The Masks We Wear

Under different circumstances, the spa might have been seen as an incredibly relaxing place. Framed paintings of beautiful forests and peaceful glades hung on the soft white walls as the gentle sound of flowing water echoed through the halls. Overhead lighting was never overpowering and encompassed the entire complex in a quiet, unintrusive amber light. It was clear that keeping clients’ minds and bodies relaxed and stress free was an important part in the complex’s construction. If he wasn’t wearing a diaper, Fancy Pants might have even asked if there was a masseuse on staff that could help work out the knots in his shoulders.

Past the suites hallway, the complex opened up to a dining area where an array of round tables sat empty with a long buffet table nearby emptied and clean. Off on the farthest wall, a door and closed window appeared to lead to a kitchen area of some sort, but given the hour, most of the staff that worked there were long gone. Opposite from the kitchen window was a long, semi circular window that overlooked a beautiful garden.

The garden looked lush and colorful, clearly a project of passion for diligent gardeners and grounds keepers. Despite appearing to be wild in its mixed landscape of ivy covered trees and intensely hued flower beds the area was well looked after and the chaos of nature was lovely trimmed back.

“Come along, Goldie,” Fleur nudged the stallion over towards a pair of sliding glass doors that lead outside, “some fresh air will do you good.”

Fancy Pants tensed up and hesitated to take another step towards the doors. Even though the garden appeared secluded thanks to a tall, cleverly hidden perimeter fence, he was not too keen on going outside in such a getup. His back legs squeezed together to subtly remind himself of the diaper that bulged out his rear end. Had it been up to him, he would have much prefered to stay here, but Fleur’s guiding hoof was as direct as it was insistent.

A breeze of cool air brushed past the two ponies as they walked onto a brick patio that connected the building to the sprawling garden that laid beyond. A gently swerving cobbled path circled the garden, allowing ponies to see everything the area had to offer in one short walk.

The walk around the garden certainly helped Fancy Pants relax into this new role. Here among the lily pad filled ponds and the distant chirps of nesting birds, he got use to that ever present crinkle that accompanied every step he took. Being seen in such a thing felt like less of an issue now. Above all else, he developed his trusting faith in Fleur as she was never too far away to give him an assuring nudge in the right direction. Trust was the key here.

Fleur spent the slow walk regaling the stallion in some great little anecdotes about the places she traveled to before moving to Canterlot. She chattered along about fond memories and stories that made her heart go all aflutter. She spoke so casually, as if she wasn’t sharing the walk with a someone wearing a diaper. In a way, that made Fancy Pants worry less about his situation. It was for her after all.

Ten minutes into the walk Fancy Pants allowed himself to take in a deep breath of air, letting it out slowly as focused on releasing the nervous tension that was knotting itself deep into his lower back. It felt like he had been holding his breath for the past hour. This all wasn’t too bad. In fact, the garden had some of the most beautiful landscape design that he had ever seen in a Canterlot property. Blue leaved trees and rainbow petaled flowers accented vibrantly green grass that twinkled with a magical glow in the moonlight. Even so late at night, the area was filled with happy song birds chirping in the trees. It was all so rather tranquil and helped put his heart at ease.

He was so enthralled in the atmosphere and Fleur’s endless supply of joyful stories that he hardly noticed when they returned to the cold brick patio and started to make their way inside. He was much too busy watching the leaves rustle and the chipmunks scurrying about. The diaper didn’t seem all that bad, at least for the moment.

The pair returned to the inside after their short half hour walk. Fancy Pants certainly felt more relaxed after such a trip and felt less tense about having to wear a diaper. If anything he was starting to appreciate the snug softness of the diaper. It was silly to think, but the diaper actually felt quite comfy.

Fleur’s tour of the spa continued as normal after that. With their little walk around the park behind them, she led Fancy Pants past the dining room and quietly showed her charge the exquisite luxuries that such a place had to offer. It appeared that this place not only had guest rooms and therapeutic baths, but had a few private massage rooms and even a place to take mud baths as well. There was even a small daycare center where diapered ponies could be dropped off while their caretakers enjoyed the more grown up amenities.

The tour was thorough, unimposing, and relaxing. Fleur remained patient with her charge, often taking short breaks so that Fancy Pants could rest his legs. Walking around in such a bulky diaper was a tough challenge by itself.

The spa’s common room was a spacious area connecting all the hallways throughout the building. It primarily comprised of luxurious accommodations, chic and modern seating, and even had some gentle water features to liven up the place. It was a place ponies could lounge between meals or even find a spot to quietly read a book in.

