This is the next chapter done by the always wonderful  Omi They always do such an amazing job and they're just a joy to work with!! Thank you so much Ploosh!

Anyway, heres the story! Hope you enjoy!


Nephyr’s wrought-iron boots clanked against the decorative tiled floor as he entered the throne room. He presented his sheathed claymore to a royal servant; trusted subject or not, no one was allowed to have weapons in the presence of His Majesty save for his most elite generals and personal bodyguards. The peregrine falcon removed his steel helm, holding it beneath his wing, revealing his black-feathered, yellow-beaked face to his king as he kneeled before him.

“Knight Nephyr,” rumbled the grizzly bear, clad in red and purple robes, a splendorous golden crown inlaid with rubies and amethysts upon his head. “You have returned at last. Was your mission successful?”

The bird nodded, his head still bowed. He would not look into His Majesty’s eyes unless he was prompted to do so. “I…did…got…the…”

Whispering sounded from the royal handmaids and guards at the seemingly tongue-tied bird. The king grunted, tapping his long claws against the arm of his throne. “Speak up, Knight Nephyr. Are you injured?”

Nephyr cleared his throat, squinting as he tried to speak. “Not…and…with…” He curled his wings in frustration. Why couldn’t he talk?

His Majesty growled ominously. “You are testing my patience. Do not mumble in my presence. Were you able to rescue my daughter or not?”

The falcon nodded–or at least, he tried to. He could move his head up, but it wouldn’t go back down. It was as though it was stuck. “She…and…the…when…” He rubbed at his throat. What was going on? He felt so strange…

Before he could manage a sentence, a pair of hands grabbed at either of his wings and hauled him back up to his talons. The sudden, quick motion left him dizzy and woozy, and he closed his eyes as he regained his balance. When he opened them, he was no longer in His Majesty’s throne room. Instead, he was standing in a dressing room, looking at his reflection in the mirror. His lower beak dropped as he stared at himself, wide-eyed. His shining silver armor was gone, replaced by a long, flowing pink dress, filled to the brim with rows of ribbons and lace, covering his legs entirely. His wings were both enveloped by coverings that resembled gloves, as his limbs were different from that of other bipeds. His face was almost unrecognizable, covered with eyeshadow, liner, blush, and various other makeups that he couldn’t identify. Even the rim of his beak was painted with red lipstick. He was surrounded by four others as they dressed and doted on him, barking indecipherable orders at one another.

“You look beautiful, your highness,” cooed a badger as she straightened the breast of his dress.

“The kingdom is so relieved that you’ve come back to us safe and sound,” said a red-tailed hawk as she tied a ribbon around his waist.

“I…no…what…” Nephyr tried to protest what was happening. He wasn’t a princess! But he still couldn’t say any more than a few meaningless words at a time. Before he could try to speak again, a pacifier had been pushed into his beak, silencing him. As he contemplated this, a wide pink bonnet had been placed on his head and tied around his chin! He shook his head to try and get it off, and suddenly, the mirror and wall that he was facing had vanished. He was now standing on a balcony overlooking a massive castle courtyard. Jammed into the courtyard were hundreds…no, THOUSANDS of people, varied in all sorts of species, ages, gender, and size.

All their eyes were on him as they cheered and applauded.

They were all staring at him, the princess, in his puffy pink dress and girlish makeup.

Nephyr froze in terror, staring at the gathered crowd. He was the center of so much attention. They all knew who he was; a crossdressing boy, made to look like a frilly princess. One who had yet to outgrow his binkies and bonnets, no less! How could they not know? It was so obvious. He tried to spit out his pacifier, but the bulb was just too big to escape his beak. His wings were clumsy and sluggish thanks to their gloves as he tried to pull off his bonnet, to no avail. As he struggled and blushed profusely, he felt something warm below his waist, coupled with a feeling of something trickling down his legs. He looked down to see the front of his pretty dress growing dark, a puddle forming underneath him. The handmaidens had forgotten to put him in a diaper! He was the princess, he’d never had time to get potty-trained! He whimpered as he wet himself, trying to hide his accident with his wings as the crowd of people pointed at him and laughed…


Nephyr jolted as he woke up, making his adult-sized crib rattle. He looked around, panting, holding his blanket over his body to hide himself from the group of
onlookers, hugging Mordecai the Second, his plush bird, for protection. It took him several moments to realize that he’d been dreaming. He wasn’t a knight, nor was he a crossdressing princess. No, he was just a peregrine falcon.

