Author's Note
(WARNING!: Make no mistake this IS a padded pony fic! And as such as it will contain content that some readers will find disturbing! If you are uncomfortable with the idea of ponies in diapers, please click elsewhere and DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT READ!
For those who choose to stay, expect to see the following:
Diapers - Medium
Ageplay - Medium
AB/DL Themes - Medium
Diaper Usage (Wetting) - Light to Medium
Implied Diaper Usage (Wetting and Messing) - Light)
You should check out the linked prequel to better understand this fic and why it's tagged AU.
Owing to the complicated nature of Scootaloo's treatment by Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash here, I decided it best to err on the side of caution and rate it Mature. This isn't explicitly fetish, but it could be said to have hints of fetish material throughout it.
I wanted to try to paint Zephyr in a better light than either of his canonical portrayals, more in line with how he was depicted in the one IDW comic that focused on him.
Baby of the Family
"Do I really have to?" Scootaloo whined and pouted as she was lowered into her bed in her room in Fluttershy's cottage. She was especially unhappy about this because it was still that nursery Fluttershy had made when she had been trying to pass Scootaloo off as her foal. The tomboyish filly had thought that, once the truth came out, the nursery would go away and things could go back to some degree of normal. Alas, she still had the crib, the room filled with toys that a foal might play with and of course the well stocked changing table.
Fluttershy just smiled as she gently reassured her adopted daughter. "Scootaloo, remember the deal we made? If Rainbow Dash and I agreed to let you stay up late last night, you promised to take a nap today to make up for it."
"But I'm not tired." The little pegasus protested as she wiggled about, only succeeding in making the thick diaper taped to her rear shift and crinkle. Even if she still sort of needed them, she didn't like wearing her "protection" for longer than she absolutely had to.
"Hey, you wanna grow up to be big and awesome like me, don't you?" Rainbow Dash asked her number one fan as she carefully pulled the Wonderbolts themed bed sheets up to Scootaloo's head. When she saw the child give a nod in response, the rainbow maned pegasus then declared. "Then you need to take your nap like all good little ponies do. Besides, your mom and I have some things we need to take care of out in town."
Scootaloo really couldn't argue with that sort of logic. But she still tried her best to do so. "Couldn't you just get a sitter or something? Or even take me with you? I don't really need to 'play the part' anymore, do I? Everypony in town knows the truth, right?"
Fluttershy nodded. "They do, but a deal's a deal, Scootaloo. You agreed to this nap," She then sought to reassure her adopted daughter. "I promise, Rainbow Dash and I will be back as soon as we can. If you do wake up before we're gone, you can take care of yourself. Just don't try to do anything you'd need a grown-up's help for, okay?"
Reluctantly, Scootaloo agreed and even yawned a bit. "Okay," Then a thought struck her as she looked back to her rear and to what was taped around it. "What happens if I... you know?"
"You know how to change yourself, right? You've seen Rainbow and I do it multiple times," Fluttershy pointed out. "There's plenty of extra diapers under the changing table, along with wipes and powder. But I don't think you'll really need them. You've been getting pretty good about making it to the bathroom during the day. It's only when you're sleeping that you seem to have issues."
Rainbow just waved a hoof. "I'm sure you'll grow out of it eventually, squirt," She then gently kissed the child on the forehead. "Now be a good little pony and take a nap for your mommies, okay?"
Scootaloo yawned as she replied again. "Okay." She then shut her eyes and before long she had drifted off to sleep, her little chest bobbing up and down.
Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash then left the nursery, making sure the door was slightly ajar in case Scootaloo woke up before they would return from their errands. "We really need to look into getting the kid a proper bedroom. She's getting too big for that nursery of hers." Rainbow commented with concern.
"Are you sure? She just looks so cute and secure in there," Fluttershy commented in reply. "Can we at least wait until you'll be able to be home more often? Remember, you've still got a few weeks left in the reserves?"
Rainbow reluctantly nodded. "Yeah yeah, I remember, dear. But as soon as those weeks are up, we're taking down that nursery. Or at least that crib. Scootaloo may be our foal, but she's a big enough foal to warrant a big kid bed and maybe even big girl pants."
