Marie, The Brat (Patreon)

Marie, The Brat

Part 1

“Marie?” Marie's mother opened her door a crack.

“yeah...” said Marie. She was already in bed and nursing a headache. A visit from her mother was not what she wanted tonight.

“Did you do the dishes like I asked you to?”

Marie winced. She knew there was something she had forgotten to do today.

“Marie? I can see the dishes from here. I know you forgot. I just want to hear it from your own mouth.”

Marie sighed audibly. This, it turned out, was a mistake.

“Don't make those noises at me, young lady. When I ask you to take care of something, I need to know that I can count on you. You'll have a job soon, and I doubt very much that your boss is going to ask going to accept dramatic sighs in place of hard work. You've been staying with me rent free for a month now, and I've had to remind you to complete simple household tasks twice or even three times sometimes. I understand that you're not in a position to pay rent right now, but its not unreasonable of me to expect you to pitch in around the house instead.”

Marie sighed again. “Yes, mother! I'm sorry, I'll...get up and get the dishes done.”

“You're drunk, aren't you?”

Marie had been hoping she would be able to hide it. She had just been out partying with a few of her college friends. Why not, after all? Like her mother had said, she would have a job soon, and so would all her friends. She wouldn't have time to hang out with friends, drinking and chatting and watching movies long into the night. All the more reason to do it now.

But she knew that logic wouldn't cut any ice with her mother.

She heard her mom sigh dramatically, somewhat undercutting her own argument “I knew it. Marie, things are about to change in this house. Its clear to me that if I keep pretending that you're a responsible adult, you'll just keep reminding me that you aren't. You sleep off the booze, and I'll take care of the dishes, even though I've already had a hard day's work as it is. Tomorrow, we'll have a conversation about what you do to make up for this. Apparently, you''ll just keep ignoring me if I don't start seriously disciplining you!”

Marie turned over in bed as her mother closed the door. She listened as angry footsteps marched over to the kitchen and began loudly washing the dishes. It just wasn't fair. Marie had worked hard all the way through school, and especially with her final exams. Even a Communications Major takes a lot of long hours of study to complete. Was it so much to ask that she have a short period of living stress free between long years of stress and aggravation? She drifted off to sleep with these thoughts swirling in her mind.

The next morning, Marie was awakened by her mother barging into her room entirely unannounced. Marie sat up in bed with a sudden start. She glanced at her clock. It was only 6:30am. Her mother stood in front of the bed with fists on her hips, looking ready to kill.

“Wh-what? Mom, its way too early!” complained Marie, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

“I don't care, young lady. You are going to learn to treat me with respect and follow my instructions. Today is your first day of punishment, and the punishments will keep coming until I've decided that you've learned your lesson. Is that understood?”

Marie knew that she was completely stuck here. She was deep in debt and completely at her mother's mercy financially. She gritted her teeth and sighed again. “Yes, mother.” she said sullenly.

“I told you I don't care for all your theatrical sighing. You're the one being unreasonable here, young lady. Just for that, I've added another punishment to today's schedule.”

Marie was horrified. “That is totally uncalled for! You can't punish me for saying yes!”

“You do not decide what is and isn't appropriate, and you just earned another punishment! Now, are you going say “Yes ma'am” to me like you mean it, or do you need even more discipline?”

Marie took a second to parse that one out, but decided that being a smart-ass would just make things worse.

“Yes ma'am.” she said in her best meek voice. Her mother's face softened a little.

“Much better. I''ll give you a reward later for that. From now on, I'm going to reward you for all your good behavior, punish you for all your bad behavior, and hopefully you''l learn to do what is expected of you. Now, wait right there while I grab something from the kitchen.”

Marie sat in bed and waited for her mother to return. She had no idea what she might have in store for her, but she certainly sounded like she had devised something pretty devastating, and possibly creative. Marie heard the sounds of dishes being moved around in the kitchen, and the sink running. She struggled to guess what her mother might be thinking.

