The Old College Try (Patreon)

"Yes, Elizabeth?" the professor sounded less than thrilled now that she was finally saying it, as if she wanted nothing more than for someone, anyone else to raise their hand as well so she could call on them, instead, despite the Little having spent what seemed like five minutes now squirming in her seat, waving her hand back and forth, trying to get noticed.

Elizabeth hesitated herself, having half expected the professor to skip over her, after waiting so long. "Umm... Fifteen?" she answered at last.

The professor sighed, looking as if she were fighting to keep from rolling her eyes, or asking out loud why she had even bothered. "No, the answer is not 'fifteen'," she told Elizabeth, watching the girl squirm again, this time in embarrassment, as her classmates tittered around her.

For her part, Elizabeth was well aware that she was incorrect, even before she'd spoken; she knew what the right answer was, too, and part of her wanted to blurt that out now, to show everyone she wasn't just some silly, braindead Little, like they all thought... But that would defeat the purpose of saying the wrong thing in the first place.

Nobody seemed surprised about her answer, even if some of them whispered to one another about it... That was just what they expected from someone like her, after all, even here. There weren't many Littles who made it to college, and even fewer who went to a mixed school like this, mostly preferring to stick to private, all-Little universities. 

Generally, the ones who did brave the college where Betweeners and Amazons also went were the cream of the crop: the brave, the brilliant, or, at the very least, the children of parents wealthy enough to fight any attempted forced adoptions. That was always a tough proposition, since, outside of Littles-only communities, most everything was run by the Amazons, who would usually side against the victim, unless their lawyer was extremely good.

Elizabeth didn't consider herself any of those things, and everyone had warned her against the school she'd chosen because, apparently, they didn't either. Her parents were proud of her for daring to stick it out, even after the horror stories she'd been regaled with to try to get her to change her mind, telling her that, by itself, should be enough proof to anyone that she was 'grown-up' enough to do whatever she wanted.

Her parents had always taught her that size didn't matter, that she could do anything she wanted... Her father ran a shop, and her mother was a doctor, and they both did pretty well for themselves. Elizabeth had felt practically obligated to join the local chapter of LAD - Littles Against Diapers - as soon as she got on campus, and she'd made quite a few friends there. She'd spent her life surrounded by strong Littles, who proved that the Amazons who thought all of them belonged in daycare were wrong.

"Can I speak to you?" the professor asked, stepping in front of Elizabeth's desk while the girl piled her things back into her backpack once the class had been dismissed for the day.

"O-Okay," Elizabeth nodded anxiously.

The woman waited for everyone to file out first, which was a bit disappointing, as was the fact that, after closing the door, she didn't lock it to make sure they didn't get interrupted. "Is this class getting to be too much for you?"

Elizabeth was torn on how to answer. Part of her wanted to say yes; the rest of her, urged on by the mental chorus of her parents and her friends at LAD, knew the answer should be no. Even that first part knew that, by saying no, the Amazon teacher would, quite possibly, take that as a yes.

She shook her head. "I-I don't think so," she said, going for the third option instead, knowing that, too, would suggest the real truth was 'yes'.

"Your grades have been slipping lately," the professor pointed out. "And you didn't answer a single question correctly in class today. You haven't for a while, now... Is this getting to be too much for you?"

Elizabeth's eye widened, and she fought to maintain her cool. She had the same struggle as before, settling, yet again, on the indecisive, "I dunno." 

"Well," the woman set her hands on Elizabeth's desk, leaning forward, towering over the tiny girl, "you still have time to drop the class. It might be better to do that than stress yourself out, and get overworked trying to keep up... The transition to college can be very difficult, so starting with a full class schedule can be too much sometimes."

"Oh... Okay," Elizabeth nodded, not having expected that at all. "I-I'll think about it."

"You do that," the professor nodded. "I won't hold it against you if you do decide that's what you need to do," she smiled. "There's always next year!"

"Yeah," Elizabeth agreed, standing up and slinging her backpack over her shoulder, heading out into the halls towards the dining hall. That was not at all how she'd been expecting that conversation to go; she knew she should be glad it hadn't gone that way, that she should be grateful, but she mostly felt disappointed. 

