RegressCo - How Do You Manage? (Patreon)

Izzy is just getting the last of her work done before lunchtime with Jonathan, but a broken printer results in an impromptu team catch-up

RegressCo - How Do You Manage?

“Izzy, can I have those quarterly marketing expenditure reports on my desk by the end of the day please”

“Will do Owen. They’re basically done, I’ve just got to get myself ready for lunch here but…” Izzy looked down at the bag that she had under her desk. It was Jonathan’s diaper bag, his bottle poking out of one of the side pockets “... should be done in a few”

She pulled up the various files on her computer, compiling them together and sending them to the printer. Getting up from her seat she grabbed the bag as she left, preparing to make her way down to the cafeteria once this was all done.

It looked like everyone was trying to do the same thing. The copier was surrounded by her colleagues, none of them looking especially happy.

“Come on, really? Didn’t we refill the toner yesterday?” a tall, male wolf was trying to tap at some of the buttons on the printer, clearly trying to resolve an error.

“Harry, stop complaining. Just check to see if it's the right way round.” a colleague responded, a wolf of similar stature but dressed in a business suit and skirt.

“I already did Patty.”

Izzy looked to her right, making eye contact with another of her colleagues. The badger was rolling her eyes watching the two of them, her arms crossed and her hands tapping on her elbows.

“How long have you been waiting for Sam?”

The badger sighed “About ten minutes. These two have been at it the whole time. First it was a paper jam, now it’s the toner”

“Haven’t they just called I.T?”

She smiled a bit “They did, it’s “naptime” apparently. That’s what happens when an entire department gets regressed at once I guess”

Izzy smiled back “No wonder Johnny's having trouble getting in touch with them. He complains about it nearly every day.”

Sam relaxed a little, breaking her focus on the argument in front of her and turning to face Izzy “How is Johnny? You two seemed to be having a fun chat outside during the fire drill”

“He’s great actually! Started growing back up again on the way down. Hopefully he’ll be back to his old self in no time”

“Awww, he was a cutie.” she winked “You got lucky with him, not everyone was that adorable at that age”

“Heh, you wouldn’t be saying that if you were changing him every day” she patted the diaper bag “At least I don’t think he’ll need the bottle feeding later…”

“Oh that’s silly! You know Millie has been regressed for a year now right? I must have changed thousands of diapers by now and it’s just an opportunity to make her giggle! Lots of tickles and tummy raspberries… PPPPFFTTT!” she enthusiastically pretended to make the noise, giggling herself at her own enthusiasm.

“You almost sound like you wanted it to happen!”

Sam chuckled “Maybe a little. I just think regressees sometimes have a hard time, you know? We want them to do jobs, keep being adults, but clearly they just need some time to be a kid again.” she sighed “I don’t mind changing a few diapers if it makes Millie happy…”

“Any idea if she’s ready for potty training yet?”

“No chance! She’s such a cutie though that I don’t mind. Last weekend we went to the zoo right, and every time she saw a new animal she giggled and jumped around like it was the best thing in the world. Can’t believe we didn’t do that sooner.”

“STUPID MACHINE!” Harry slammed his fist in the side of the printer and growled.

“Harry! I know you’re still adjusting, but a tantrum is entirely uncalled for!” Patty put her hands on her hips, looking back at the two women in the queue behind her “Sorry, I think the printer’s going to be out of order for a little while…”

“I can fix it, just… hang on a minute…” the wolf started pressing a few buttons as a test page began to work its way out of the system “A-ha!”

“Good job kiddo!” Sam clapped her hands together before catching herself “So..Sorry Harry. Gotta get used to you being, you know… an adult again”

The wolf looked back at the badger with a fierce look on his face, going to respond before catching himself. He closed his eyes, his muzzle visibly moving as if counting to five. A long sigh came from his muzzle, breaking the silence his reaction had caused.

“It… it’s alright Sam. Patty is doing her best to help me with this stupid… with the printer. It’s been playing up all morning”

Patty put her hands on her hips again and tutted “It would definitely be in better shape if you hadn’t hit it three times. I don’t know what got into you when you were waist high but I’m not above finding somewhere to put a time-out stool”

The three women giggled as Harry visibly blushed, his gaze moving back to the printer as a few more pages started worming their way out. Izzy had always found her colleagues a funny bunch to be with at times like these. They’d all been here when she’d joined the company three years ago, a motley bunch of differing approaches to work and life that somehow seamlessly managed to market RegressCo products to Hazelbrooks residents. All under the leadership of Owen, their manager, a man who could not be more of a traditional businessman unless he wore a bowler hat.

“How’s your adjustment going Harry? All potty trained now?”

Sam’s question made the wolf's fur visibly stick up on end.

“He was trained before he even came back into work” Patty said curtly “I wasn’t letting my big brother stay in diapers any longer than he needed to. I cook for him at home already, I’m not changing his diapers for months as well”

“You could’ve been a little more understanding” Harry responded “It’s not like I wanted to be stuck back in toddlerhood.”