Her mother pushed the bedroom door open again with her back. She was holding a large wooden tray with stands on either side. Marie had never seen it before, but it looked like it was designed to serve breakfast in bed. Her mother glowered at her as she set it down in front of her.

“This is the first of your punishments. You are not leaving this bed until you finish every last bite!”

Her mother stood over her with folded arms as Marie stared what had been set in front of her. On the tray was a stack of fluffy blueberry pancakes, with butter and syrup. There were fresh blueberries piled on top and scattered around the rim of the plate. On the side were two pieces of toast with butter and raspberry jam, and a large cup of coffee with cream. Marie had no way to process what she was seeing. Her mother had never made her anything half so elaborate or delicious-looking before. It looked more like a breakfast from the picture on the back of a cereal box than anything she could actually picture herself eating.

She turned to mother, who was showing obvious annoyance.

“Okay, mom, what is the deal? What is this?” she asked, genuinely confused.

“That is your breakfast, young lady, and believe me, you will not get anything else! Now, dig in! I don't have all day, and I will watch you eat to make sure you don't cheat.”

Marie eyed the breakfast, wondering when the other shoe would drop. Was there something wrong with the food? Was it poisonous, or full of castor oil, or some other trick? Marie really didn't want to eat any of it, even though it looked and smelled fantastic. Gingerly, she picked up a fork and carved a tiny piece of the stack of pancakes.

“Hurry it up. I have other things that need my attention today.” said her mother, tapping her foot.

Marie brought the fork to her mouth and slowly chewed, searching around with her tongue for anything out of the ordinary. Eventually, she swallowed. It was absolutely delicious. She found herself eating bite after bite, still wondering when the other shoe would drop. She slowly finished the entire breakfast, and she could find nothing wrong with it. She was full now, but only full enough to feel really satisfied. What the hell?

“Finally. I'll just put these dishes away, and then I'll be back with rest of your punishment.” her mother said, as she lifted the tray off Marie and carried it away. Marie sat dumbfounded. What the hell was her mother even thinking? The next part of the punishment would make it all make sense, she was certain. So far, this felt more like a reward than a punishment. Her mother returned.

“Alright, now hold still. Just remember, Mommy only punishes you because she  loves you! This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you.”

Marie winced and shut her eyes. The anticipation, and the confusion, were worse than anything. She tried to imagine what on her mother could have in mind, but she simply couldn't think of anything that would make what she had just heard make sense. She felt the covers being lifted off her feet.

“Just relax, honey, it'll be over soon enough.”

And with that, Marie's mother proceeded to give her the longest foot massage she had ever had.

At first, it felt rather uncomfortable, but once she relaxed as her mother had told her to, Marie began, reluctantly, enjoy the feeling of mother gently rubbing and pressing her feet. It really seemed like she had been taking classes or something. It was easily the best foot rub she had ever gotten, but she kept wondering how in the world her mother had decided to do this as a punishment.

“Now, I would have stopped here, but you need to remember to watch your tone of voice when addressing me, so I've added a few more minutes. Don't you wish you'd been more respectful now?” her mother said as she gently squeezed each of her daughter's toes. Despite her confusion, Marie felt the stress and worry she had been carrying melt away. Finally, her mother pulled the covers down over her feet.

“There. I hope you absorbed this lesson young lady, because the next time you misbehave, you'll get the same, or a lot worse! Now, stay in bed and think about what you did. I don't want to see out of bed until noon! Is that clear?”

Marie stared at her mother in utter shock and disbelief. She was certain that at least one of them had completely lost it.

“I said, 'is that clear!', and I expect a response.” she growled.

“...yes, ma'am.” said Marie, still very frightened.

Her mother turned and headed for the door, but then stopped. “I almost forgot. I promised you a reward for following instructions properly, and I'll keep my word.” With that her mother snatched a small vase off Marie's dresser. Marie had brought it back as a souvenir from her gap-year trip to Italy. Her mother smiled warmly as she suddenly threw it against the wall, shattering it completely. Marie shrieked in distress and surprise and her mother destroyed her prized possession.