She'd grown up in an all-Little suburb, gone to all-Littles' schools until now, still spent most of her time with her LAD friends... She knew it was possible, despite the opinions of what sometimes felt like the majority of Amazons, and even most Betweeners, for a Little to lead a productive, mature life as an adult.

And yet, most nights, she dreamt of something she'd seen years ago, on a trip into the city... It wasn't uncommon to see Amazons pushing clearly full-grown Littles around in strollers, or carrying them on their hips, or leading them by child reins, diapers clearly showing all the while, either peeking out from the legholes of a onesie, or the top of shorts, or just fully visible under a far-too-short skirt. Elizabeth agreed with her parents that she didn't want to end up like that, that, even then, she wasn't a baby.

That day, she saw something a little different... She saw a Little and Amazon pair, nothing strange there, but, to her surprise, the Little wasn't being held or restrained in any way, yet she was still sticking close to the Amazon not trying to run away. Her dress was childish without being infantile, and she didn't detect any hint of diaper bulge beneath it; the girl didn't seem to have that distinctive waddle, either, since she was happily skipping down the sidewalk.

She seemed so happy, so carefree... Elizabeth watched as long as she could, while the girl stopped at a food cart and the Amazon happily took out her own purse, paid for the taco, and passed it down to her companion, not waiting to use a high chair, not tying a bib around her neck... Nobody would mistake the pair for equals, but this was definitely not the usual dynamic Eliabeth was used to seeing.

And... She kind of liked it. She knew better than to talk to her parents, or her friends, about it, sure they would think she was crazy, but it stuck with her. Now that she was in college, she found herself thinking about it more and more, as she sat through boring classes, shelved books in the library at her work-study job, spent hours on homework... 

She knew nothing about that girl, not really... She knew it was silly, even stupid, to make assumptions about her, based on one meeting - not even that, a sighting - but there was just something about her... Elizabeth was positive that girl didn't have to worry about getting up early to go to school, or going to work, or staying up late to finish up her assignments... She didn't have to worry about anything, other than having fun, and doing what she wanted. She was free.

Elizabeth knew her parents and the other members of LAD wouldn't understand, so she did her best to maintain her responsibilities, and be the grown-up they thought she should be... Besides, she didn't want just anyone to swoop in and claim her for their own, or, most likely, she'd wind up with even less freedom, rather than more.

That was why she'd chosen her professor... The woman seemed somewhat liberal, and was certainly patient - moreso than Elizabeth had bargained for, apparently - and, after doing a little research, she'd heard that she didn't have any children, either natural or 'adopted'. Maybe it was wrong of Elizabeth to assume the woman would want any, just like it was wrong of Amazons to assume Littles were just overgrown babies... She'd been so certain that her sudden decline in performance in the professor's class would urge her to see that Elizabeth just wasn't ready to be out on her own, though, and hopefully spark something inside of her...

Most of her other teachers were too scary to try that on; they seemed more likely to take advantage of any opportunity to capture a Little, but also more likely to put their prey straight back in diapers, and make sure they stayed in them, which was the last thing she wanted. There was a fine line to walk, between total freedom and the complete opposite... If she could pull it off, though, it would be perfect.

She was quiet during lunch, frustrated that her plan refused to progress. The longer it took, the deeper she got into the school year, and the more she wanted someone to just take care of her. She had to do it in the right way, however; if she just peed her pants in the middle of the dining hall, for example, that, too, would likely land her in diapers, though her friends in LAD might try to step in and help her.

There was one thing she could try, however. Most of the dining hall workers were Betweeners, but there was one woman, who Elizabeth thought was in charge - she certainly acted that way - that was an Amazon. She spent most of her time keeping an eye on her workers, though, every now and then, she'd prowl the cafeteria, cleaning up spills with the towel she kept tucked into her belt, scowling at any table that dared get too loud.

She scared Elizabeth a little, too, although Liz was pretty sure at least some of her toughness was an act. She'd seen one of the other workers slip and drop a tray of food, and, while the Amazon had been annoyed, she didn't seem outright angry, and she didn't humiliate the other woman, at least not in front of the whole cafeteria. She definitely wouldn't be Elizabeth's first choice for a potential Mommy, but as long as Elizabeth was able to maintain her potty training, which she doubted would be an issue, she had a feeling the woman would play into her plan all right.