Patty pressed a few buttons and looked back at him “Oh? You seemed rather disappointed when I put you straight into training pants. Don’t think I didn’t see you looking eagerly at the Ranchers on the other shelf the first time we went shopping”

“I was not!” Harry’s blush returned, his voice breaking as his quick denial was met with a new round of chuckles.

“Oh, and the first morning after it happened? He slept in a travel cot next to my bed, since I couldn’t risk rolling onto him, and I woke up to see him grabbing the side of the thing and squatting down…”

“Patty! Ple…”

“You made zero attempt to tell me you needed to potty, and don’t think I didn’t see that little wiggle of your butt and wag of your tail when you were done…”

The wolf's blush was scarlet now, his tail curling fully round his leg as guilt visibly spread across his face “It… it was a new feeling and…”

The rest of protestations were drowned out by giggles as the wolf grabbed the rest of his papers.

Patty shook her head “You girls don’t know half of it. Sure, here I tried to be hands off as Owen knew what he wanted from him, but at home? He was still an adult inside and I expected him to act like one” her voice was firm, unflinching.

Izzy grimaced a little “That seems a little much Patricia. Jonathan definitely wasn’t ready for trainers when he regressed…”

Pat turned to face the possum “I think he played you Izzy. Boys love to get attention, just tell them they’re not getting it and they’ll be back to adulthood in a fortnight, isn’t that right Harry?”

Harry had started walking back towards his desk, but looked back in to glare at his sister “It was three weeks, actually”

Patty laughed “Scrap that, maybe he never grew up”

Harry stuck his tongue out before his eyes went wide as his childish response merely elicited further giggles from the girls. He headed back to his chair with his tail wrapping around his legs, leaving the three women around the printer.

“I don’t think I could treat Johnny like that though…” Izzy looked back down at the bag, another wistful look coming over her “He was so… vulnerable. He struggled to do so much, and I could tell he was trying…”

Patty seemed to drop her guard a little as the final few pages of her work started coming out of the printer “I don’t think either of you are bad caretakers or anything. But I’ve read enough to know that a lot of regressees are more than happy to stay that way. I wasn’t giving Harry the opportunity given he was already avoiding pulling his weight.” she stapled her pages together and gave them a quick flick through.

Sam had walked up to the printer herself as Patty stepped aside “I get you, you want what’s best for Harry, but I think for me and Millie this is working great!” she pressed a few buttons as the printer started up and turned to face Izzy “Oh! Did Johnny like that Teddies Best Friend Bear I got him for his birthday Izzy? Millie loves hers, she can’t go anywhere without it!”

Guilt flashed across Izzy’s face “Well ummm... well Johnny didn’t like it very much”

That was definitely a lie. He more than just “didn’t like it”. Her husband had told her it was “making him feel funny” and she had to admit that it’s eyes had a weirdly eerie quality to them that was distinctly unsettling. Those teddies were designed to be like miniature caretakers, able to change charges and feed them on a set schedule. Some models were even “responsive” able to react to the way babies or regressees were acting and providing some suitable support. But neither Johnny or Izzy had really liked the thing, and it was currently sitting at the back of a wardrobe, under a pile of other presents Johnny had played with for five minutes before going back to his fidget cube.

“Awww, well when I got it for Millie, she fell in love with it straight away. I remember her talking in her sleep to it, saying that she felt so safe and happy with “Mr Tumbles”. One time, I saw her sitting down playing with her plushies, and she’d made it the king of a little court! She’d tell it what a good job she’d done making a macaroni card and using her diapers and…”

“Ok, ok, it’s a good friend, I get it” Patty was visibly wincing. “I gave Harry the chance to buy a plush toy to help him sleep and he picked out a lion…”

“Oh! The one on his desk?” Sam interrupted.

“Yup, that’s the one.” she called over to her brother “How’s Maney bro?”

“He’s good!” the wolf responded “Just…” he turned to face the group with a wide eye and a blush before huffing and going back to his work.

“That little thing caused no end of problems. He wanted it to go with him to the potty every time. I tried to stop it at first but gave up after he ran with it behind the couch and…”

“I can hear you Patty!” Harry shouted back towards the group “It was one time!”

She shook her head “One time was enough. Teddies Trainers don’t take well to wolves deciding to let their lunch out the southern exit”

Sam was in fits of giggles “Oh honestly, you should’ve just let him wear diapers. Izzy did with Johnny and he’s growing up again now right?”

Izzy nodded “Honestly it was good timing. We’d been thinking about buying some more permanent furniture so this saves us some cash.”

Sam nodded “Yeah getting all that gear for Millie was definitely a hit to the old finances. But her job paid out some severance to fill her position so we got a little bit to help there.”

“Yeah, I was walking around the store with Johnny a week ago and he just groaned at every suggestion. I swear he was trying to get me to avoid buying anything.” she thought for a second before a look of realization went across her face “Oh that cheeky little fox, that’s why he kept saying he wanted the potty!”

