The Nanny's Challenge - Chapter 10 (Patreon)

"No!" Lyra whined, stomping her foot. "I won't! I won't do it!"

The Nanny had done a lot of crazy things - or, rather, according to the woman, Lyra had imagined a lot of crazy things in her presence - but this was too far. Lyra was an adult, one who worked in this very building... She couldn't spend her day trapped down here in the daycare like an actual toddler! She had work to do, and, even if she didn't, she was much too mature to be reduced to this!

And yet... Looking up at the Nanny's disapproving face was like staring at a giant, and Lyra was well aware, from the way her angry movements were making her onesie tug at her diaper, that she was dressed, and looked, like she did belong here, like she'd blend right in and nobody would know the difference. That might have made it even worse, if that was possible... She didn't want anyone here to know the truth about her; she also didn't want them to really think she was a toddler, and treat her like one. There was no good alternative, nothing positive she could see resulting from allowing the Nanny to leave her here.

As, physically, a toddler, however, there was very little she could do to stop it, either. Even if she ignored the woman's obvious magical, or psychedelic, or whatever, powers, she was taller and stronger than Lyra in the best of times... Now, she might as well be a brick wall, since Lyra had about as much chance of overpowering, or talking sense into, one of those as she did doing the same with the Nanny.

So the only recourse she had, no matter how embarrassing it was, how tiny and helpless it made it feel, and look, was to throw a tantrum. It felt surprisingly good, freeing, to stamp her little feet, to ball her hands up into fists, to let loose all her frustration at the Nanny as she shouted, "You can't make me! I'm not gonna go in!" so loud she couldn't hear the crinkle of her diaper for once, although there was no escaping the sensation of the bulk surrounding her.

"Uh-oh!" she heard someone exclaim, and, the next thing she knew, she was being picked up, plucked off the floor, arms and legs swinging. "Somebody's cranky! Did she have trouble sleeping last night? Or did she already have a little accident?"

Lyra gasped, cheeks darkening as she was lifted up into the air, given a perfect view of Nanny's unimpressed expression, while someone else, some stranger, gave the back of her diaper a loud sniff, followed up by a pair of fingers sliding into the legband of her diaper with no concern for Lyra's dignity, or privacy.

"She's just being a fussy little girl today," the Nanny answered. "I wouldn't be surprised if she needs a time-out or two to straighten her out. Whatever you feel is necessary will, I'm sure, be sufficient. Won't it, Lyra?"

Lyra wiggled, whimpering as the Nanny gave her a kiss on the forehead, whining, "Please, no!" as she watched the woman walk away.

"Such a pretty name, Lyra," the other woman cooed, bouncing the girl in her arms as she turned, carting her into the daycare. "You know, there's someone upstairs with that same name! Isn't that funny? You don't see it very often, and now there's two of them here! I'm sure she's nowhere near as cute as you, though!"

Despite herself, Lyra giggled as the worker tickled her tummy, her cheeks still red, hearing about this 'other' Lyra, knowing it was her, of course.

"I think they're all here already," the worker mused, "but some of these other boys and girls have Mommies and Daddies who work for her! We should ask them about it, huh?" She bounced the girl again. "When they come to pick up their kids, we should see if they think you're cuter than their Lyra!"

Oh, God... Lyra's stomach churned, imagining being paraded out in front of her workers like this, them seeing her in her pink, girly onesie, her diaper peeking out from beneath it... There was no way they'd be able to tell it was her, yet, if the worker was mentioning her, asking them to compare the two... And, obviously, they were going to know she hadn't been at work that day...

"Oh, no!" Lyra's eyes widened at the words, looking around, wondering what had happened, before feeling the woman's hand invade her personal space again, only then noticing the sensation of spreading warmth, her nerves at the imagined scenario getting the better of her weakened bladder. "Is that why you were so upset, sweetie? Did you have to go potty?"

Lyra felt her face warming up, before she hid it in her tiny, chubby hands. The whole point of her being here was to help her prove she didn't need diapers... Now, she'd barely been here five minutes, and she was already wet, had done it in the arms of a stranger, and had that stranger realize what she was doing before she did... This day could not possibly get any worse!

"It's okay, sweetie," the woman gave her a hug. "I'm not mad! I know you're just starting your potty training. We expect you to have little accident now and then... That's why you're still in diapers! Throwing a tantrum isn't the way to get a grown-up to take you to the potty, though, honey... All you have to do is come up and let us know what's going on! You did recognize that's what was happening, didn't you?"

"Y-Yes," Lyra nodded uncertainly. It hadn't been what she was angry at the Nanny for, of course, but it was an easier explanation than the truth, and one this woman might actually believe.