One who was a delinquent, and was being punished by being forced to live as a big baby for the foreseeable future.

The falcon sighed, shaking as he wiped the sweat off his brow, trying to dispel the memory of his dream. It hadn’t been particularly frightening, just humiliating…but to him, the two were synonymous. He was trembling horribly, and was forcing back tears…even his comfort plush wasn’t enough help. After a moment, he caught sight of the purple pacifier he’d been given the previous night. It was terribly self-degrading, but if there was a chance that it’d help him calm down, then it was worth it. He popped the rubber nipple into his mouth, the tip of his beak poking into it as he suckled on the bulb, making himself take slow, deep, steady breaths as he leaned back against the bars of the crib, stretching his legs out.

As he did this, his talons pulled the blanket off of him, revealing the outfit he’d been put into last night. A pale pink onesie decorated all over with white clouds. It was perhaps one of the least embarrassing clothing choices that had been made for him in the last twenty-four hours. He sighed loudly. Everything that had happened to him had transpired over the course of a single day. How was he going to put up with weeks of this? Hopefully the first day was the hardest, and it was all downhill from here…he furrowed his brow, looking down at his crotch. He knew that the puffiness was a result of the overnight diaper he wore underneath it, but it seemed a bit too puffy. Blinking, he scissored his legs back and forth a few times, groaning at the squish that resulted. He had wet his diaper as he slept. That was the second time already! The stress that this punishment was putting on him was rearing its ugly face by taking away his bladder control whenever he fell asleep, furthering the humiliation he felt. This wetting had been sizable, too, and recent, judging by the fact that his diaper was still warm. At least it hadn’t leaked…if he was going to wet himself like a hatchling at night, it was a tiny bit more bearable if it all stayed in one place.

He turned his head as he heard the sound of the door to the room being unlocked. It must’ve been locked to ensure that the falcon couldn’t have staged an escape attempt–but he’d been too preoccupied with other thoughts to consider the possibility of running away. Maybe that should’ve been the first thing on his mind…he watched as the door opened and miss Evie walked in, smiling at him. The red-tailed hawk had appeared in his dream, but in the waking world she wore her familiar purple gown with a white apron rather than a maiden’s outfit. “Good morning, little one. Did you sleep well?”

“Knnda,” mumbled Nephyr. Realizing that he was still chewing on his pacifier, he quickly spit it out, though he kept hugging Mordecai. “Had a bad dream.”

“Aww, I’m very sorry about that, sweetheart,” cooed Evie pityingly as she walked over to his crib, undoing the latches to make the side retract in on itself. “Lots of babies have trouble sleeping when they first come here. Do you need to talk about your dream to help you feel better, honey?”

Nephyr shook his head quickly. Of all the dreams he’d had in his life, the one he’d just had was one he wanted to keep to himself the most. Well, that one and the one he’d had the previous day of his temporary preschool teacher…he shivered a little, pushing the memory away. “N-no thanks, miss Evie. It w-was no big deal. I’m ok.”

“As long as you’re sure, sweetheart. Can you stand up for mama, please?” Evie asked him, holding one of his wings in hers.

He nodded and gently set his plushie aside, shrugging off the strangeness of the title she’d used to refer to herself. It was just one of the oddities he’d have to get used to for the time being, he supposed. As he stood up and used her shoulders to balance himself, she gently spread his legs apart and started unbuttoning the crotch of his girly onesie. Had he been a little more awake, he would have likely put up something of a fight against this embarrassment. Instead, he just felt…small. The less he resisted, the quicker this would go by. Probably.

Once the snaps gave way, he could feel his diaper sag down, prompting the caretaker to click her tongue. “Goodness, you’re soaked! I’ll have to make a note to get you the extra absorbent diapers for bedtime. But there’s no harm done, your onesie and bedding are all dry. Let’s get you changed, sweetie.”