“There. See honey. Mommy can be sweet and nice if you're sweet and nice to me. Bye-bye for now.”

Marie stared as her mother gently closed the door behind her.

Marie sat in bed, trying to piece together what she had just experienced. Had her mother actually lost her mind, or was this all some kind of elaborate mind game? If she was reading the events correctly, her mother was rewarding her for bad behavior and punishing her for good behavior. Stranger still, her mother was giving a very convincing performance of genuinely thinking that being served breakfast in bed and getting a foot massage were actual grueling punishments. Why? How? She couldn't account for any of it.

Marie began to wonder if she should actually stay in bed as her mother had said. After all, according to the opposite day system her mother had laid out, doing what she was told was the reason she had just lost her favorite conversation piece. Besides, her mother had been nagging her to look for a job all month, so why was she suddenly demanding that she sleep in like a slob? She decided, upon reflection, that she should probably get up and get dressed, just to see how her mom would react.

A few minutes later, Marie left her room and headed down the hall to brush her teeth. Despite her earlier conviction, Marie found herself sneaking, hoping her mother wouldn't notice her. She was frightened now. With all this bizarre behavior, she had no way to predict what her mom might do next.

She reached the bathroom safely, and brushed her teeth and got herself ready for the day, all while doing her best to keep as quiet as possible. She gently opened the door, planning to slip out of the house when her mom wasn't looking. The door swung away, revealing her mom with a face like thunder.

“Did not just tell you to stay in bed until noon?” she said, overemphasizing every single word.

“I...I didn't think you were serious! Why would you want me to...” I started, but she cut me off.

“I would expect that what I put you through this morning would convince you that I am perfectly serious, but apparently not! I guess you need an even bigger punishment to persuade you to listen to me when I tell you to do something!”

She advanced on Marie, who found herself shrinking away from the taller, stronger woman. Marie was genuinely frightened now. It seemed that her mother was not merely playing a prank, but had genuinely lost her mind.

“Mom, this...this isn't right! Something really weird is happening! You need to stop.”

“Turn around, young lady.” her mother commanded.

“Wh...what?” Marie squeaked in terror.

“You heard me. Turn around, right now.”

Marie found herself obeying, almost without conscious thought. Her mother was so forceful and dominant that she couldn't think of doing otherwise.

“Bend over.” she ordered.

Marie knew exactly what her mother intended, unthinkable though it was.

“Mom, you can't do that! I'm a grown woman! This is insane!”

“Do as I say right now, or you'll be having them on your bare butt! Do you hear me?”

Whimpering in terror and confusion, Marie bent forward. She winced as she waited for the first blow to land.

She felt her mother's face press into her soft butt-cheek, and felt a light suction on the back of her jeans. With growing horror, Marie realized that her mom was kissing her butt. She kept going, planting full, passionate kisses one after another. She did five on one cheek, then five more on the other. Then she began rubbing the cheeks with her hand, as though to dull the pain.

“There. Ten is enough for now. Hopefully it will not be necessary to do any more today.”

Marie stared at her mother, unsure what to do now, or how to feel about what had just happened.

“Well? Have you learned your lesson? Are you going to behave now?” her mother demanded imperiously.

Marie did the only thing that made sense. She ran.

She slipped past her mother and rushed out of the house. She couldn't imagine what had gone so wrong that her mother believed that it was appropriate for her to literally kiss her ass, but she knew she needed to get as far from her mother as she possibly could right now.

She jumped into her car and sped out of the neighborhood, her mother shouting at her to come back immediately.

As the neighborhood disappeared from her rear-view mirror, she realized that she was speeding due to panic, and tried to get herself under control. She decided to head to a nearby library to clear her head. While she was there, she decided, she could work on her resume and try to find some work. Her mom had been hounding her to get on with her life ever since she had returned from college, so she might as well. With enough of an income, she thought, she could even find an apartment or rent a little house of her own. Maybe she could call a Katie or Linda and see if they would be willing to halfsies on a little place with her.