"Are you sure?" the worker narrowed her eyes a bit. "I think somebody might be fibbing..."

"I'm not!" Lyra insisted. "I-I knew I had to go pee-pee!" She winced, hating herself a little for falling into her role with that childish word... What choice did she have, though? Out of nowhere, a bolt of inspiration hit. "M-My Nanny just wouldn't let me!"

The other woman raised an eyebrow, starting to carry Lyra over to the changing tables. "Oh, she wouldn't, huh?"

"No!" Lyra shook her head. "S-So, it's not my fault... It shouldn't go on my chart, a-and you shouldn't tell her about it..."

"So," the worker said, lying Lyra down on the changing table, starting to unsnap her onesie, "the person who is trying to potty train you wouldn't let you go to the potty, so it's her fault you had an accident... But you don't want me to tell her you had the accident?"

"Umm..." Lyra frowned, re-playing the words in her mind, trying to figure out the correct response. "Y-Yes?"

She squealed, cheeks going pink once more as her diaper's tapes were ripped open, exposing her bare flesh. Obviously, the worker thought nothing of it, going to work cleaning her up with surprisingly warm baby wipes, but that didn't keep Lyra from feeling mortified. "What's wrong?" the woman asked. "The warmer didn't stop working... I can feel that. Were you expecting them to be cool? Did it surprise you, sweetie?"

"U-Uh-huh," she fibbed again.

"Doesn't it feel nice, though?" she smiled, lifting Lyra up by her ankles, wiping off her bottom, then expertly sliding the old diaper out and replacing it with a new one, seemingly in one, smooth motion. "Now," her expression hardened, ever-so-slightly, "don't you think if your Nanny had been actively refusing to let you use the potty, she'd already know that you were going to have an accident as soon as you got here?"

Lyra had respect for people who did this job, who had the patience to deal with so many kids all day; she had trouble just with her own, sometimes. She had to admit, however, that she'd always assumed she was smarter than anyone who'd work in a place like this, and that was why she'd gotten where she had. It was probably her embarrassment over everything that had already happen, and that she knew would happen, while she was here, and her anxiety at being stuck in a daycare like a toddler, but she definitely felt as though she'd just been outsmarted by this woman, that she'd barely had to work to see through Lyra's lie, that it hadn't been any more clever than anything any of the other actual children in this place could come up with.

"I-I guess?" she squirmed, watching the woman sprinkling baby powder onto her, the sweet smell only making her head spin more at how badly she'd flubbed her attempt to weasel out of one more bad mark on her chart. 

The worker chuckled, clearly unconvinced. "Well, I think we're going to have to let her know either way," she announced, tugging the diaper up between Lyra's legs, taping it snugly into place. "And, if you feel like you did before, just let me, or another adult, know, all right? We'll pop you right onto a potty, and you'll have so many smiley faces on your chart, your Nanny will forget all about one little frown!"

"No, she won't," Lyra sulked, crossing her arms while the woman snapped the onesie back up, frustrated that anyone would think she was so immature she didn't know what a full bladder felt like, and unable to defend herself from it, to know, without a doubt, that she'd be able to prove it. She could say it, sure, and she wanted to... Her track record so far, however, was so abysmal she didn't trust herself, didn't want to make it seem even more like she wasn't ready for potty training.

"She's taken care of plenty of little girls and boys," the woman smiled down at the fussy toddler. "She knows how difficult this is for you!"

Did she actually know that? Lyra's curiosity was piqued by that, remembering the person, the day before, who seemed to know the Nanny. Did this woman had experience with her, too? Or had the Nanny dropped that man's kids - or him, although he'd denied that, which, of course, Lyra would have, too - off here? Was the Nanny targeting people here, at this company? Was this some sort of weird new corporate espionage, being used by one of their rival companies? Or did the worker just assume, since the woman was a Nanny, that she had experience?

"Sh-She does?" Lyra asked, watching the woman, searching for some sign that she was aware of more than she was letting on.

"Of course, sweetie," she chuckled once more. "Potty training is difficult for everyone! I'm sure you're doing a wonderful job!" And, with that, Lyra was set down on the floor, given a pat on the padded bottom and instructions to, "Go play!"

"No!" Lyra blushed, clinging to the woman's leg. Even if she didn't know anything more about the Nanny, at least she was an adult... She might not like being looked at, and treated like, a child by her, but being around another grown-up was far better than mixing with the real toddlers.

"There's no need to be nervous!" the worker smiled at her, peeling her off. "The other kids are so nice... They'd love to meet you, and play with you! Let's see... What do you want to do first? There are blocks, and a dollhouse, and..."

