The Pendant - Part 3 (Patreon)

Tara shifted in her office chair, blushing as she noticed a squishy spot in her Goodnites that she was certain hadn't been there before. It was hardly the first time she'd had an accident without noticing, and, unless Eden suddenly had a change of heart, she had her doubts that it would be the last. Far worse than that, however, was the sudden rumbling in her tummy. She knew exactly what it meant, of course, and it had sneaked up on her a couple times since this had all begun... But never as badly as now.

"Tara?" her boss, Stephen, spoke up, surprising her a little as she wiggled uncomfortably in her seat, peering at the hallway the bathroom was in, wondering she she could make it, despite him being right in front of her desk. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah," she nodded, glad that, at least, Eden had taken enough mercy on her to let her talk like a grown-up again. "Sorry, I was just a little... distracted."

"Mmm," Stephen raised an eyebrow. "That's actually what I want to talk to you about... Could you come into my office?" 

Tara gulped; she knew exactly what this was, and it wasn't good news. She couldn't blame him, really... Ever since that fateful night, her productivity had gone way down, since, even if she understood all the words on the papers she was looking at, it still took her much longer to read through them than it used to, longer to type out her own reports, since she could never remember where any of the letters were on the keyboard anymore, and she always felt extremely drowsy by the middle of the afternoon, which slowed her down even more.

And, of course, he'd chosen the exact worst time to confront her about it. She pressed her bottom harder into her chair, feeling her tummy beginning to push already. Perhaps if she'd rushed to the bathroom right away, she would have had time, but spending any time deliberating had doomed her. She felt her heart thumping loudly in her chest, realizing what was inevitably about to happen, how she was going to take what was probably the last big step left into her second childhood, something she'd managed to avoid up until now.

"Tara?" Stephen said again. "Are you sure you're all right?"

"Y-Yeah," Tara repeated, quieter now, although there was no way she was about to admit the truth to him. "C-Can't we talk here?"

"I really don't think that's a good idea," he told her gently. 

"Th-Then, can we do it later?" she tried, groaning as she felt her tummy attempting again to empty itself, forcing her to push her thighs together, wishing she was alone so she could slip her hands between her legs, too, to try and help. She kept a spare Goodnite in her purse, and had been pondering whether she should start bringing more, since, even with a change, she usually came close to leaking by the time she got home. She hadn't used it yet, so, once he was out of the way, and she did her best to mentally block out all the people she'd be making her mad dash past so she wouldn't have to worry if they could tell what was happening, she could head to the bathroom, pray she made it without going in her pants too much, then be ready to clean herself up if that didn't work.

"I'm afraid not," Stephen shook his head, killing off her hopes. "It would be best to get this out of the way now."

She nodded meekly, watched him take a few steps away, her mind racing again. If he went straight there, she could do the same thing she'd been planning before... He'd probably be mad at her, but he already was, so what did it matter? Unfortunately, he stopped and turned back. "Tara?"

Tara whimpered, bouncing in her seat, biting her bottom lip frantically. "I-I'm on my way," she promised desperately, willing him to look away.

"Now," he ordered.

The authority in his voice was scary, in a way, demonstrating to her, without question, that he was a grown-up, and she was certainly not. Despite knowing he didn't think of her as a toddler, and would never spank her, or anything like that, that was still exactly as she felt as she hopped up, feeling as if she were a little girl who had pushed her daddy too far, and knew she would pay the price if she didn't shape up immediately.

That was, obviously, a bad move, and she instantly regretted it. Her hands shot to her padded backside as she felt warm mush begin to flow out of it, pushing into the seat of her Goodnite, her knees bending involuntarily so her body could push harder, and ensure that, if there was any doubt in Stephen's mind what was going on, it would be quashed. Her cheeks turned bright red, tears stinging her eyes as she helplessly filled her pants, feeling her bedwetter pants swell around her, drooping, while she fought in vain to clamp her bottom shut, to make it stop.

After that, she barely even remembered being escorted into Stephen's office and fired; part of her wondered if he would have simply reprimanded her, if that hadn't happened, though she knew that would only buy her so much time. At least he kept it quick, and didn't make her sit down to tell her the news... Probably, he didn't want to be around her stinky diaper any longer than he had to, but she was still glad to be able to waddle away from him as soon as possible.

Thankfully, she was allowed to go to the bathroom before cleaning out her desk, so, when she got to her car, she didn't have to sit down in her mess anyway. She was crying, of course, as she slid into the driver's seat, although, in a way, it was a huge relief, not having to worry about work anymore... Except, she knew she really still did, considering she had a rent payment to make, and food to buy, and car insurance to pay... And now, who was going to hire her?

Those adult worries were easy to forget about, however, when she could sleep in as late as she wanted, until the sunlight pouring in through her windows rendered the nightlights strewn around the house unnecessary. She'd packed her own lunch for work, but now she didn't have to worry about her co-workers judging her if all she wanted to eat was a big bowl of sugary cereal. She could watch TV all day if she felt like it, and there was nobody to tell her no, although there was always the fear that, if she got too engrossed, she'd have an accident in her Goodnites.

She'd get calls from her clients from time to time, but, like she'd done since that night at Eden's house, she ignored them. She didn't trust herself to be able to hide how much of her maturity had been stripped away, and she definitely didn't trust those monsters to behave once they figured it out. She was afraid, if she heard the voices of their parents, she wouldn't be able to say no to an adult, so it was easier not to pick up her phone at all.

