…Anna, with Laura in the stroller again. Kaitlin walks over. Laura is fast asleep in the stroller, visibly drooling. Anna is talking to someone on the phone.
“Yes, I’ve just picked her up. We’ll be there soon.” Anna puts her phone away. She smiles at Kaitlin. “How was ballet?”
“Fun,” Kaitlin chirps. Anna’s smile broadens.
“I’m so glad to hear that! Come on, we need to get going.” Anna sets off. Kaitlin follows, jogging to keep up with Anna’s quick pace.
“Wath going on?” Kaitlin asks. “Did you get the cure?”
“I’ll explain everything in the car,” Anna says shortly. Kaitlin begrudgingly bites back her questions and follows Anna outside. Laura, still sleeping, is buckled into her car seat. As Anna picks her up from the stroller, she tuts. “Wet again. Babies her age go through diapers like crazy.” Kaitlin gets in the car and buckles up. Once they pull out of the parking lot, Kaitlin speaks again.
“Wath going on?” she repeats.
“Well, when you handed the dice to me, they bonded to me, losing any bond they had with you and Laura,” Anna explains. “I spoke to the nice man who runs the store, and unfortunately, the effects of the dice can only be reversed if they are still bonded to you.” Kaitlin’s blood runs cold.
“We’re thuck?” she whispers. Anna nods. “But-”
“Don’t worry, you’ll age normally. You’ll eventually reach your proper ages, but it’ll take a while.”
“What now?”
“The man is going to whip up a reality altering spell, one that will make it so that you’re supposed to be this young. Your old lives will effectively have never existed.” Anna smiles at Kaitlin in the rearview mirror. “But in your new lives, you’re going to be my grandkids!”
“What?” Kaitlin manages.
“The man and I had a lovely conversation. We decided that, since I know your situation, it would be best to keep the two of you near me in the new reality. And my daughter loved having you! It’s perfect. Her daughter Riley will get a twin sister, and her son Lucas will be a big brother!” Kaitlin sits silently, dumbfounded by the immense amount of information that has been dumped on her.
The car pulls up outside of a shop. Anna gets out of the car and removes Laura from her car seat. Laura opens her eyes at the movement.
“What happen?” she asks sleepily. Anna pets Laura’s head.
“Everything’s getting fixed up, sweetie. We’re at the magic shop.” Anna brings Laura inside. Dread building, but unwilling to leave Laura behind, Kaitlin follows. They walk up to the counter, where a man is busily doing something. He looks up.
“Anna, you brought the girls, good,” he says. He looks Laura and Kaitlin over. “The reality alteration should be easy. But before I-” The man cuts himself off. Laura is grunting slightly in Anna’s arms, her face red with effort. After a few moments, she lets out a soft sigh. Her diaper sags visibly and a rancid smell emits from her.
“Should I change her?” Anna asks. The man shakes his head.
“No need. This won’t take long. Like I was saying, before I set the spell in place, I need to know one thing.”
“What?”
“Laura and Kaitlin need to let me know how aware they want to be of the new reality. You've already asked to be aware, Anna, so I don't need your answer again.”
“New weel?” Laura asks.
“Unfortunately, you can’t be re-aged,” the man says. “So I’ll be rewriting reality to make it so you are supposed to be children.” Laura nods slowly. “You get to decide whether you’re aware that reality changed.”
“If we’re not aware, we won’t remember our old liveth?” Kaitlin asks. The man nods.
“You’ll be regular children, not knowing that you used to be adults,” he confirms. Laura and Kaitlin look at each other.