Her next thought was that maybe this was the outcome her mom had been hoping for. Maybe it was all a scam to make staying at home seem less inviting. She discarded the thought. If that had been what she had been going for, she had gone about it in a really strange way.

Her next thought after that heavily featured the flashing blue and red lights in her rear-view mirrors and the sound of sirens.

“Crap.” she said to herself as she pulled over to the shoulder, the police cruiser pulling in behind her. She had been so distracted the last few minutes, she might easily have missed a stop sign or wandered in the lane. Maybe she had even been speeding. She couldn't actually think of the last speed limit sign she had seen. Once the vehicle was at a full stop, she fished out her license and registration, and pulled down her window.

The officer who approached her was a heavyset Hispanic woman. She seemed oddly happy for a cop. She approached with a big smile on her face and her ticket book in her hand.

“May I see your license and registration, please? Asked the officer in a warm, friendly voice. Marie handed hers over without a word.

The officer examined them without losing her pleasant demeanor. She handed them back.

“Do you know why I pulled you over today ma'am?” asked the officer.

Marie was not accustomed to dealing with the law. She didn't realize that this was a trap.

“Was I...was I going too fast? I'm sorry, I just...you wouldn't believe the morning I've had.” she blurted nervously.

“No ma'am. I've been following you for a couple blocks now. You've stayed just below the speed limit, and you've been observing all posted signs correctly. I am issuing you a ticket.”

Marie hunted through what the officer had told her for a clue to the reasoning involved, but she could had nothing. The officer wrote out a ticket and handed to her, her weird grin never fading.

Marie stared at the ticket. Under “Violation”, it simply read “Driving safely and courteously”. The fine was $150.

“This is a joke, right?” she asked.

The woman shook her head. “It's no joke ma'am. If you wish to contest the charges, call the number on the ticket and they'll set you a court date. Otherwise, the payment is due by the posted date. You have a great day, now!”

The officer turned to leave, but Marie wasn't finished.

“This is bullshit! You can't pull people over for no reason.”

The cop turned. “Ma'am, I've been quite courteous with you, and I expect you to do the same. That ticket is not up for discussion. Have a nice day.”

Marie sat in her car and stared at the ticket, unable to accept what her eyes were telling her. She checked her phone to make sure it wasn't April 1st. It was June.

Eventually, Marie stuck the bizarre slip of paper in her glove compartment, vowing never to actually pay it. What were they going to do, put her in jail for driving safely? That was an insane thought, but the more she considered what she had been through today, the more plausible it sounded. She shook her head to clear it and continued on her way.

She arrived the local library soon afterward. Like most libraries, this one had been gradually forced to move most of its actual books into long term storage to make room for more computer stations. With nothing else to do, she began working on her resume. Within a few hours, she had looked at several apartments for rent that might suit her needs, and made real progress on her job search. She felt a great sense of relief to be finally getting things done that she had been putting off. Her phone interrupted her, as it so often did. It was a text from Katie.

Katie: what up grl? you feelin ok? You really went all out last night.

Marie texted back. “Yeah, I'm ok. Wait til I tell you what my mom did this morning. Nfw will you believe me.

Katie: omg, tell me.

Marie: I'll tell ya later. im in the middle of something. We should hang out later.

Katie: soon

Marie was about to put her phone down and get back to work when she realized that someone was hovering over her. It was a stern-looking librarian.

“Ma'am, I'm going to have to ask you to leave.”

Marie was running out of patience today. “Oh my god, what? Is texting against library rules now?”

“Ma'am, you've been working quietly for several hours now, no one has complained, and I couldn't help but notice that you are accessing entirely appropriate websites exclusively. You must leave the library right away.”

Not this shit again, she thought. She shouted at the woman. “Has everyone lost their fucking minds? What is wrong with you?”