Taking his wing again, she helped him out of the crib and guided him over to the changing table. Nephyr didn’t say a word, though he felt his face heating up as he climbed onto the childish piece of furniture and lied down on his back. The thin mattress was a lot less comfortable than the crib had been, and it was covered with a loud sheet of plastic. He lied still and crossed his wings, staring at the wall to his left as Evie pulled up his onesie and undid the tapes of his diaper.

“Are you ok, little one?” she asked as she unfolded the soggy garment, exposing his nether regions to the world–or at least, that’s what it felt like to him. “You’re being awfully quiet. And you have a funny look on your face. Is there something bothering you?”

“Well, let’s see. I-I’m a twenty-one-year-old male avian who’s b-being forced to wear clothes that look like th-they’re designed for baby girls in mind. I-I wet myself like a hatchling last night, a-and I’m currently getting my diaper changed by an adult female. W-what is there to be bothered by, let alone feel absurdly awkward about?” Nephyr grumbled, feeling tears trickling down his cheeks. They betrayed the utter humiliation he felt, no matter how hard he tried to cover it up.

Evie gently stroked his belly, folding his diaper back up for a moment after wiping his lower areas a few times over, giving him a small amount of modesty as she spoke. “Nephyr. I understand your frustration. I was in a similar predicament myself, a few years ago.” She smiled as he turned to look at her. “I stole some stuff from a convenience store. Filled up an entire backpack. I didn’t get very far, of course. I wound up right here, to undergo the same punishment that you’re doing right now. I hated it at first, too.”

Nephyr blinked, listening to the hawk tell her story. “A-at first?”

She nodded, smiling patiently, still rubbing his tummy. “Yes. Over time, I grew to enjoy all of this. I know it sounds ridiculous to you, but hear me out. My time spent here sort of…awakened a side of me that I didn’t know I had. You saw how much fun your two friends, Jamie and Roger, were having yesterday. I’m just like them. I eventually ended up landing a job here once I got my name cleared. I’ve enjoyed every moment of it, even though I’m not the one being treated like an infant. Anyway, here’s the point I’m trying to make. Chances are, you don’t have any interest in being treated like this. You probably despise it entirely. But trust me, you’re going to have a terrible time if you try to go through all of this with frustration and hatred in your heart. My advice to you is that you at least try to enjoy it until you’re free. Make yourself believe that you’re having a fun time. Don’t think about what others will think about you. They’re opinions don’t matter. Shut them out, trick yourself into thinking that all of this is exactly what you want, and time will go by much faster than it would otherwise. And when you’ve finally served your sentence, you can just walk away, forget about everything that happened, and never have to worry about it ever again. Do you think you can do that for me, dearie?”

The falcon lied silently still for several more moments, his chest rising and falling as he took in the hawk’s words. Maybe there was some sense in what she was saying. But how was supposed to enjoy this detestable treatment? How could he make himself have fun?

Focus on the positives.

He sighed softly, closing his eyes. He tried to conjure up the few positive thoughts he’d had in the last twenty-four hours. The falcon had been in a world of embarrassment this entire time…but other than Craig, there’d not been a single person who’d poked a bit of fun at him. In fact, everyone had been very kind and nice to him, if not a little overbearing in Evie’s and Miss Garland’s cases. The clothes he was being made to wear were exaggeratedly feminine, but at least they were comfortable. His diapers were…well, diapers. But without them, he would’ve had two cases of soiled pants due to accidents while sleeping by now, which would’ve been far worse than the used nappies. The positives were few and far between, and they were often a stretch to get to. However, they were there. He just had to focus on them.

Opening his eyes, he nodded and managed a slight smile. “I can try. Thank you, miss Evie.”

Evie smiled back down at him, ruffling his head feathers and producing a second pacifier, colored white, and put it in his mouth. He didn’t spit it out; it was embarrassing, but not as much as the diaper change, which meant he had something else to concentrate on for the time being. He gnawed and suckled on the device, trying hard not to look down at his lower regions as Evie unfolded his diaper once more and continued cleaning him up with some cold wet wipes. She rolled the used wipes up in the wet diaper and put them all into a disposal pail nearby.