“Well at least he’s asking!” both the girls said in unison behind another set of giggles. Sam’s printing job had finished and she was grabbing the last of her papers, stapling them together. Izzy walked up to the printer and logged in, confirming a few details while the girls carried on their conversation behind her.

“What about Owen? Didn’t his room-mate regress again recently?” Patty asked “Haven’t heard much from him since he had the first day off”

Sam shook her head “Owen is all business, you know that. I imagine he’s got a big whiteboard up with a schedule like his house is a day-care for one!”

“Yeah but you know he’s got the hots for Ben right? Like, come on, you've seen them at the staff picnics?” Izzy responded

Patty shook her head “Even if he does, they seem to exchange time being regressed. Wasn’t it a three week gap or something last time? They can hardly have a relationship if that keeps happening.”

“True…” Izzy said thoughtfully “At least they seem to get on well enough to be each other's support when it hap…”

“Everything ok ladies?”

At some point in the conversation, Owen had stepped out of his office and headed their way. How long he’d been in earshot Izzy couldn’t tell, but the other women were all looking as guilty as her. The stallion was a good foot taller than anyone else on her team and his exceptionally well kept suit and tie simply added to the feeling of panic that came across Izzy’s face as she tried to segway out of the subject.

“Ye… yeah! Harry fixed the printer a few minutes ago and I’m just getting those reports ready for you sir!” she tried to hide her embarrassment behind enthusiasm, hoping he wouldn’t notice.

“Good to hear, that thing has been playing up all morning.” he started walking towards the water cooler at the end of the corridor, apparently satisfied.

“How’s Ben by the way?” Sam asked, trying to get an answer to the present question at hand, whether Owen had heard anything or not. Izzy and Patty both gave her a little look of annoyance, desperate to try to get away from the embarrassment of the situation.

“He’s fine.” Owen said briskly, stopping and turning to face them “Keeps himself out of trouble, has been back at work doing deliveries for a while now”

“Did he get the present I gave you?” Sam continued. Izzy raised an eyebrow, just how many presents was this woman buying?

“Oh that bear? It’s sitting on his bed right now. Helps him sleep apparently.” he shook his head “I don’t let him take it anywhere with him though, no matter how much he asks. Seems to distract him from using the toilet if I put it in the playpen”

“Awwww, Millie loves hers…”

“Ben just needs a bit of a hand getting through this. He tells me when he needs something, I’m not checking up on him every hour to see if wants another chocolate bar or a change.” He turned back around again “Toy’s don’t help there. He’s got plenty of stuff he can still do even when he’s waddling around in a wet diaper”.

“You let him just do chores in a wet diaper?” Concern was audible in Sam’s voice.

“One wetting isn’t worth a change” he responded “Besides it helps him learn that he shouldn’t be in diapers.” he shook his head “Patricia had the right idea with Harry, I’ve never had to worry about him getting distracted with something and wetting himself on the clock”

“I’m sitting right here you know!” Harry shouted from his desk.

“Oh shush baby, it’s a compliment” Patty called back.

“Besides” Owen continued, a little smirk going across his long muzzle “When Ben’s all grown up again, I’m not taking a little stinker out to a fancy restaurant for our first date” he winked before walking back towards his original destination, a water cooler at the end of the room.

The girls all looked at each other with wide eyes. He’d definitely heard them.

“That did not just happen” Izzy whispered, grabbing her papers as quickly as she could.

“Oh it happened” Patty responded “Well, that’s one mystery solved.”

Izzy stapled the reports together and started walking towards Owens office as the two girls started making their way back to their desks as well.

“I’ve got to leave these on Owen’s desk and head to lunch. Maybe I’ll offer to bottle feed Johnny and see if wants to have a last one before he goes back to regular solids”

“Good idea!”

“Bad idea”

The two girls responded with different answers at the same time, taking Izzy aback. Patty clarified first.

“He’s getting older, treat him like he’s older. Don’t indulge the parts of him he’s going to leave behind again.”

“But bottle feeding is so fun!” Sam responded “Millie loves it when I bottle feed her, she comes over and makes this adorable gurgling noise round her pacifier whenever she wants her baba, and having your partner on your lap just… oh it makes my heart flutter just thinking about it!”

Izzy shook her head “I’ll ask him. He might want to, or he might not. I’ve given him a degree of control over the last few months and I think he’s done a good job of trying to get back to normal”

Both women looked at each other and smiled “You’re doing good Izzy” Sam said “Shame I won’t be able to babysit anymore… He was so cute when I fed him that one time…”

Izzy chuckled, “I’ll tell him that, though I’m not sure it’ll make him desperate for another…”

With that the three of them separated, Izzy heading towards the stairwell that led up to the cafeteria on the next floor up. Johnny was probably on his way as well. With a sigh she looked down at the bag and the bottle that was still poking out of the side, a little pang of sadness hitting at the idea that it might just get sent down the drain.

But maybe it wouldn’t...