The woman shook her head and sighed. “It's too late to make a scene, ma'am. I asked you to leave. If you refuse, I will contact the authorities.”

Marie stood up and left. Everything she had done was saved as an attachment in her e-mail, so she wasn't actually losing her progress. She just wished she understood why everyone was acting so strangely.

When she reached her car, she found a parking ticket waiting for her. Exasperated, she snatched it off her windshield and read it.

“Vehicle parked correctly? A hundred and eighty bucks!” she shouted aloud, causing a few passers-by to stop and stare at her.

“What the fuck do you assholes want?” she screamed at them. They glared at her, but then continued on their way as though nothing had happened.

The parking ticket joined the traffic ticket in her glove box. “I hope they fuck each other give birth to little ticket babies!” she snarled as she drove away. She decided to head to the local park and try to clear her head.

As she drove, she began to calm down and look at her situation more rationally. This made her angry all over again. She could have written off these odd events when it was just her mom, but now a clear pattern had emerged. Somehow, the rules of the world that she had become accustomed to had changed. No, more like flipped over. As insane as it seemed, she realized that in order to get anywhere, she would have to adapt to the new order of things.

As she drove, she carefully began sprinkling minor traffic violations into her driving routine. She ignored stop signs whenever it was reasonable to do so. She weaved in and out of her lane whenever she felt it was safe. She honked the horn randomly and frequently. When she reached the park, she twisted up her courage and drove straight across the sidewalk and parked on the grass, leaving deep tire-tracks behind her. As she she got out,she realized that she was really starting to enjoy herself. She decided that she might get arrested or fined for her outrageous behavior, but at least then the universe would make sense again

“Excuse me ma'am! Is that your car?” Marie turned and saw a middle-aged white woman who was walking a little gray dog on a leash. It was perfectly obvious that it was her car, and the woman obviously knew this.

“Ma'am, this park is public property. It belongs to all of us. When you damage and mistreat it like this, it is a slap in the face to all of us who pay our taxes and care about our community.”

Marie felt bad, and even opened her mouth to apologize. But then she realized that that being nice and following rules had gotten her nothing but trouble today. She searched her soul for the right words to say.

“Fuck off and mind your own business you nosy bitch!” she snarled.

Even as she said it, she couldn't believe what she had just said. This wasn't like the library or the tickets after all. This woman had seen her do something completely unacceptable, and was standing up to her on behalf of the society that she had wronged. She didn't deserve this.

“That's it!” she shouted. “Here! This is what you deserve!”

Marie flinched. The woman didn't seem like the type to just straight up slap someone, but she had pushed her pretty hard.

Nothing happened. Marie opened her eyes. The woman was holding out what looked like a chocolate milkshake with whipped cream and chocolate syrup topping.

“What is that?” she asked.

“Iced Machiatto. Take that!” she answered angrily. Marie did take that. The woman walked past her and continued walking her dog.

The iced coffee even had a straw with a stub of wrapper on the tip, as though it had just come from a coffee shop. Marie looked around. There wasn't a coffee shop anywhere around, and she was sure the woman hadn't been carrying it when she had walked up. Even putting aside how odd the woman's behavior was (a herculean task by itself), where the hell had the coffee come from? She sipped it. Mysterious origins or no, it was incredibly good.

With nothing better to do, Marie decided to wander around the park and experiment, trying to get a grip on her situation.

She walked up to a young couple that were making out on a park bench. On a whim, she decided to push them apart and pull the man into a big kiss. They were both furious. So angry, in fact, that they decided to wash her car.

She stole a briefcase from a passing businessman, and used it to bean him over the head. He demanded that she accept the contents of his wallet.

Marie finished her iced coffee, counting out $683 into her wallet, and watched as two people she had never met furiously washed and waxed her car. She didn't know where the sponges, buckets of water, and other supplies they were using had come from. They had seemingly materialized from nowhere when her back was turned.

“Really put a shine on that windshield!” said the woman who's boyfriend she had kissed. “That'll teach the bitch!”