“Alright, sweetie, which of these do you want?” asked the hawk as she held up a pair of diapers, allowing them to unfold so he could see all of their details. Nephyr’s brief hope of having a chance of wearing something a bit less girly was quickly dashed as he looked at them. One was primarily white, decorated with yellow fade-when-wet crowns and rattles, and was emblazoned with the word “Princess” in very obvious, elegant lettering on the rear. The tapes and leakguards were both the same color as the text. The other diaper was a similar concept. However, this one was mostly bright pink, had stars and pacifiers rather than crowns and rattles, and read “Sissy” in a nearly identical font.

Nephyr gulped, feeling his face heating up again. Positives, the positives…he pointed at the princess diaper. It would be a constant, visceral reminder of his dream until he’d gotten it off–which entailed him eventually using it–but at least it stood out far less than his other choice with its subdued color scheme. Evie hummed softly as she slid the chosen diaper underneath his rear, stowing the other before dumping a fair amount of baby powder over his crotch and bum. After securing the slot for his tail feathers, she pulled the front of the diaper up and over, taping it shut around his waist. She moved with the confidence and precision that suggested she’d changed more than her fair share of diapers in the past.

“All done, sweetie! Such a good girl,” she praised, helping him off of the changing table. As soon as his talons touched the ground, his stomach let out a quiet rumble. It must’ve been just loud enough for Evie to hear, as she pounced on it almost immediately. “Is someone a hungry little hatchie?”

Nephyr’s beaktip almost pierced the rubber nipple of his pacifier as he nodded, trying to fight back his blush. Positives. Breakfast sounded great, and had a chance of improving his mood. Hopefully. “Yes, m-miss Evie. I am.”

“Well, I suppose getting dressed can wait until after breakfast. Come on, sweetie! Let’s go down the hall, I have a room ready and everything.” She gripped his wing and led him out of the room, his fresh diaper crinkling loudly underneath his open onesie.

Nephyr blinked, squinting as they stepped out into the bright hallway. He was worried for a moment about others seeing his garb, but quickly shook it off as he saw a few people in the hallway wearing similar attire, walking alongside their own caretakers. “A r-room? Whatchu mean, miss Evie? We aren’t going to the c-cafeteria again?”

“Normally we would, yes. But after what happened in there, I think you could use a little bit of one-on-one time with your mama. We don’t have a lot of time, since you need to be ready for preschool in a half hour, but something is better than nothing, yeah? Right in here, honey~” She opened a door for him and allowed him to enter first, ducking inside after him.

Nephyr furrowed his brow as he looked around at the new room. It was…very cozy. It was very similar to a living room, complete with a padded rocking chair, sofa, small entertainment set and television, and some lamps that would give off gentle lighting when sunlight wasn’t streaming in from the window. Of course, the bars behind the window ruined the illusion somewhat and reminded him that this was a sort of pseudo-prison, but he tried not to pay it too much mind.

“Come, sit on my lap, dearie,” Evie instructed, sitting down in the comfortable-looking chair. She grabbed a baby bottle full of milk off of the table next to it, and her intentions quickly became clear.

The falcon pouted, staring at the infantile cup. “D-does it have to be in a baby bottle? C-can’t I at least have it in a…I dunno, a-a sippy cup or something?”

Evie cocked an eyebrow and said nothing, but it was more than enough to get her point across. Stifling a grumble, Nephyr sat down in her lap, blushing as he positioned himself so that the back of his head was being supported by the hawk’s inner elbow. Positives. Well, he wasn’t particularly uncomfortable. Embarrassing though it was, he felt strangely safe, being so close to Evie. And he soon found out that the nipple of the bottle wasn’t at all unlike the nipple of the pacifier which, though he wouldn’t admit it aloud, he was already starting to grow rather fond of.

As he nursed on the bottle, drinking the chilled milk within, he watched out of the corner of his eye as his caretaker picked up a remote. Pressing a button, she turned on the television, which immediately caught his attention. Anything that could take his mind off the fact that he was drinking from a baby bottle would be a blessing right now. He watched Evie flip through the channels as he drank down the milk, scrolling past some interesting-looking morning programs before settling on a cartoon channel. Naturally. Why deviate from the theme now?