"No dollhouse!" Lyra exclaimed, thinking back to that first night with the Nanny.

"Do you want blocks, then?" She pointed over, showing Lyra the group of babies playing with them.

"I wanna stay with you!" Lyra grabbed at the woman again, only to be picked up.

"I have to look after other kids, too, Lyra," she explained. "I promise, they're not going to be mean to you, and, if they are, you can tell me, or any of the other grown-ups, and we'll take care of it. Okay?"

She stared Lyra in the eyes, refusing to back down until Lyra had finally nodded, accepting that she was going to have to join the other toddlers eventually. She'd planned to hold off on that as long as she could, but the worker carried her over, setting her down next to the blocks. "Teddy, Lukas, this is Lyra... She wants to play with you."

The two boys looked up at her uncertainly, although one answered, "Yes, Miss Maddie," obediently. 

"Thank you, Teddy," the worker - Miss Maddie, it seemed - smiled. "She's new, so be nice... She needs some friends."

"But she's a girl!" Lukas protested.

"And what does that mean, Lukas?" Miss Maddie asked. "She can play with whatever toys she wants."

"She's gonna be bossy," Lukas sulked. "I can tell!"

Miss Maddie shook her head with an amused sigh. "Lyra," she knelt down next to the girl, "this is their project, okay? If you want to make your own, there are plenty of blocks here, and they're going to share," she gave the boys a pointed look, "but if you want to help with what they're doing, you have to do what they say, all right?" 

No, it was not all right... Lyra was not about to let herself get bossed around by a couple little boys! She might be smaller than them now, and the only one who was obviously still in diapers, but she knew she was an adult, even if nobody else did.

"Lyra, you have to play nice," Maddie warned. "I don't want to see you throwing another tantrum as soon as I leave."

Lyra glared at her; she'd said she wanted to stay with her, not be stuck here with them! But that wasn't going to happen, and if she didn't play with these boys, she'd be put with some other babies. "I won't," she huffed.

Lyra watched the woman walk away, the magnitude of her situation settling in the further away she got, as she looked around, seeing her companions for the rest of the day. As far as anyone knew, she was a toddler, she belonged here... Despite the way she'd been treating her, as long as Miss Maddie had been nearby, Lyra could pretend they were equals... Now, although she could see other workers here and there, the majority of people nearby were kids, with whom she knew she blended in with perfectly. She was one of them.

She plopped down onto her padded bottom, overwhelmed. The Nanny, the one person who knew the truth about her, was long gone... There was no getting out of here, no escaping this humiliating fate, until she returned. Lyra knew the workers were going to keep a close eye on her, wouldn't have left her own daughter here in the past if she weren't confident in that, and, even if she did somehow manage to escape, there was no way she'd make it out of the building before somebody spotted her, caught her - with her tiny legs and the bulk of her diaper, she wouldn't be outrunning anyone - and brought her back. She was trapped.

"Come on," Lukas urged. "Let's build!"

Lyra raised her head, but, of course, he was talking to his friend, and not her. Teddy gamely returned to the wobbly castle they were constructing, leaving her sitting there, watching, unsure what to do with herself. She didn't want to play with them, or anyone else, knew she was far too mature to be entertained by any of the toys in this place... It was going to be a long day if she didn't do anything, however.

Finally, she pushed herself back to her feet, wondering if the diapers here were thicker than her usual as she toddled away from the boys, who didn't seem to mind, or if that was her imagination. She'd been in this room plenty of times, picking up Hallie... Waddling across it now, it felt so much bigger, and more imposing, a trip across it a long trek, rather than a few steps she'd barely thought twice about at the time.

Her destination was the bookshelf she'd spotted. Obviously, there wasn't going to be any fine literature, or anything else even slightly challenging... But it was something. Perhaps she'd find some books she'd read to Hallie, reminisce about the old times, when it had been obvious which of them was the mother and which the child. If nothing else, she'd feel a smidgen more mature doing that than playing with any of the toys.

Unfortunately, when she got there, she realized the workers had planned for this... She could see some slightly longer books, the ones she'd read to Hallie at bedtime, the ones with real, paper pages, but they were on higher shelves, well out of her reach, no matter how high she got on her tip-toes, or how far she stretched her arms. The only things she could get to were cloth books, ones that crinkled when she touched them, and board books with giant, thick, cardboard pages, most of which were warped from years of babies chewing and drooling on them. They were more toys than books, with only a few pages each, and, while she was sure she'd read some of them to Hallie, too, she couldn't bring herself to pick any of them up. They weren't even really for toddlers... They were for little babies, and if she was seen with one, that's what she'd look like...