“You bet, sweetheart. Circular motion is the key!” he responded. When they were finished, they simply wandered away together. Marie was left dumbfounded.

What the fuck was this? Had she made a really weird wish upon a star and then forgotten? Had she angered an evil but absent-minded witch?

She decided that she needed to talk to someone about this. She texted Katie.

Marie: Need to talk to someone. It's really important. Are you free?

Katie: always got time for you babe. Where?

Marie glanced around. She spotted a Vietnamese restaurant nearby.

Marie: Have you ever been to Pho Love or Money?

Katie: i luv pho!

Katie: but ehh

Katie: yur treat? :(

Marie decided that she could easily cover it.

Marie: My treat. :)

Katie: be right there.

Marie ended up waiting alone at Pho Love or Money for about an hour. Marie loved Katie, but she wasn't the most punctual gal. She passed the time by knocking over a couple of decorative plants, throwing her ice water on the floor, and loudly telling a small family that was eating nearby to get fucked. The staff were not pleased. By the time Kate showed up, their table was covered in complimentary appetizers and desserts.

“Whoa! Sorry I'm late, but I didn't think you'd just start without me.” she said when she spotted Marie.

“Haven't even ordered yet. This is all complimentary. Sit down, we're gonna have a feast!”

Katie sat down and the two of them ordered their pho.

“Whats with the waiter? He looks really pissed about something.” asked Katie as the gentleman in question sped away.

“That's part of what I wanted to talk to you about. I've really had kind of a weird day, and I need someone to bounce ideas off of.”

“Pffft. For a free lunch, I'll listen to anything you want. What's up?” she answered.

“One quick thing before I tell you.” Marie reached across the table and gave Katie a hard slap across the face.

“Ow! What the fuck Marie?! That hurt!”

“Sorry, I just needed to check something. Now tell me, how did that slap make you feel?”

Katie stared at her as though she had lost her mind. She took a deep breath, then answered carefully, enunciating each word.

“It hurt. It made me feel very angry at you. What did you fucking expect?”

Marie nodded. “Right, sure. But what does it make you want to do?

Katie thought about it. “I guess it makes me want to...give you a back rub.”

Marie stared for a moment. “And that makes sense to you? That seems like a reasonable response?”

Katie shrugged. “I mean, I'm not actually gonna do it, since you were so nice inviting me to lunch like this.”

Marie leaned forward. “So, when I offered to pay for lunch, what did that make you want to do?”

Katie looked surprised. “Huh? I guess I was planning on slashing your tires.”

Marie buried her face in hands. “What?”

“Well, it was really nice of you, so I wanted to pay you back.” she explained.

“By slashing my tires?” Marie wasn't even upset anymore. Just amused.

“Well, you can forget it now! After slapping me like that, I wouldn't slash your tires if my life depended on it!”

Marie started laughing. She just couldn't help herself.

“What is so funny?” asked Katie. She clearly had no idea that anything was amiss.

“Okay, let me try something else.” said Marie, trying to control her giggling. “If someone slashed your tires, how would that make you feel?”

Katie eyed her suspiciously. “You're not gonna do that are you? I would be so fucking pissed!”

Marie threw her hands up in a consoling gesture. “Purely hypothetical, but...if I did, what would you do then?”

Katie pinched the bridge of her nose. “I don't know, I guess I would have to...be your maid for like a week.”

“That would sure show me.” said Marie dryly.

Their soups arrived. Katie thanked the waiter nicely as her steaming bowl of pho was set down. Marie told the waiter to fuck off and die. He muttered angrily to himself as he left.

“What did he do? Why were you so awful to him?” asked Katie.

Not seeing much alternative, Marie decided to go for broke.

“He didn't do anything. He's probably a nice guy really. It's just that all day today, I keep getting rewarded for being bad, and punished for being good.”

Katie cocked an eyebrow. “Uhhh, wha...?”