“Ooh, perfect! Here you go, sweetie, baby birds always love this show,” giggled Evie, adjusting the way she was holding the falcon so that he could more easily watch the show while he nursed. He furrowed his brow, staring at the colorful cartoon. The cast seemed to be entirely composed of bird characters, which was likely the reason for the hawk’s claim. He wanted to ask what the show was called, but the bottle was still being held in his beak, so all he could do was grunt and mumble softly and hope that Evie understood his question. “Oh, this show is called Top Wing, sweetie. It’s about a group of cute little birdies like you who go around and help others to try and earn their wings! That last bit is just an expression, though. They already have their normal wings.”

Nephyr couldn’t help but giggle a little, even though the joke was more than a little lackluster. He continued nursing as he watched the program. It was certainly different from the things he usually watched. The bright colors, loud noises, and slightly over-the-top voice acting commonplace in a children’s television show were a little nauseating, but not unbearably so. He rolled his eyes at the comparison of the characters to him. They were lucky; they weren’t being forced into diapers or dressed like sissy girls. Though one of the characters, a blue jay by the name of Swift, stuck out to him for some strange reason.

The falcon eventually became so immersed in the show–a fact that he wanted to blame on the lack of anything else to focus on–that he hadn’t realized he’d drank all of his milk until a soft hissing sound was produced by his suckling on the empty bottle’s nipple. He blinked as he returned to the present, opening his beak so that Evie could set the bottle aside.

“All finished! What a good girl, drinking all of her milk without a fuss,” she praised, using a handcloth to wipe at Nephyr’s beak. “Aw, I’ve enjoyed this snuggly time, but we’ve gotta get you ready for school. But don’t you worry, we have this television show on DVD somewhere in the facility, so you can watch some more later tonight! I can tell you like it, just like I knew you would~”

Nephyr blushed as the television turned off and he was ushered back onto his feet. He wanted to deny that he liked the show, but one, his protests would undoubtedly fall on deaf ears, and two, it wasn’t the full truth. Oriented towards a younger audience though the show was, it had been entertaining at the very least. It had kept him occupied and distracted long enough to the point where he’d lost track of time for a little while. That had to count for something. That and his new positive outlook led him to say, “S-sure, miss Evie. Th-that sounds nice.”

Evie nodded and giggled, ruffling his head feathers as he was led out of the room and further down the hall. As he was led into the dressing room from the previous night, he gulped as a thought occurred to him.

“M-miss Evie? I don’t have to go to preschool dressed as a girl, d-do I?” he whimpered, his tail feathers twitching.

To his great relief, the hawk shook her head. “Nope! That’s only going to be a thing while you’re here. That being said, you’ll have to wear some child-appropriate clothing, but it’ll be boy’s clothing.”

Nephyr let out a little sigh, glad to hear that he wouldn’t have to dress like a girl in front of his classmates. It was bad enough that they all knew he wore and used diapers–albeit temporarily, but they probably hadn’t put that together yet–and he didn’t know how he’d cope with them thinking he was actually a girl. They entered the dressing room, and though it was bustling with others getting ready for the day, Evie had reserved a booth just for him. He was led inside, and once the door was locked behind them, he was helped out of his onesie and left to stand in his girly diaper for a moment while Evie prepared his outfit for him.

“You’re a pretty smart baby, so I have a feeling you’re going to detect a theme here in just a moment…” Evie giggled a little, taking a bright blue shirt off of its hanger. Nephyr blinked as she turned it around, revealing the design on the front of it. It was emblazoned with none other than a very familiar logo; an upside-down navy-blue triangle, with the words “Top” in yellow and “Wing” in orange plastered atop it. A stylized yellow chick was shown flying underneath the emblem.

He flexed his talons, wincing as they scraped against the tiled floor a little. “Y-yeah, I can definitely s-see a theme.”

His caretaker smiled as she pulled the shirt over his head. It was just a touch too tight, making it appear even more like he was wearing a hatchling’s clothes. “Mm-hmm~! Princess by night, junior cadet by day!” She held a pair of khaki shorts open for him, much like the ones he’d worn the previous day. He stepped into them and they were pulled up over his girly diaper, the button and zipper fastened. The mirror on the wall showed him that the shorts did very little to conceal the fact that he was wearing the puffy garment underneath. There was a clear outline of the nappy bulging through his pants, and no matter what he did, he just couldn’t quite use the hem of his shirt to cover up the crinkly waistband.