She crossed her arms, sitting down sulkily, frustrated. There was nothing else here she wanted to do! She hadn't even really wanted to do this, but it had felt like the best option... Now she couldn't even do it!

"Are you okay?" 

Lyra looked up, blushing when she realized how blurry her vision was, that she had to wipe her eyes to clear away her tears, that she'd been crying in the first place. "U-Uh-huh," she nodded, looking up at the little girl standing there, holding a book, looking down at her.

"Are you sure?" the girl asked. "Do you need a change?"

"No!" Lyra her head, hating that this kid knew she was in a diaper, although, of course, she shouldn't have expected anything else... It was pretty obvious. 

"Are you sure?" the girl repeated. "That's usually what's wrong with you babies!"

Who was she calling a baby?! Lyra glared at her, easily seeing the girl's Pull-Ups beneath her childish little play dress. "I'm fine!" she insisted. "I just want a book, and I can't reach it!"

"There are plenty of baby books down here," the girl pointed them out, as if Lyra was blind. "Ones like this," she gave the one she was holding a squeeze, "aren't for you. You'd rip all the pages, and then nobody else could read them."

"No, I wouldn't!" Lyra huffed. Obviously, this kid had heard the workers saying that to younger kids, or been told it herself in the past... That didn't make it sting any less, though, being told, by a toddler, that she was too little for something.

"Okay," the girl shrugged, clearly unconvinced, her eyes lighting up as something occurred to her. "Do you wanna play dress-up? We usually dress up Lilly's baby sister, but she's sick today."

"No!" Lyra repeated, wrinkling her nose at the idea of being this little girl's doll... But, when the girl grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet, Lyra realized she wasn't so little after all. She was a good bit bigger than Lyra, could easily make her do whatever she wanted... Next to her, Lyra basically was a doll, if that's what the girl wanted.

"We have lotsa pretty dresses, and crowns, and..." the girl told her, tugging, pulling her away from the bookshelf. "It'll be fun!"

"I don't wanna play dress-up!" Lyra fumed, struggling to break free of the girl's sticky grip.

"Fine!" the girl let go, taking Lyra by surprise, sending her tumbling back, landing on her diaper again, glad for the padding to soften her fall. "You can stay and play with the other babies! Dress-up is for big girls anyway!"

Lyra was confused for a moment, then heard a crinkle and turned to see a little boy beside her, one of the cloth books in his chubby hands, gnawing on the cover. He was wearing a onesie, too, but blue, instead of the pink of her own... He was, so far, the only other person she'd seen wearing one, however, the only one she could tell, without a doubt, was in diapers...

She blushed, scrambling away. He was smaller than her, for once, although that just made it more embarrassing that they were dressed so similarly. Was this how everyone else saw her?! A drooling little infant, one who didn't even know how to play anything, only capable of amusing herself by sticking whatever was nearby into her mouth?! Her stomach churned as she toddled away as quickly as she could, wanting to put as much distance as possible between herself and him, to keep anyone from making the comparison.

She wasn't going to go back to the bookshelves, not while he was there, she didn't dare approach any dollhouse, didn't want to go near that little girl and her friends, lest she become their dress-up doll... There weren't many other options. She was afraid if she went and sat by herself, without so much as a toy, or anything else to occupy her, Miss Maddie would intervene and make her play with someone, or, worse, assume she might be sick.

That almost could have been a good plan... Perhaps she'd be sent home. Except, she knew how they took temperatures here, and she wasn't sure outsmarting the Nanny's plan was worth that. Besides, she wasn't sick, so she'd be stuck here anyway.

Not seeing any other option, she trudged back to the blocks. Lukas and Teddy's castle had grown, and, while it still didn't look like it was likely to stay standing for long, they'd managed to snatch up all the blocks that actually looked like they'd stack on one another, leaving her very little to try to use on her own. If she was going to show Miss Maddie she could entertain herself, and didn't need her help anymore, she was going to have to work with them.

"U-Umm..." she blushed, staring down at her feet. "C-Can I play with you?"

Teddy and Lukas looked at one another, Teddy giving a shrug. "Miss Maddie said..." he reminded his friend.

"Fine!" Lukas pouted. "But you hafta do everything we say!"

Lyra bristled, part of her wishing the Nanny had brought her anywhere but here... This was the building where she worked, where she was in charge of so many people... Now, she was basically on the bottom of the totem pole, outranking, essentially, only the little babies who were too young to be expected to listen or obey, especially to someone seemingly not much bigger than them. She had absolutely no authority here, no maturity, nothing....

And, at the moment, there was nothing she could do about it. "All right," she sighed, resigning herself to her fate. "You're in charge..."