“Yeah, weird. I know. No one seems to notice except me. Even you're being affected, though you don't realize it.” Marie informed her.

Katie squinted. “So...how does that work?”

“Whenever I'm mean, or rude, or break a rule of some kind, people still get angry, but then they want to do something nice for me. And if I'm nice, or even just act normal, people do something shitty to me. And no, I have no idea why.”

Katie just stared at her.

“You don't believe me do you?” asked Marie.

“Ya seee...I didn't at first, but now that I really think about, I can't see a hole in your logic.”

Marie's eyes widened. Maybe there was hope after all.

“Like, you understand how slashing somebody's tires is a bad thing?”

Katie furrowed her brow. “Yeah, a bad thing. And...I was going to do that for you, because you bought me lunch.”

“Exactly!” said Marie, getting excited. “That's insane isn't it?”

“Yeah...but it still really feels right.” she finished.

Marie's enthusiasm faded. She didn't feel like she was making much headway here.

“Alright, I understand. That's probably a lot to deal with. Let me ask you something else.”

Katie waited for Marie to speak in uncharacteristic silence. She seemed to still be trying to parse out what Marie had just told her.

“Considering that we're both, y'know, in the same boat finance-wise...would you be interested in getting a place together? Like, going halfsies on the rent?”

Katie winced. This subject seemed to make her even more uncomfortable than the last one. “Like, where were you thinking?”

“I'm not sure.” admitted Marie. “I was looking at a few places nearby that I think could work. We'd still get to hang out a lot, and we'd have a lot more freedom without any parents breathing down our necks.”

“I'm not sure I could cover the rent on an apartment. I don't, like, have a job or anything.” said Katie nervously.

“That's fine. We don't have to make any decisions right now. I'm just floating the idea because I thought you might be interested. Y'know, looking for work and finding a place to live are hard. It'd be a lot easier if I had someone to talk to who was going through the same kind of process.”

“Wow. Gotta say, I'm surprised. I'm not used to hearing you sound like...y'know.”

“What?” said Marie, chuckling a little.

“Like a...grown-up.” said Katie, blushing a little.

“You can just say adult. It won't hurt.”

The tension between the two women eased as they finished their meals. Marie decided not to leave a tip, worried that she might get punched if she did. They left the restaurant.

“You want to come by my place later? We can check out apartments.” offered Marie.

“Yeah, I think I'd like that. Doesn't your mom usually get upset if you have company over though?” said Katie

“I don't think it'll be a problem tonight. You can even stay the night if you'd like.” said Marie.

“Thanks, that sounds great!” said Katie, heading for her car.

Marie decided to return home for the day, dragging another set of tire marks across the grass. Thanks to her erratic driving and lack of turn signals, she managed to avoid another encounter with the police. She decided that if she could just sprinkle enough mundane violations into her daily routine without committing any ostentatious crimes, she wouldn't be bothered.

It seemed to work. She parked in front of the neighbor's mailbox rather than using her mother's driveway, just to be safe.

Inside, she found her mother on the couch, watching the news. She ignored Marie as she sat down.

“How was your day?” said Marie, trying to break the ice.

“Well, my daughter ran out of the house when I tried to convince her to do her fair share of the household chores, but apart from that, it's been pretty quiet.”

“I ran away because you for some reason decided that I needed to stay in bed half the day, then started kissing my butt because I refused.” said Marie, hoping that she could get her mother to see the problem.

“I know, and I'm sorry I had to resort to that, but Marie, you've just been impossible lately. You neglect your chores, so of course I had to give you breakfast in bed and make you sure you sleep in and be lazy. Even kissing your ass didn't make you listen me. I'm at my wits end here.”

Whatever was causing this, it seemed that trying to make people aware of it wouldn't help. Marie just sighed and decided to keep using it to her advantage.

“More sighing? I've told you how angry that makes me, Marie.”

“What are you going to do this time? Feed me cookies? Clean my room?”

“Don't put it past me. If you don't straighten up, I'm going to pull out the big guns.”