He sighed, trying to preemptively calm himself before he got all worked up. This wasn’t as big a deal as it seemed. Miss Evie was going to bring him to Craig, his temporary guardian who knew full well of his plight. He was going to drive him to his preschool class; Miss Garland and his young classmates also knew of his situation. And when the school day was over and done with, he was going to be brought right back here. Therefore, no one was going to see him who wasn’t already aware that he was being treated like an overgrown hatchling.

With all that in mind, Nephyr tried to put on a confident face as he followed Evie out of the dressing area and towards the reception room, where Craig would be waiting. There was no way that today could be nearly as bad as yesterday.



“Alright, everyone! Line up for diaper checks and go potty if you need to, then it’s time to get on the bus for the field trip!”

So, perhaps there was a way that it could be worse.

Nephyr whimpered as he watched Miss Garland move down the line of toddlers, giving them each a diaper check. He was standing at the very end with clasped his wings together in front of him, rubbing them nervously, all traces of his confidence from an hour or so ago gone. He’d completely forgotten how the badger had told them yesterday that there was a field trip planned for today, at a nearby research aquarium. With everything that had been happening to him, this crucial piece of information had completely slipped his mind–or perhaps he’d shut it out like a traumatic memory. If only he could do the same at will for the rest of this madness…

Miss Garland smiled at him once she reached him, gently moving his wings aside so that she could pull back the waistbands of his shorts and diaper to peer inside. He twitched his tail feathers nervously before he realized that she wouldn’t be able to see the embarrassing design on the garment with the way she was checking him. She turned him around so that she could do the same with his rear end. “Clean and dry, good boy! Though I noticed yesterday that you have a habit of making a scene when you use your diapers, so I suppose that I would know if you had used it already.” She giggled when he pouted, rubbing his shoulder. “Just teasing! It’s okay to feel embarrassed about things, honey. Promise you’ll be on your best behavior and not make any fusses at the aquarium?”

Unbelievably, this second statement only served to deepen his pout. Despite this, Nephyr nodded, trying to fix his shorts and ignore the rustling coming from underneath. “Y-yes, Miss Garland, I promise.”

“Good! Okay, everyone listen up. This is important…”

The falcon tuned her out after a moment as she spoke to the kids, now that everyone had returned from their bathroom breaks. She was just telling everyone basic safety instructions, how everyone should stay in the group and not stray too far, how they should behave in public, and other things that were simply second nature to him. If only he’d had the choice to opt out of this in exchange for staying at that nursery all day long. Of course, that wasn’t going to happen, because that was another one of the themes of his punishment. He got about as much say in these matters as any of the children around him.

Once the teacher had finished her speech, she led everyone out of the room in single file, exiting the building and heading for the area where Nephyr had been dropped off earlier. Waiting there was a compact yellow school bus, about half the size of the standard ones. Just big enough to seat a small preschool class and two adults.

Well, an adult and a half.

Nephyr tried hard not to make eye contact with the Rottweiler bus driver as he stepped onto the bus, acutely aware of how he looked in his attire and how clear it was that he was wearing a diaper. As luck would have it, he had to stand right next to her for a few minutes as Miss Garland helped secure all of the preschoolers in car seats. She didn’t say anything to him, but he caught her casting glances at him a few times.

Eventually, the badger guided the last remaining toddler to his seat. Nephyr took a step forward, his eyes on one of the unoccupied seats in the back–

“Oop, wait just a moment please, Nephyr,” Miss Garland said, smiling over her shoulder at him as she got the tiger cub situated.

The falcon furrowed his brow, stopping midstep. “I-I can seat myself, Miss Garland, r-really. I’ll make sure to f-fasten my seatbelt and everything.” It was a blow on his pride to say this, especially with an adult stranger so close to him.

“These car seats can be a bit tricky though,” the badger replied, straightening up and gesturing at him, leading him towards the back of the short bus. Nephyr followed, confused. What did the car seats have to do with him…? He quickly found his answer. The seat he’d been looking at wasn’t as unoccupied as he’d thought. Upon it was a booster seat much like the ones the children were using, though it lacked a backrest. The platform was obviously intended for younger occupants, but it looked to be just the right size for him to squeeze into.

