already wet so I used the resources that came to hand. Immediately I felt the unmistakable sensory signature of cloth padding getting wet at my crotch. There was too much pee.  I thought there was only going to be a couple of drops but no. I tried to clench off the flow.  Just as in real life these days, my efforts did make the stream falter but it would not stop.  After its stumble at my clench it immediately resumed as strong as ever. Accepting my fate I gave up, pushed the wad of clothing closer to my crotch and felt it go from “warm” to “sodden and warm” around me whilst I waited for things to finish.  There was far more pee than I anticipated but at least it remained at my crotch.  My legs (and presumably the floor) remained mercifully dry.  Now I really DID have to wash the socks and t-shirt that had been inexplicably stored in the sink. I remembered this the next morning when I awoke to find myself in an unusually wet terry towel night nappy.  I had the warm-bird-bath thing going on under my bum.  It was obvious that the dream was explaining a nocturnal nappy wetting that I didn't much wake up for. I’ve mentioned before that at some point in the recent past, the daily reality of exclusively wearing (and peeing in) nappies has finally permeated my dreams.  I no longer dream about peeing in gardens or toilets when sleep wetting.  I’ve started dreaming about wetting my nappies (or sometimes oddly, the bed).  Except it’s not always just a dream.

Gosh, does oznl mean me?  I think he must.  I'd better chip in my tuppence then. Firstly, I'm relatively quiet these days because my AB/nappy activities have settled down to a stable lifestyle with little new to report. Yes, I'm permanently in cloth nappies, with some exceptions such as holidays and longer walks, when I need to be in disposables. Secondly, yes I did put my AB side into the closet for 20 years to raise a family, and I did it willingly.  It was worth it to avoid my wife worrying it could affect the kids. And I always knew things would have to change when the kids left home. My wife knew I was an AB from the outset, but I still had to play the long game to get to her accepting my 24/7 nappy wearing. We got there though, and it works well for both of us now. Mistakes?  Actually, not really. Incidents along the way, of course.  Regrets, none. OK, down to giving my response to nappybum's questions, with your leave assumed, oznl: Probably about 10 4ft terry squares, and maybe 8 velcro-fastening washables from Dotty Diapers. I've also got about 20 terry soakers 20 inches square that I fold into thirds. Typically I'll use 3 of these in the day, & a couple at night. I try to use just 2 nappies per 24 hours. I tend to wear the Dotty nappies in the winter months during the day, and terry in the day in the summer months. Nights are all in terry. I'm normally rotating 5 nappies: washing every other day. I never use powder.  Sudocrem for a day or two after I've shaved down there to hold off nappy rash, but only sparingly. The Chinese/butterfly fold works well for me, and it's all I ever use. I fasten them with a Snappi at the waist and a pin at each thigh. Similarly to oznl really. Every morning it's just before my shower, on the toilet, and I usually operate pretty regularly. I've had some close calls, as I don't have the level of control I used to have. I don't relish the clean-up so generally avoid it. I just wanted the lack of control of my toilet functions, to go back to being as helpless as a baby. As far as I'm aware I've little control of my wetting these days, but then I haven't made any attempt to control it for a few years now. And I love wearing a nappy too.  And plastic pants, for that matter. Yep.  If you're sure you want it, and it sounds like you do, go for it, take your partner along with you all the way, and never look back.  Who dares wets.