A gold trimmed marble fireplace crackled quietly in the corner of the room, emitting a warmth into the room. There were tables to play games at and a small bookshelf against the far wall filled with books and board games. There was even a small shelf stocked with diapers as if Fancy Pants needed to be reminded of the spa’s primary purpose.

“Iris! I’m glad you’re here!” a masculine voice called out as Fleur and Fancy Pants entered the area, “why don’t you come over and sit with us! I’ll introduce you!”

Off against one of the far walls of the common room, next to a lovely thin waterfall feature sat a group of four ponies. From the quick glances Fancy Pants would dare throw in their direction he could see a white furred unicorn stallion with blue striped hair who was waving the two over; a pink unicorn mare with a red, violet, and yellow striped mane; an oddly familiar white furred unicorn mare with a curled indigo mane, and a red furred earth pony stallion with orange hair. Who they were exactly was something he couldn’t figure out in such a short amount of time. And given the circumstances, figuring out whether he knew them or not was the least of his problems.

Fancy Pants shrunk back behind Fleur, silently hoping she wouldn’t answer the other stallion’s beckoning call. He wanted nothing more than to quietly sneak away and hide in their room, but Fleur happily guided him over to the group of ponies. “Wonderful! We’d be delighted!” she chirped.

Closing in on the group Fancy Pants could hide less and less of his embarrassing attire. But none of the new ponies seemed to stare at him or laugh or ridicule him for being a freak. Instead they all sat there in a relaxed, casual state, the kind of posture one would take while on vacation and having no previous engagements to occupy their time. In this surprising discovery, Fancy Pants took the opportunity to examine the group a little more thoroughly.

The unicorn stallion who had called the two over to the group was a friendly looking sort who wore a soft, unintimidating smile on his face. Fleur seemed comfortable around him, clearly showing that this wasn’t their first meeting. In fact they seemed like good ol’ friends by the way she smiled back at him and the rest of the group. Any glances the stallion tossed towards Fancy Pants was never judgemental or resembling of a glare. Instead it was of indifference and easygoing in nature. He had a calm and paternal look to him.

In the stallion’s lap sat an energetic looking unicorn mare wearing a dress. The pink unicorn was diapered, but it was tough to see that past her brightly colored dress that plumed out with ruffles around her waist. The outfit was a cute mixture of pinks and whites. The cut of the dress’s layered skirt hardly covered up her diaper which was decorated with bright shapes of reds, blues, and yellows.

The two of them snuggled in the corner section of a long couch, enjoying each other’s embrace like two lovers. There was an obvious parent/child type of role playing going on between them, but underneath all that they seemed close and trusting of one another. It was like if one were to rip away the diapers and baby talk, the two would have a nice secure safety net to fall back on.

“How have you been Stalwart Shield?” Fleur spoke to the unicorn stallion with a happy smile. The kind saved for old friends...or perhaps old lovers. Fancy Pants couldn’t quite figure that out.

“Never better,” the white stallion chuckled. “Iris, this is Diamond Cut and Sparkling Cider,” Stalwart motioned towards the other couple, but only the unicorn mare waved back.

The white unicorn mare was a beautiful pony who clearly went to great lengths to take care of herself. Her mane was styled into swirling curls of purple with hardly a hair out of place. Her eyes, a beautiful shade of blue, was accented with light blue eyeshadow and long, lush eyelashes. She laid stretched across a long fainting couch where a cheese platter and glass of wine sat not too far away on a little end table beside her.

The red stallion was a silent type, hardly saying a word or budging from his spot beside the white unicorn mare. He wore nothing but a plain white diaper and a black leather collar. He was a tall and brawny stallion with an apparent strength that made his diaper all the more silly in appearance. Despite all the conversation happening around him, he remained quiet and unmoving. Occasionally his eyes would throw glances around the group, but at no point did he dare to budge from his at attention pose.

“And this troublemaker,” Stalwart tickled under the pink alicorn’s chin, “is my little girl Melody.”

“Hi hi!” the unicorn mare Melody exclaimed with childlike enthusiasm.

“It’s very nice to meet you all,” Fleur replied with a friendly and inviting smile. “I’d like you all to meet Golden Glass,” she presented Fancy Pants, “he’s, well, he’s new.”

“New to the diaper scene?” Stalwart asked.

“Yep yep,” Fleur answered with a happy nod, “been trying for awhile now, but I’ve finally got him into one.”

“Well it’s very nice to meet you, Goldie,” Stalwart smiled.

“Charmed,” Diamond Cut bowed her head.

Melody suddenly interjected with an excitable gasp, “does that mean I have a new playmate, Daddy?!”