Nephyr blanched, taking a reflexive step back as Miss Garland patted the booster and looked at him pointedly. “I-I…I don’t want…can’t I sit in o-one of the normal…”

The falcon sighed softly at the teacher’s resolute expression. Submitting to her whim, he stepped past her and took his seat, his rustling garment providing a pillow for his hind end. He put his small red backpack at his feet and sat back, allowing Miss Garland to fasten his seatbelt for him, the strap going through a loop in between his legs to make sure he wouldn’t slip out of the seat. He winced a little as the belt pressed against his belly, making him feel the effects of his bottle from earlier that morning. Unless he could somehow slip away from the group and use the bathroom properly while avoiding detection, he already knew that his diaper wouldn’t be dry by the end of this.

The badger patted him on the head after making sure he was safe and secure, then left to take her own seat at the front of the bus. Nephyr licked the rim of his beak, silently pitying himself and his current situation. He jumped a little as the bus backfired loudly before pulling away from the curb, the rumbling engine deafening only for a moment as the vehicle started moving. Trying his best to relax, he leaned against the blue, cushioned bus seat as he kicked his legs back and forth. Thanks to his booster seat, his talons couldn’t actually reach the floor unless he tried really hard to stretch, in which case the loop of his seatbelt would push against his crotch rather unpleasantly. It was a strange sensation, his legs left to swing around with the movement of the bus rather than being able to rest on the ground. It reminded him of when he actually was a hatchling in elementary school.

It was strange how history was repeating itself.

“Are you okie, mishter Neffy?”

Nephyr looked to his left. Across the aisle in the seat nearest to him was a blue and gray fox. Her name was Princess, and she’d seemed to have taken a liking to him the previous day. “Uh…y-yeah, I’m ok, th-thanks.”

“You dun look okie,” the vixen stated bluntly, hugging her fluffy tail against her belly. “Are you shtill embarrassed abou’ your diapees an’ shtuff?”

The falcon rubbed his wings together, trying to stop his eye from twitching. “I mean…y-yeah, I kinda am. It’s not s-something that I can just forget, y’know?” He tried to keep his voice down so that the conversation wasn’t heard by the adults up front.

Princess blinked, her blue eyes sparkling. “I dunno. I always forget abou’ my diapees until I need ta get changed. Dat’s part of why I’m still not potty twained.”

Nephyr managed a little smile. The girl’s innocence was charming, and it helped to distract him at least a little bit from his musings. “Don’t worry, Princess. Y-you’ll get there eventually, trust me. We all do.”

“Did you?”

The falcon made an are-you-kidding-me face, his tail feathers twitching. So much for being cute and charming. But she was just a kid who didn’t know any better, so there was no point in getting annoyed with her. At least, not outwardly. “Ah…y-yeah, I did. I th-think I was…three and a h-half or so when I got toilet trained.”

“So why do you hafta wear diapees still?”

Nephyr furrowed his brow. Hadn’t he explained that to the kids yesterday? It was one of the first things Miss Garland had made him do upon arrival to her classroom. Or had he not gotten that far? “I-it’s part of my punishment for breaking the law. W-while I’m doing all this p-preschool stuff, I have to wear d-diapers, too.”

“So…da police are makin’ you wear diapees?”

The falcon chuckled. “Um…not exactly. It’s kinda a long s-story. The p-people who came up with my punishment–n-not the police–said that since I w-wanted to behave like a baby, I s-should dress and do the same th-things they do, too.”

“Hey! I’m notta baby!” Princess yipped, pouting and crossing her arms. “I’s four years old!”

“S-sorry, Princess, I didn’t mean it like that,” Nephyr assured her quickly. “Um…I-I suppose I meant toddler, n-not baby.”

The vixen nodded, seeming satisfied as she stretched in her seat, making herself more comfortable. “I can’t wait ‘til we get to da aquamamarium! I wanna see da dolphins! What do you wanna see, mister Neffy?”

He blinked at the sudden topic change, but decided that it might be for the better. “Hm…I-I hope we see some lionfish. They’re really p-pretty.”

“Lionfish? That’s a fing?” Princess echoed, tilting her head, undoubtedly conjuring up pictures of lions with fins in her mind.

