Crossing Worlds

Soft chimes sounded, and the worker glared at Emily and Hannah. “Ohh! That means circle time! Come on, you two, everyone in the circle!” she said, holding a hand to either girl.

Hannah, unsure what else to do, accepted the hand, letting herself be pulled to her feet and dragged along. They were led to the reading area; the circle's center contained a soft, colorful rug, where Littles sat cross-legged around it. On the wall behind the circle was a colorful bulletin board containing a rough outline of the schedule for the day. It included circle time, snack time, recess, playtime, and more that probably had more meaning to a worker than it did to Hannah. They didn’t list detailed activities, instead listing broad concepts such as “Music and Movement” or “Quiet Transition Time.” 

The worker let go of Hannah’s hand, allowing her and Emily to sit near the back as the rest of the students assembled in the reading area. Workers seemed to be corralling students from all corners of the room, eventually landing each around the nook, entrapping the students. 

Miss Lilly stepped to the front of the circle with a big smile, “Alrighty, class, welcome in! Let’s kick off with our welcome song!” she said, a playful, upbeat song beginning to play as she and the rest of the students started singing.

The entire experience caught Hannah off guard as all around her; Little began singing; some, like her, did not, but most did. The words were simple, a repetitive song, and it only took Hannah a few moments to know them.

“Welcome, welcome everyone,

We’re so glad you’ve joined the fun!

Look around, and you will see,

All your friends are as happy as can be!

Welcome, welcome, everyone,

Let’s all play and have some fun!”

The entire experience was unnerving; each daycare worker clapped and sang along, surrounding the students. They repeated the short song several times until the music ended, and Miss Lilly began speaking again. “We have a few newcomers. Will you please stand up so we can greet you?” she asked.

Hannah immediately glanced at Emily, who glanced at her; neither of them wanted to be singled out like this. Around them, a few other students stood, Miss Lilly indicating them and telling the class their names before the entire class would respond. 

Hannah felt several workers staring at her and Emily. She sighed and stood. “Welcome, Hannah and Emily, everyone!” Miss Lilly said, motioning towards her and Emily.

“Hi, Hannah and Emily.” The class responded. 

With that, the girls were permitted to sit again. Hannah smoothed out her skirts, maintaining decorum despite the odd circumstances. “Today's theme is royalty!” Miss Lilly continued. Today, everyone is a Prince or a Princess. Isn’t that exciting? Who would like to volunteer to be my prince and princess for story time?”

Miss Lilly immediately got several volunteers, to which she picked a boy and a girl. Both stood and joined her at the front, on either side of her. She motioned for the two to stand in the open space behind her as she took a position at the side of the reading nook. Hannah watched curiously; she wasn’t sure what was happening, but it was about a story. Were the two supposed to act out what was happening? 

The lights dimmed as Miss Lily began, “There once was a princess, locked high up in a tower, a beautiful princess; it was said she could make flowers bloom with just a single suckle of her pacifier.”

Immediately, a tower seemed to rise from the floor, or the floor seemed to disappear beneath the girl. Hannah watched in amazement as her perspective seemed to shift; she was looking up at the girl in the tower, so high above them, dressed now in a beautiful pink dress with flowing petticoats and a small gold crown upon her head. The girl had a lovely pink and gold pacifier in her mouth, the intricate green vines around her sprouting with gorgeous flowers as she nursed it. 

“There was a curse upon the princess, however, that left her unable to leave the tower until she was saved by a handsome young prince who would bring her into his family, her caregiver locking her away until a new family was found.” Miss Lilly continued.

Hannah watched, slack-jawed, as she saw a woman appear behind the girl, an Amazon woman. “Day in and day out, the princess was cared for by her caregiver, changing her diapers, feeding her, until one fateful day, a prince arrived.”

Hannah watched as the boy volunteered, now dressed in a regal-looking outfit, shiny brass buttons adorning the coat, a long flowing cape trailing behind him, and a gold crown upon his head. The boy was riding a fake horse, a fake one, a toy horse designed for kids to ride. He stopped beneath the tower, gazing up at the princess.

“My prince!” The princess called to him, “Have you come to rescue me? To free me from this curse?”

“I have my princess! My Mommy and Daddy are loving and in dire need of a daughter. Will you fill that role?” The boy responded in kind.

“Yes, my prince! I will!” The girl responded, a smile on her face.

“My princess, my Mommy, and Daddy want a baby; they want someone who loves to use and fill her diapers as much as she will love them.” The prince responded.

“I am such a princess!” the princess responded, “I’ve trained since my youth always to love and fill my diapers for my caregivers.”

“She must also love nursing her pacifiers and bottles and playing with baby toys!” The prince called again.

“I am such a princess! I love my pacifiers, my bottles, and baby toys!” She cried back.

“Lastly, she must always want to be a good girl for her parents, to obey them and do as she is told!” The prince added.

“I vow to be a good girl for my parents, to listen to and obey them, " the princess said.

“And at last, the curse was broken!” Miss Lilly continued.

The tower seemed to shrink until the girl and boy were level with one another, the tower returning to the ground. The princess took the prince’s hand, climbed onto the horse behind him, and both walked off stage. 

The lights lifted, and the crowd of Little’s sitting around Hannah erupted into excited clapping as Miss Lilly took her spot at the front of the circle again, motioning towards the boy and girl whose outfits had suddenly returned to normal, and the crowd clapped even louder. 

“Alright, everyone, it’s snack time!” Miss Lilly said, clapping her hands as the other workers began to disperse. 