And the timing couldn't have worked out any better. Her target was heading in their direction, just as one of her friends, Julie, declared, "I'd better get going, I have class in a few." As usual, the rest suddenly remembered obligations of their own they needed to attend to, and, as a group, they began to get up, gathering trash onto their trays and carrying them over to the conveyor belt by the kitchen so their dishes could be washed.

Except for Elizabeth. She took a little longer to stand, suddenly becoming very interested in digging for something in her backpack. Once everyone else had dissipated, she got up, and began to slowly amble towards the exit, leaving her tray on the table, crumpled napkins scattered around it.

For the first few steps, she worried she'd taken too long, or moved too quickly, and the woman had moved on, or hadn't seen who it was who had failed to clean up. Then she heard a booming, scratchy voice behind her demand, "And where are you going, young lady?"

"Who, me?" she squeaked, turning around. There was the Amazon, arms folded, glaring down at her. "I'm just heading out to... do some homework..." She didn't want to make it sound like she'd forgotten because she was in a hurry... That might be, to some degree, justifiable. 

"Did you forget something?" the Amazon asked pointedly.

Liz didn't want to seem malicious, just forgetful, like someone who needed a little looking after, not a punishment. "I don't think so," she stared up at the woman, wide-eyed.

The Amazon shook her head, grabbing Elizabeth's arm, easily tugging her forward, back towards the table. It was a bit shocking, feeling just how simple it was for the woman to overpower her; she could do whatever she liked to Liz, and she couldn't stop her. The thought was scary... But also, just a touch exciting.

"What is this, young lady?" the Amazon demanded, pointing at the tray, still sitting there. "You were sitting here, weren't you?"

"Yeah..." Elizabeth squirmed in her grasp, debating her next move. What was the right thing to say, to convey her immaturity without taking things too far? 

"Let her go!" Elizabeth winced at the sound of Julie's voice. The Amazon turned, still clutching Elizabeth, to see the other Little, along with a couple more of their friends, standing there. "She doesn't have to do your job for you!"

The woman's grip tightened on Elizabeth's arm, and, for a moment, she worried they were all about to get spanked right there in the middle of the cafeteria for Julie's bravery. Then, the Amazon let her go, scowling. "I suppose it's too much to expect manners from the likes of you," she shook her head. 

Julie and the other members of LAD swarmed over to Liz, sweeping her away before anything else could happen. "Are you okay?" Julie asked, giving her a little side-hug as they walked. Elizabeth nodded, not trusting herself to speak right then. "She can be pretty harsh, but we have to show her we won't be pushed around just because of our size!"

Elizabeth nodded again, to get the others to leave her alone to sulk back to her room. She'd always heard horror stories about how easy it was to get kidnapped by an Amazon... How could it be so difficult, out in the real world?!

After lying on her bed for a while, agonizing over how close she'd gotten, again, not once but twice, only to be foiled each time, she realized she hadn't lied to the cafeteria worker... She really did have homework she needed to get done. Even in the class she was deliberately tanking, she always made sure to turn something in, although it was always completely wrong. Maybe she should have tried not doing it at all, and saying she'd forgotten... It might be too late now, though, since her professor had already confronted her about her performance. If the woman wasn't going to take her home, she probably did need to drop the class, or her GPA was really going to suffer.

Ugh... She stared out over her textbooks, her notebooks, her syllabi, promising more of the same for the rest of the semester, then she'd have something new, but likely just as dull, next semester, and the one after that, and the one after that... She didn't want to have to worry about that, or her GPA, or any of that junk!

She sighed, shaking her head. She couldn't do this right now. She had class in half an hour, but she could, and would, blow it off this once, grabbing her purse instead of her backpack and heading out of the dorm and into town. She was awful with directions, though she'd been to her destination enough times with her friends that she was confident she could get there and back on her own.

It was a great little local ice cream place, nothing too fancy, but they were cheap, and they gave you plenty of the delicious, frosty treat, and that's what was really important. She was there in the middle of the school day, so she was the only customer in the shop. The Amazon - Liz was pretty sure she owned the place, since she was there almost every time they'd come here - had clearly taken note of that as well. "Shouldn't you be in school?"

"No," Elizabeth lied, becoming even more interested in the flavors inside the case. "One strawberry cone, please."