“Mom, I've decided to move out. You've convinced me. This just isn't working.”

“Move out? I thought you said you couldn't afford it.” her mother said.

“I have some good job prospects. I polished up my resume and started sending it out this morning. Katie and I were just talking about getting an apartment together. I'm finally getting out on my own, so you won't have to worry anymore.”

Her mom's entire demeanor changed. “Oh Marie, I'll miss you so much, but I'm glad you're getting out of your funk and moving on with your life. You're being so mature. I just have to give you a proper reward!”

Marie realized her mistake. “Uhh, that's not necessary, mom. Aren't you mad that I'm leaving you here all alone? Maybe you should punish me instead!”

“Oh nonsense! You're becoming a mature responsible woman, and I know exactly what you deserve for that! Come on honey!”

She grabbed Marie's hand and dragged her toward the bedroom. Marie struggled, but her mother was so enthusiastic that she found herself unable to resist.

The bedroom was nothing like what it had been when she left that morning. The furniture and decor had transformed entirely. Where once had been a sensible bed, and small dresser, there was now a light pink crib, sitting opposite a well-stocked changing table. The whole room smelt of baby powder. Strangely, her posters were still on the walls, and her alarm clock  and copy of “The Audacity of Hope” were still sitting on her end table where she had left them, now totally incongruous with the babyish decor.

“Marie, there's one thing I can do to properly reward you for being so mature and independent.”

She opened a drawer and retrieved something. “And that's to put you back in diapers!”

Marie stared aghast at her mother. Certainly, there was a part of her that wanted to flee from the room, get a hotel somewhere, and never speak to her mother again until she could find a way to rid herself of whatever bizarre curse she was under. The trouble was, her mother was smiling. She was beaming with maternal pride and approval, even as she held an enormous diaper and patted the top of the changing table. There were endless things that Marie could do that would certainly change her mother's mind, but all of them would destroy that pure joy she was experiencing. In her mind, this situation was totally reasonable. Marie decided that if this is what it took to make her mom happy, she could afford to play along a little.

“Really mom? Diapers? Why?” she asked.

“Well, if you insist on acting like an adult, I have to treat you like one! That means no more panties, and no more using the potty. My big grown-up girl needs her mommy to change her big grown-up diapees! Now quit dragging your feet and get on the changing table!”

Marie nervously did as her mother asked. She felt horribly embarrassed, of course, but something about the situation excited her. There was something so soothing about being the absolute center of her mother's attention, of feeling the warm, loving approval radiate off of her. She just wished it didn't involve her mom pulling off her pants and exposing her completely.

She closed her eyes as her mom pulled her panties down. She heard a rustle as they landed in her new diaper genie.

“Yucky, yucky, yuck!” said her mother as she unfolded the diaper. “Those thin little panties are no good at all! Nothing but nice, thick diapers for my big girl, from now on!”

Marie winced as as her mother slid the thick diaper under her. She decided that she definitely needed to get to the bottom of whatever was happening. Going by the day's inverted logic, her mother was punishing her for her mature behavior. But how far did that extend? What would happen if she did something really good, or really bad? She just sat back and tried to relax as she was rubbed lovingly with baby oil, powdered, and taped up.

“There!” announced her mother joyfully. “Now, be sure to keep that diaper uncovered so that everyone can see what a responsible, independent daughter I have!”

Marie grinned. “Sure Mom. No problem.” As embarrassed as she was, the uncomplicated love and attention she was receiving really made her feel good. She was starting to think that there might be a way to make this curse work for her.

Her mom bustled off, leaving Marie in what remained of her bedroom. She hopped over the side of her new crib and lay down among the pillows and stuffed animals. The diaper was incredibly comfortable. She squeezed the thick padding between her legs and licked her lips. If this was a punishment, it was one she could live with. Provided, of course, that no one saw her.

She heard a light knock on the front door, and remembered that she had invited to Katie to drop by this evening. This would be the one time she showed up on time.