Students began being corralled toward the small seating area for meals, the small plastic seats and tables accommodating Hannah and Emily with ease. The two girls took an empty table towards the back, and a worker swiftly deposited a small sectioned tray in front of each girl along with a bottle. The tray held small cheese cubes, some fruit cut into cubes, and crackers. The bottle contained a dark purple liquid that tasted like mixed berries, sweet and tangy.

Not knowing what else to do, the girls ate quietly as the rest of the students were settled and fed. Hannah felt a growing pressure in her bladder and relaxed, letting it soak into her diaper as she ate. Much like the other bottles she had been given, this one was massive and had to contain well over a liter of liquid. 

As they ate, a girl was led over to their table and took a seat. She wore a short T-shirt and a thick diaper with nothing else, her hair done in pigtails as the worker plopped her down. She scowled at the departing worker, playing with the food before her, glancing at the two girls. Hannah recognized her from roll call; she was also new here. What was her name? Lizzy! That was it!

“You two trust the food they gave you?” she asked curiously.

Hannah raised an eyebrow, glancing at Emily, “Do we have much of a choice?” Hannah asked.

Lizzy sighed, “Probably not, I suppose. How long have you two been here? This world, I mean.” she still made no effort to eat any of her snacks, simply playing with them.

“Only a few days for me, and Emily’s been here for a few weeks,” Hannah responded, nodding towards Emily.

Lizzy nodded slowly, “Great, so I’m surrounded by locals and honeymooners.” she said, waving a hand toward the two girls.

They shared a look, “Honeymooners?” Emily asked.

Lizzy grumbled something. “Yeah, littles who haven’t figured anything out yet are still enjoying life. I’m freaking 38 years old, bet you couldn’t tell. My Mommy keeps me on a very short leash, controlling everything about my day, my body; I don’t have a choice in just about anything.” Lizzy stopped her tirade, a worker having strayed nearby, “Ohh! Miss! Did you see the profile my Mommy put in? I have a rigorous diet I have to adhere to.”

The worker paused, pulling out a small phone, “Ahh, yes, Lizzy! That she did, and don’t worry, hun, your meal was catered especially for you.” she said, patting Lizzy’s head, “Eat up.” she added before moving on.

Lizzy seemed to deflate, grumbling something and finally sticking a piece of cheese in her mouth, grimacing, her bottle a frothy white liquid. “How long have you been here?” Hannah asked curiously.

Lizzy chuckled, “Good question, judging from the birthdays Mommy has thrown, at least 4.”

Four years?! Hannah gapped at the girl who had begrudgingly begun eating. What was it like to have been here for so long? Lizzy seemed to be expected, at least, from what Hannah would tell. “Wait, so you know the step-down program; what does it mean, and what does it do?” Emily asked excitedly. 

Lizzy chuckled, shaking her head, “You two have much to learn about this place. If I had known at some point, my Mommy would have removed those memories. She loves letting me keep my faculties about me; she enjoys the humiliation of treating me like a baby when I don’t act like it. She loves to make me suffer.”

“She wiped your memories?” Hannah asked hesitantly, earning her a sharp nod.

“I’ve gotten out several times, nearly escaped back home. She removed the memories of how I did it but left in the moments I was caught and taken back.” Lizzy visibly shuttered, “Ohh, that witch.” 

Lizzy’s reply only led to more questions; Hannah was about to ask when a worker stopped by, checking diapers. The worker's hands felt Hannah’s bum and crotch before commenting, “Such a good girl, wetting your diaper.” she said. 

Hannah flushed at the comment, her eyes glazing in bliss as the worker moved on to Lizzy. Lizzy only grunted when the worker praised her for a wet and poopy diaper, scooping the girl up and carrying her off to the changing table. 

“I think Lizzy had good intuition on the food, Hannah,” Emily said with a grimace, her hand on her tummy. “I gotta…” she groaned, and Hannah heard a fart, followed by a rush of stomach contents emptying themselves into the seat of Emily’s diaper.

Hannah groaned, not wanting the same experience, but she didn’t feel the need to go just yet. She stopped eating; however, she was suddenly nervous. That is, until a worker came over, “Finish your food, honey. Otherwise, we will help you.”

Hannah nodded softly, taking another bite to satiate the worker. She had no clue what the worker meant by ‘helping’ her finish, and she likely didn’t want to know. Thankfully, she got to find out. Hannah heard crying from several tables, “I don’t want a snack! I’m not hungry!” A boy screamed, arms crossed over his chest, and a stern-looking worker stood over him.

The worker shook his head, scooping the boy up, plopping him into a high chair, and strapping his arms and legs into place before locking the tray. The worker produced a pacifier, and despite the boy's attempts, it was forced into his mouth and locked in place.

The worker attached a hose, and a pale white liquid entered the pacifier, presumably into the boy's mouth. The boy, perhaps 26 or 27 by Hannah’s guess, thrashed, trying to toss the pacifier from his mouth, his thrashing growing less and less violent until he stopped altogether, sitting there, a dazed expression on his face as he nursed. The worker patted the boy's head with a grin, “Let’s see how you like a tranq bottle. There will not be much fighting for the rest of the day!” 

The Amazon worker chuckled as if it were the funniest joke before moving on to other Little’s. The students who had seen the drama immediately turned to finish their food, no one else putting up a fight for the rest of snack time. What kind of daycare forced its patrons to drink a spiked potion? More importantly, what was it doing to that boy? Hannah felt beyond nervous, and she wanted nothing more than to leave. That, however, was still a long, long day away.

End of Chapter 18