“Haha, you’d have to ask his mommy first, Melody,” Stalwart calmed his charge.

“Maybe some other time,” Fleur answered, “I want him to get use to things slowly. Too many new experiences can be frustrating for a little baby.”

“Awww,” Melody frowned, but reluctantly plopped back in her seat.

Fancy Pants and Fleur joined in with the circle of ponies and found a nice comfortable spot on a plush sofa. He started to take his usual spot beside Fleur on the couch, but was gently coaxed to the ground and forced to sit there instead. The carpeted ground would have likely been an uncomfortable spot to sit, but luckily his diaper gave him an added cushion to sit on.

Diamond Cut chimed continued the talk shortly after, never even giving Fancy Pants a glance. “So when did you two arrive?”

“Just a few hours ago,” Fleur answered so casually, “we enjoyed a few drinks before I brought him over.” She patted Fancy Pants on the head, causing the stallion to shrink and blush. “You all seem to be up rather late.”

“Guess we just lost track of time,” Stalwart chuckled, “hadn’t seen each other in a long long while so we had a lot of catching up to do.”

“Just missed a lovely game of Ponopoly,” Diamond Cut added.

“I won!” Melody exclaimed with a happy bounce.

“We won, sweetie, remember? We played as teams,” Stalwart cooed at the mare.

Everyone in the group had a little chuckle, even Fleur joined in. Although Fancy Pants couldn’t help but notice that Sparkling Cider didn’t even dare to smile. After that, conversation continued at a health pace. The group talked about any number of things from the weather to the latest fashion designs coming out of Manehatten. Occasionally diapers were mentioned or talk about how Melody got a new baby toy she was super excited for, but it was all so casual that any pony might mistake it as a couple of parents chatting about their kids.

Fancy Pants was much too embarrassed to add anything to the conversation. He spent the whole time trying to keep to himself while avoiding eye contact with any of the ponies. It went against every fiber of his sociable personality, but the diaper prevented him from saying a word.

After a short time into the very lovely conversation between these friendly ponies, Fancy Pants felt a burning pressure build up inside him. Deep in his gut stirred a rather urgent impulse. It appeared that the bottle he was fed earlier, as well as whatever Fleur might have mixed it with, was working itself through his body, creating a dire need to use the bathroom that grew even more desperate as time went on.

“U-uhm...Iris?” Fancy Pants spoke with a small voice, but Fleur seemed to ignore him. “M-mommy?” he tried again, this time with an even quieter voice.

“Yes sweetie?” Fleur answered that time, matching the whispering volume of the stallion.

“I have to...go...” Fancy Pants blushed, feeling silly to say such a thing.

“D’aww. Thank you for letting me know, Goldie, but you don’t need my permission,” she whispered back, patting his head, “just go whenever you need to go.”

Fancy Pants frowned at the reply. It wasn’t exactly the response he was looking for. A small voice in his head reminded him that he was wearing a diaper, but he had kind of hoped it wouldn’t have to come to that. At least so soon. Still he quietly returned to his spot in front of the couch, silently glancing up at the group as they all chattered away.

“So I heard the Crystal Kingdom is hosting this years Summer Sun Celebration,” Diamond Cut was heard saying as Fancy Pants stared blankly at the ground.

“The Kingdom is all in a frenzy over it,” Stalwart chuckled, “everypony is doing their best to ensure the festival is the best there ever was!”

“Daddy,” Melody groaned weakly.

“Sorry baby,” Stalwart chuckled as he rustled the mare’s tri-colored mane, “it’d be best to change the subject. Little Melody hates being reminded of work. Those big girl thoughts can wait till AFTER our vacation.” All it took was a playful tickle under the chin to turn the groaning mare into a giggling filly who squirmed in her daddy’s lap with a happy smile.

When he felt no one else was looking his way, Fancy Pants adjusted himself so that he was sitting on his knees. It seemed the more natural pose for the infantile crime he was about to commit. Once he was in position, his groaning gut cooperated immediately and followed any orders his embarrassed mind had to reluctantly give out. Whatever orders it gave out, however, were meek, quiet, and encouraged the highest amount of discretion.

It was a strange thing to attempt. To openly soil himself as quietly as possible so that he didn’t draw attention to himself. Five other ponies sat not ten feet away from him, but he still attempted to keep things quiet. He took things slow, focused heavily on keeping any built up gas under control as he pushed down on his gut little by little. In a merciful sign of luck, he managed to squeeze the large mass of stink out of his bowels and into the waiting diaper without a peep, or at least so he thought.

“Daddy, the new baby made a stinky!” Melody exclaimed, pointing an accusative hoof in Fancy Pants’s direction. Fancy Pants turned ten shades of white as he looked up in terror.

