Bobby slowly woke up. He was being carried through an airport, but one that was obviously different from the one he’d fallen asleep in. As he became more alert, he remembered how exactly he wound up in this situation. He shifted slightly, making his diaper rustle.
“Oh, you’re awake,” said the man carrying him, Robert. “Good. We just got off the plane and are headed to my brother’s place with my nephew and sister. My sister actually had a great idea when she saw you.”
“What?” Bobby asked warily.
“She pointed out that three might not be sufficient as a punishment. Turns out, my nephew only wears diapers during long trips or overnight, because he’s mostly potty trained. You being completely reliant on someone else to do something as basic as use the bathroom is a major part of your punishment. So I knocked you down a peg.”
“What?!” Bobby squeaked.
“Not much of a peg, don’t worry. You’re two now, not three. But if you don’t behave, you’ll wind up being one and breastfeeding, so keep that in mind,” Robert said firmly. Bobby nodded nervously. “And you’ve still got your adult mind, too. And you can talk like normal. Otherwise, I can’t keep good tabs on whether you’re improving or not.”
“Okay,” Bobby mumbled.
“And after I decided to knock you down a peg, my sister had another great idea. You see, all the kids in my family are boys. My sister suggested that it would be fun if there was a little girl in the family, at least for a while.” Robert grinned at Bobby. “So you’re not Robert Jones II anymore. You’re Roberta Jones. But you still go by Bobbi.”
“You- you turned me into a girl?” Bobby, or rather Bobbi, asked. Robert nodded. He walked into a nearby men’s bathroom and held Bobbi up in the mirror. Sure enough, Bobbi was now an adorable little girl in a frilly pink dress that didn’t fully cover her princess-patterned diaper. Other than being female and two years old, she was the spitting image of Robert, with round hazel eyes, curly black hair, and a button nose.
“You understand the position you’re in now, don’t you?” Robert said. “If you don’t improve as a person, you’ll be stuck as my darling little girl.”
“For how long?” Bobbi asked.
“However long it takes for you to grow up the normal way. I have connections and magical abilities, Bobbi. I can rewrite reality to make it so you were always my daughter,” Robert said. Bobbi swallowed nervously.
“How do I get back to normal?” she asked timidly.
“It’s simple. Every time you metaphorically grow, I will allow you to physically grow. We’ll start off by having you age a year each time you show you’ve become a better person. If you improve faster than expected, I’ll let you get older by multiple years. Basically, play your cards right, and you’ll be back to yourself by the end of the week. Which is coincidentally how long my vacation lasts.” Robert pinched Bobbi’s chubby cheek. “If you take longer than a week, you’ll have to come home with me and either get babysat or go to daycare when I have work. So if I were you, I’d do my best to get all fixed up before then. Understand?”
“Yes,” Bobbi said, nodding.
“Good!” Robert exited the bathroom and headed for baggage claim. A young woman who looked a lot like Robert stood there, holding the hand of a toddler boy. Her face lit up as Robert and Bobbi approached. “Did you want to hold your niece, Helen?”
“Of course I did!” gushed Helen, taking Bobbi from Robert. She tickled Bobbi’s stomach, making her giggle. “Oh, she’s so cute!”
“Making her younger and female was a good idea.”
“I’m full of them, Robert. You know that.” Helen beamed at Bobbi. “Mom and dad are going to be thrilled they’ve finally got a granddaughter. Even if she’s just temporary.” Helen showed Bobbi to the toddler boy. “Jimmy, this is your cousin Bobbi.”
“Hi!” Jimmy chirped.
“Be nice to her, okay?” Helen instructed. Jimmy nodded. “I’m sure you’ll be very good with her.” Helen handed Bobbi back to Robert. “I’ve got our bags. Charles is waiting in the car.”
“Great.” Robert looked at Bobbi. “Charles is my brother. Your uncle. At least for now.” Bobbi nodded silently. “Let’s go meet him.”
The two adults and two toddlers left baggage claim, exiting the airport and walking up to a very expensive-looking car. Robert opened the backseat door and slid in.
“Who’s the cute little girl?” asked the driver, a man that looked like Robert and Helen.
“She used to be a very rude man named John,” Robert said. “Right now, she’s my darling daughter Bobbi.” The man chuckled.
“Another one, huh? Eventually mom and dad are gonna insist that you actually keep one of these kids that used to be adults.” He smiled at Bobbi. “I’m your Uncle Charles for the week. Longer, depending on how much time it takes for Robert to turn you back.” Charles snapped his fingers. A pink car seat appeared next to Robert. “There. Now she can travel in safe style.”
“Thanks, Charles,” Robert said. "Hopefully, this will be a smooth ride for her."
But it wasn't.
Why?