"Strawberry is my favorite, too," the woman behind the counter smiled at her, scooping it up, then, after a moment of hesitation, sprinkling a scoop of rainbow-colored sprinkles on top. "It seems like you need those," she winked.

"Thanks!" Elizabeth perked up.

"So," the woman said, giving Liz her change back, "what's wrong?"

"Nothing." Elizabeth wasn't even sure if that was really a lie or not... Her 'problem' such as it was, was ridiculous, and she knew it. She should just suck it up and be a good, grown-up girl, like everyone wanted her to be.

"Did you have a fight with your friends?" the woman asked, stepping out from around the counter, sitting down at the table by the window after pulling out a seat for Elizabeth as well. "I always see you here with them."

"They're all in class," Elizabeth shrugged, licking her cone.

"Oh?" the Amazon raised an eyebrow. "I thought you said you didn't have school." Elizabeth didn't have an answer for that, so she became very interested in her ice cream for a moment. "Are you mad at them? Is that why you're playing hooky?"

"Not mad, really," Liz wasn't sure how to describe it. "I just... I don't think I have very much in common with them. I don't feel like I fit in at school at all..."

"No? Maybe you should talk to your teachers, I'm sure they'd help you out... Maybe you need to go back a grade or two, there's no shame in that. Some people just take longer to mature... What grade are you in, anyway?"

"I'm in college," Elizabeth told the woman. 

"Oh, there's your mistake," the Amazon nodded. 

"Yeah," Liz agreed. "I don't wanna be in school at all... It's so boring... I hate it!"

"That won't do, either," the woman shook her head. "Little minds like yours need to learn, but college is just too much... I think high school is probably pushing it, for that matter. I think elementary school is more suiting, if you can handle it."

"I'm in college, of course I could handle..." Elizabeth paused. "W-Wait, what do you...?"

"You are just the cutest little thing..." the woman smiled at her. "I've had my eye on you since the first time you came in, but you were always with your friends..."

Elizabeth's heart began beating faster, and she leapt to her feet, her head spinning. Was this really happening?! She felt a wild surge of exultation, at least until she felt a surge of something else, splashing out into her panties, then down her legs. She gasped, dropping her ice cream cone as she pressed her hands to her crotch, trying desperately to stop herself.

"Shh, shh, it's okay," the woman spoke soothingly. "It happens all the time... Don't worry, I know just what you need...."

"N-No!" Elizabeth whined, watching the Amazon stand, strolling to her shop door and flip the sign to 'Closed'. "I-I don't do this normally, I swear..."

"Well you did it now, sweetie, and I can't risk it happening again," the woman reached for Elizabeth's hand, then thought better of it, since it was wet, wrapping her arm around the girl's shoulders instead, leading her to a door in the back of the shop instead, then up a flight of stairs to a second floor, where, it turned out, she lived. They went through the modest, but nice, living room, down a hall, and into a nursery, one that was fully stocked and prepared.

"No!" Elizabeth stomped her foot. "No, I don't need diapers! I don't!" But that didn't stop the Amazon... Not for one second.

_________________________________________________________

"Would you care to give it a try, Elizabeth?" the teacher asked, gesturing towards the set of problems written on the blackboard.

Elizabeth pouted, wriggling in her seat, her thick diaper crinkling beneath her. "I-I don't know them," she lied.

"Just try," the teacher urged. "We'll all help you, how about that?"

Elizabeth squirmed, realizing she didn't really have a choice. Did the teacher know what was happening? Was she doing this on purpose?! She hesitated as long as she dared, before knowing she was risking a trip to the principal's office, then slid out of the hard, wooden seat of her desk, instantly regretting it as a muffled, rude sound emerged from her padded bottom, accompanied by a soft, squishy load of mush.

"Oh, Elizabeth," the teacher shook her head. "Well, go on, get started... You can wait until after class for a change." 

That was what her other teachers had told her when she'd asked to be given a hall pass to go to the bathroom. She could wait until class was over, they said, then, once it ended, they instead told her she needed to hurry on to her next one. Meanwhile, if an Amazon or Betweener kid asked for one, they'd get it almost immediately... It was just Elizabeth and the other Littles, several of which were also adults, most of whom were in diapers, or at least training pants, who were treated that way.