When she saw Eden's mother's number, however, she didn't have a choice. She felt every bit as anxious as she did with the other parents - even more-so, really - but her hand was already moving to hit the answer button before she could stop herself. She wondered what would have happened if she hadn't looked at the phone at all, if she hadn't known who was calling... Would the pendant's magic have made her answer anyway?

"H-Hello?" she said quietly, almost hoping the woman wouldn't hear her.

"Hi, Tara!" Eden's mother exclaimed. "I hope I'm not bothering you! And I know this is last minute, but are you possibly free tonight?"

"Of course," Tara replied. She'd wanted to say, "No way!", but, if there had been any doubt that the pendant didn't work, or that its effects may have faded, that wiped them away. "When do you need me?"

"As soon as possible," the woman told her. "I'm sorry, it's an emergency!"

"I-I'll be right there," Tara promised. And, true to her word, she did just that, compelled by the spell on her not to even change out of her PJs, or put on a fresh Goodnite... She simply slipped on some flip-flops, grabbed her keys, and went to her car.

Right away, she knew something was wrong. It was no surprise that she felt small as soon as she stepped up to the door, considering what had happened before, but, beyond that, there was a knot in her stomach, something telling her to turn around and run away, as if she had a choice.

"Oh, there you are!" Eden's mother smiled down at her as she opened the door. "I was looking all over for you, sweetie! I thought we agreed that we're only supposed to hide inside... Did you forget?"

Tara frowned, confused, yet her mouth still said, "Sowwy, Mommy."

That her lisp was back was no huge shock... Accidentally calling the woman 'Mommy', on the other hand, was, and she blushed, searching her brain, trying to think of the right thing to call her so she could correct herself. Whatever it was, however, seemed to have been scrubbed out of her mind, because, when she stared up at the woman, that was the only word she could summon.

"That's okay, sweetie," Mommy told her, bending down to kiss her on the top of her head. "You would have won the game if you hadn't broken the rules! But, since you did, I guess that means regular bedtime tonight."

"Aww," Tara pouted, although, inside, she was only growing more and more confused. Did the woman mean Eden's bedtime? Sure, Tara had fallen asleep last time she'd sat for the girl - which wasn't even her fault, not that she could explain it to Mommy - but she didn't have a bedtime herself.

Mommy smiled, patting her on the bottom, then frowned, yanking Tara's PJ shorts down without a hint of hesitation. "Hey!" Tara squealed, grabbing for them and getting her hands lightly smacked in response. 

"What do you think you're doing?" Mommy asked, shaking her head. "You know you aren't big enough for these yet!"

"Y-Yes, I am!" Tara declared, face red. She was more than big enough for them... Even if she didn't feel like one, she was a grown-up, and she didn't even belong in those! 

"I know it's fun to play dress-up, but you're lucky you didn't leak all over," Mommy sighed. "I knew I should have gotten rid of those when Eden outgrew them. Come on."

Before Tara could say anything else, Mommy grabbed her hand, pulling her - shorts around her ankles - through the house, to Eden's bedroom. When Mommy pushed open the door, however, it was clear something had changed. Gone was the girl's bed, the posters on her walls, her desk, everything... In its place was a nursery.

And not just any nursery... Tara recognized it instantly as Eden's old nursery. She hadn't taken care of the girl for long before she outgrew it, but there was no mistaking it, especially since she'd seen it all stored away in the basement not that long ago. It all looked exactly the same, except for the crib, which had gotten a fresh coat of pink paint, covering over the 'Eden' that had graced the headboard before, replacing it with 'Tara'.

"W-Wait!" Tara shook her head as Mommy picked her up, setting her down on the waiting changing table. "Wh-What is aww this?!"

"What are you talking about, silly? This is your room," Mommy told her patiently, as if she'd said it a million times before, pulling the pajama shorts off Tara's squirming feet. 

"N-No, it isn't," Tara insisted. "This is Eden's woom!"

"Yes, once upon a time it was," Mommy agreed. "I'm so proud of you for remembering that!" She tapped Tara on the nose before slipping the Goodnite down her legs and off, tossing them into Eden's old diaper pail. "But once I had another baby, she moved down to the basement, where she could have the whole place to herself! And now this is your room!"

Tara gulped, watching as Mommy grabbed a diaper from the changing table. "B-But... I-I'm hewe to babysit..." she sniffled.

"You are so silly," Mommy chuckled, sprinkling some baby powder onto her, then expertly pulling the big, bulky diaper up between the girl's legs and taping it into place, as if she'd done it a million times before, and would do it another million times in the future. "You got that backwards, sweetie... Your big sister, Eden, is going to be babysitting you tonight, while I'm away. She does such a good job, doesn't she?"

Tara gulped, staring up at the woman from the changing table, hearing the diaper crinkle beneath her as she wiggled, slowly realizing that she and Eden had completely changed places... Eden had made her mother believe Tara was the baby now, the one who needed a sitter, and had also ensured that Tara, herself, couldn't do anything to change the woman's mind about that. For all intents and purposes, she truly was Eden's little sister... And, thanks to the pendant, Tara knew she had almost no chance of fixing that, of going back to normal, of getting her adult life, or her big girl panties back.