“Y-yup. Th-they’re these pretty white and red f-fish, but they’re really dangerous. They have a bunch of s-spines on their back that are super poisonous. S-so you shouldn’t touch them, or you could really get hurt. Oh, d-don’t worry,” he added quickly as he saw the fox’s eyes widen with fright. “They’ll all be in g-glass tanks, so they won’t be able to h-hurt you.”

“They still sound scawy,” she said, hugging her tail tighter. “Will you stay cwose to me pwease while we look at dem, mister Neffy?”

Nephyr blinked, flexing his talons. “Uh…y-yeah, I can do that, sure.”

The vixen smiled, looking content with his answer. Despite her astute observations of his garb, she still seemed aware that he was an normal, average adult rather than an overly large child, even though he couldn’t entirely stop himself from acting the way he looked. Sure, it wasn’t exactly a wild conclusion to come to, but children tended to call things the way they saw it; that Princess saw him as an adult brought him some semblance of solace.

The falcon grunted as the bus hit a bump in the road, causing the seatbelt to press harder against his stomach. He briefly lost control of his bladder, signaled by a warm spot materializing in the front of his diaper, but he was quick to regain his hold over his bodily functions. He tried to remain inconspicuous as he crossed his legs, not letting his desperation show on his face. The need for relief was even greater now, but he was determined to hold it for as long as he possibly could without giving in…

He furrowed his brow, looking down at the diaper peeking out from his shorts. What good was holding it going to do, exactly? He already knew that his hopes of sneaking away to use a bathroom at the aquarium were far-reaching and unrealistic. Miss Garland was determined to do her job of not letting him use the bathroom properly. Trying to hold back his urine would inevitably result in him making a scene. He could picture it now; him, shifting his weight from talon to talon as they all looked at marine exhibits. The teacher noticing and drawing attention to him. The unavoidable, consequential humiliation he’d feel once his bladder failed while everyone was watching him. And there was always the threat of his diaper leaking from trying to hold too much. No…it’d be best to just get it over with here and now. It would be much less embarrassing to do it of his own accord without an audience, even if it meant wearing a wet diaper for some unknown amount of time. He’d just get Miss Garland’s attention whenever possible so she could change him while hopefully maintaining some level of discretion.

Nephyr sighed quietly and nodded, allowing his legs to uncross as he leaned back in his seat, trying to relax himself. He concentrated on the thumbs of his wings to avoid accidentally making eye contact with one of the adults in the front of the bus, conjuring up thoughts of using the toilet as he started to push. It only took a moment for his bladder to happily accept the relief he was bestowing upon it, and the little warm spot in his diaper rapidly began to expand, spreading across the entire front of his crotch. He glanced sideways to make sure Princess wasn’t watching. It wasn’t as though she had x-ray vision, but sometimes little kids had an uncanny way of knowing exactly what you were doing. However, she was occupied with tracing her finger on the seat in front of her, giving him enough privacy to wet himself without feeling totally uncomfortable.

In fact, it was far from uncomfortable. The absorbent padding of his diaper swelled and expanded as he peed in it, accentuating the pillowy feeling of it as the hot liquid trickled underneath his rear when the front could hold little more. He subtly adjusted the way he was sitting, trying to get more of it to flow back there. Coupled with the general sensation of erasing the pressure on his bladder, the entire thing felt…rather nice. Nephyr groaned a little, closing his eyes. There was no denying it, no matter how much he wanted to. He was enjoying having an accident in his diaper. On the surface, he felt repulsion and disgust, but just underneath that first layer rested the ugly truth.

This punishment of his was shaping more than just his behavior.

Or…was it awakening something in him, like it had done for Evie?

He shook his head, shuddering as he finally finished wetting himself, his diaper squishy and warm underneath him. No, it couldn’t be. There was no way he was like those who were at the adult daycare of their own volition. Not once had he ever had any desire to do anything remotely infantile ever since graduating from that age range. The only debatably childish thing he’d done in his adult life was play videogames, and even then, his tastes were far from immature.

That being said, how could an infatuation like this simply spring up? Had it really been lying dormant and undetected deep within him all this time, and was only now being brought to light?

Nephyr sighed as he looked out the window, watching the bus turn into the parking lot for their destination. He’d fight this internal battle later. For now, he had more important things to focus on, like getting through this field trip in one...

To be continued....