It was very different from the schools Elizabeth had grown up in; there, everyone had been a Little, so she was treated fairly, normally... Here, it felt like she was being set up to fail, as if they wanted to push her backwards, like even the third grade, which Mommy had decided was a good starting point for her, was too advanced.

She'd been so sure getting taken in by an Amazon was exactly what she wanted, that it was her ticket to easy street... Instead, she was still being sent to school, now in diapers - which, when the nurse noted down this latest accident once Liz managed to make it to her office for a change, she'd definitely be staying in for at least another month - still had homework... But, on top of all of that, she had somebody watching over her all the time, choosing her food for her, picking out her outfits, constantly checking her diaper... 

And there was nothing she could do about it. Mommy had used the security footage from the store of her skipping classes, then peeing her pants, to prove that Elizabeth was not capable of taking care of herself. Sure enough, the Amazon judge was all too happy to take the shopkeeper's side, granting the adoption immediately, sealing Elizabeth's fate.

She'd thrown regular tantrums at first, protesting the diapers, being sent to school, her absurdly early bedtime, but a few spankings had calmed her down, for the most part. She definitely knew better than to try it when she got home that afternoon, knowing what the potty training in her backpack said. She shuffled her feet bashfully as Mommy looked over it from behind the counter at the shop.

"Did you have a little accident today?" she asked. Elizabeth nodded, chewing on her bottom lip. "I guess there's no need to try trainers this afternoon, then, is there?" 

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, ma'am," she admitted. The Amazon smiled gently down at her, giving her a small dish of ice cream with sprinkles and sending her to her favorite table, by the window, to do homework. Elizabeth knew what those sprinkles did now - she only ever saw the mothers of other Littles order them, and always, before they left, she heard those same Little being berated for 'another accident', but she didn't dare not eat them. Her diaper was already soggy again anyway... What would another wetting matter?

Her homework was much simpler now, of course, though still tended to be time-consuming, especially today, since her math teacher had assigned her extra work after her messy diaper had distracted her from answering the questions on the board, in front of everyone, in as timely a matter as the woman had wanted. She was still engrossed with that what she heard Julie's voice.

"Elizabeth? Is that you?" 

Liz looked up in shock, her cheeks darkening as she fidgeting in her seat, tugging at the skirt of her uniform, trying to cover her diaper. "H-Hi," she stammered.

"Where have you been?" the girl asked. "We were so worried, we..." She stopped, looking at the basic math problems laid out in front of Elizabeth, the childish uniform... "Oh, no," she shook her head. "We can help you! We'll find a way to..."

"Hello, there," Mommy said, strolling over to the table. "Are you a tutor?"

"What?" Julie looked up at her defiantly. 

"Oh, I heard you offering to help little Lizzie here, so I thought you might be a tutor." Mommy smiled. "She just has so much trouble with math..."

"No, I am a member..." Julie started, only for Elizabeth to tug at her sleeve and shake her head. The other girl looked confused, then stopped herself. "A-A member of the math club at my college," she finished awkwardly.

"Would you be interested in making a little extra money? Once or twice a week would be fine," Mommy asked.

Elizabeth gave what she hoped was a subtle nod, and Julie agreed, exchanging numbers with Mommy before sitting at the table with Liz and watching the woman go back behind the counter. "What's going on?" she hissed.

"She adopted me," Elizabeth explained. "It isn't as easy as just helping me escape... If you did that, she could have you arrested for kidnapping or something."

"Shoot," Julie shook her head. "Well, we'll think of something... I'll come over as often as I can, and we'll brainstorm, okay? We'll find a way to get you out of here... I'll bring the rest of LAD over, too, and see if they can help."

"Okay," Elizabeth agreed. But really, she was thinking about how, when she'd been a big girl, Mommy sometimes let her help out in the shop... Maybe, one of those days when Julie and the others were 'tutoring', she could make them an ice cream come, with extra sprinkles... She didn't think Mommy was interested in a sister or brother for her, but if she waited until some nice-looking Amazon customers were there, they might step in. And if not, surely somebody on the walk back to the school would....

This new life wasn't at all what Elizabeth had planned... But, even if she might not come right out and admit it yet, she couldn't say that she completely hated it. She definitely didn't want Julie, or the rest of LAD, to butt in and ruin things for her. She was sure, with a little time, Julie and the others would come to enjoy, or at least tolerate it, too... If nothing else, it was definitely better than college.