“It’s rude to point, sweet cakes,” Stalwart answered, lowering the mare’s pointing hoof, “I’m sure he can’t help it. Babies have accidents all the time.”

“Not me though, daddy!” Melody exclaimed proudly, “I’m a big girl!”

“You try to be, but you’re still having night time accidents, remember?”

The pink unicorn shrunk back. “Th-those are...those are different...”

“Of course sweetie,” Stalwart chuckled, patting the unicorn’s head before turning to Fleur, “it seems your little one has made a little mess, Miss Iris.” He said this so casually. “I can change him for you if you’d like.”

“I appreciate it, Stalwart, but I can handle things just fine,” Fleur politely bowed her head at the offer.

“I don’t know why you bother getting your hooves dirty, darling,” Diamond Cut scoffed, “I hardly touch the filthy things.”

“But what happens when your charge needs a change?” Fleur couldn’t help but inquire.

“I have him change himself,” Diamond Cut answered, throwing a glance at the standing red stallion, “IF I let him change.” It was subtle, but Fancy Pants noticed Sparkling Cider gulping at Diamond Cut’s comment.

“I think it’s time for little Goldie’s nap anyway,” Fleur finally said, “we’ve had a big day today, huh? So many new experiences.” “Say bye bye, Goldie.”

“Have a good nap, kiddo,” Stalwart waved.

“Bye bye!” Melody added.

“Sleep well. See you tomorrow,” Diamond Cut said as she raised a glass. Sparkling Cider simply nodded in Fancy Pants’s direction.

Fancy Pants was much too embarrassed to even muster up a polite ‘goodnight’ to the friendly ponies. His face burned with a hot blush and he couldn’t pull his head up from the humiliated slump it had obtained. He shrunk as small as he possibly could as he waddled away from the scene with Fleur guiding him back to the room.

“Alright, a diaper change, and then it's off to bed with you,” Fleur chirped with a motherly flare once they returned to their suite, “baby’s had a big day!”

Fancy Pants could only nod, waddling his way off to the changing table without another word. He was more than happy to rid himself of the heavy bulk that sloshed and clung to his backside. The quicker he got a diaper change, the quicker he’d no longer stink.

Fleur seemed to pick up on this and wasted no time in changing Fancy Pants’s messy diaper. Even when the diaper opened she showed no signs of disgust or turning green. She instead handled the whole ordeal like any experienced mother, wiping the stallion down, replacing the messy diaper with a fresh one, and then powdering up the new one that was promptly wrapped around his waist.

With a glow of Fleur’s magic, Fancy Pants was lifted into the air, alongside his old stinky diaper that was rolled up into a tight ball. For a brief moment, the diaper and stallion crossed paths, reminding Fancy Pants of the positively infantile ordeal he was put through. Maybe it was the calming relief of the fresh diaper, but looking back at the whole thing now, filling his diaper in public seemed kind of...fun.

The old diaper was tossed into the nearby diaper pail as Fancy Pants was laid into the open crib. Fleur climbed up into the open crib and placed his head in her lap. She passed the time by gently stroking through his light blue mane. “So...Golden Glass,” she started, “how are you...liking it so far?”

“It’s certainly...different...” Fancy Pants replied, “kinda nice, I guess.”

“I know it was embarrassing to have an accident in front of the others, but I wanted a genuine reaction.”

“The...others didn’t seem all that phased by it.”

“Haha, it’s only expected. Babies wear diapers and sometimes babies have stinky accidents.” For a moment Fleur lost herself in the adorable memory and chuckled about it like a proud mother. She quickly regathered herself however. “...it wasn’t too much for you, was it?”

“No...just...unexpected,” Fancy Pants answered, “so you’ve done this before?”

Fleur chuckled, “oh a couple times. Don’t worry, nothing got too involved. Mostly it was babysitting Melody.”

“You babysat her?”

“It’s all part of the game,” Fleur said, “she has a very stressful job and it means the world to her to be able to relax and act like a toddler for a little bit.”

“And...Stalwart is okay with you...playing with her?”

“I told you, sweetie, it’s all part of the game,” Fleur replied, “he’s already married to the girl and trusts we won’t do anything that would upset him.”

Trust, Fancy Pants thought, trust seemed to be a key part of this whole thing.

“Now I think that’s enough grown up talk for now. It’s time for bed,” Fleur said, gently guiding Fancy Pants’s head off her lap and down onto the soft pillow below, “rest up and in the morning let me know if you have any other questions, alright?”

“Okay,” Fancy Pants nodded, “goodnight...mommy.”