Before Laura can think of her next step, the officer picks her up and carries her over to a patrol car, where she is buckled into a car seat. They drive away. Laura sucks on the pacifier, now getting comfort from it, to her surprise. Eventually, they arrive at the police station.
Laura is removed from the car and carried inside, past the front desk, through the bullpen, and to a door with a sign reading “Childcare Center” on it. The officer opens the door and brings Laura over to the daycare worker at the front desk.
“Got an abandoned toddler for you,” the officer says, handing Laura over. “We don’t know anything about him yet, not even his name.”
“We might be able to get him to talk,” the daycare worker chirps. “Wow, he’s a big boy!”
“Yeah, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think he’s a kindergartener. But he’s not dressed like one.” The daycare worker squeezes Laura’s diaper and feels it squish.
“And most kindergarteners don’t wet diapers like this. I’ll get him changed. Thanks for dropping him off, and let me know if you figure anything out about him.”
“Will do.” The officer leaves. The daycare worker carries Laura over to the changing tables. Just as she’s laid on her back, Laura feels pressure in her bowels. She hurriedly spits out the pacifier to speak.
“Poopoo,” she says, doing her best toddler impression. The daycare worker raises an eyebrow at her. “Potty.”
“Oh! Does someone know how to ask to use the potty for poopy?” the daycare worker coos. Laura nods urgently. “No problem! Let’s get this diapy off first.” The daycare worker removes Laura’s clothes and diaper. Her eyes widen. “You’re a tomboy, huh? Don’t worry, we won’t make you wear girly clothes if you prefer boyish ones.” The daycare worker picks Laura up and sets her on a toddler training potty next to the changing table.
Laura immediately begins to push, grunting with effort. It’s more difficult than she expected to poop in front of someone, but she prefers pooping in a training potty over a diaper. The employee walks away while she’s still going and returns just as Laura finishes with a sigh.
“Hop up,” the daycare worker instructs. Laura stands up. The daycare worker wipes her down and has her step into a pair of training pants. “If you know how to ask for poopy, you probably don’t need a diapy during the day.” Laura merely nods silently, allowing the daycare worker to assume that the diaper was put on her for sleep.
“Go play with the others, okay?” the daycare worker says, nudging Laura in the direction of a small group of toddlers, all with visible diaper bulges. Laura walks over to them and sits down next to a boy who looks to be about three. The boy looks at Laura carefully. Laura eyes him back.
After a moment, the boy reaches into the pocket of his overalls, pulls something out, and holds it out for Laura to see. Her eyes widen. It’s a pair of dice, identical to the ones that put her in this situation.
“The dice shrunk you, too?” she whispers to the boy. The boy nods. “What’s your name?”
“Mason.” The boy huffs. “I got on train to go store, but worker called cops.” His speaking ability seems to have been reduced due to his regression. “Now I stuck.” He gets to his feet and squats, wetting his diaper. He sits back down. “No potty training left.” Laura swallows nervously. She’s only dressed as a toddler. She can’t imagine actually being stuck as one. But unless she finds a way out of here and back to her dice, who knows what might happen?
“We can come up with a plan to escape,” Laura says quietly to Mason. Mason nods eagerly.