The animal loving pegasus found herself agreeing with the argument. "You're right, honey. I know Scootaloo still has her issues, but I can't keep treating her like a baby forever. If she's ready to start growing up, she can grow up," She then smiled as she looked across to her fellow pegasus. "For somepony who was an only child growing up, you're surprisingly good with foals."
Rainbow waved a hoof as she blushed. "I see a lot of myself in the kid, aside from the whole having to grow up alone part. I was practically pampered as a kid, figuratively and literally. I didn't mind it all that much, but I can tell it's not for everypony. And it's not what Scootaloo needs, even if it may seem that way."
"Well, we can talk more about it when we get back. After all, Scootaloo's the one who gets to make the decision about how she's treated," Fluttershy replied as the two pegasi left the cottage. "Now come on. Let's get those errands taken care of so we can be back here before Scootaloo wakes up from her nap. We both know she's not a particularly heavy sleeper regarding naps."
Rainbow Dash giggled. "Can't believe she doesn't see the benefit of them. I take naps all the time. Sometimes you just need a good snooze to recharge your batteries." And she then followed her special somepony as the two mares headed out into town. They didn't anticipate being gone for very long, they just had a few things they needed to pick up from Barnyard Bargains (and then maybe a quick stop at Sugarcube Corner to grab a bite to eat).
While the two adoptive parents were out in town and Scootaloo was fast asleep back at the cottage, a pegasus stallion was arriving in Ponyville. He had heard rumors for quite some time now about his sister having settled down and having a foal of her own. And naturally, this stallion decided that if such a foal did exist, it should get to know him better.
The pegasus stallion made his way through town as best he could. He'd never been to Ponyville before, so every sight and sound was foreign to him. Even though he knew of his destination, he didn't know for sure which way to go to get to it. More than once he had to stop and ask for directions.
At last, however, the pegasus found his way to the outskirts of town that led towards the Everfree Forest. And there, sitting all by its lonesome self on a hill just across a small stream, was a little cottage. "Ah, of course. Where else would
my big sis choose to live?" The stallion thought to himself as he trotted up to the front door. "This place is as close to nature as you can get without actually being in nature. I can see why she'd wanna live out here, in the peace and quiet. She always was more at home on the ground than in the clouds."
Finding the door unlocked, the stallion made his way inside. "Hello?" He called. "Anypony home?" There was no reply, which struck him as most odd. "Big sis?" He called again as his grayish light purple eyes scanned his surroundings. "It's me, your one and only baby brother: Zephyr Breeze." But silence was the only reply he received. Apparently, his sister was not home. Oh well, she probably would be back soon. It didn't seem like her to be gone for long. And to be fair, he hadn't exactly given her a heads up (this visit had been a spur of the moment decision after all).
Well, in the meantime, the stallion decided he might as well explore his surroundings. The cottage was decorated in such a warm and welcoming way after all.
As the stallion trotted about, going from room to room and place to place within the cottage, he was unaware that he was not the only occupant within the walls. At the far end of the cottage, inside the nursery, Scootaloo began to stir.
The tomboyish pegasus yawned as she opened her eyes very slowly. As she moved to sit up and kick off the bed sheets, she felt a faint damp sensation on her rear, and heard the sound of something squishing underneath her. Throwing off the sheets completely, the filly quickly discovered the source of her discomfort as she looked to her diaper. It was clear from the damp patch on the seat that it had been soaked at some point in her sleep, much to the filly's displeasure.
"Darn, not again!" Scootaloo muttered to herself as she stood up and clambered over those stupid bars on her bed. If only her wings were more developed, then she could just fly over the bars instead of having to resort to this drastic measure to get out. She soon hoisted herself over the top of the bars and down to the floor below, positioning herself so that her padded rear would be the first thing to land.
Usually, such a landing would've been comfortable and might have even prompted a small shower of foal powder. But in this case, the damp padding offered only slight comfort by absorbing the fall. It still squished, reminding the filly of what she'd done and telling her that she probably ought to get changed soon if she didn't want to develop a rash (that would make the situation even more uncomfortable).
Scootaloo's grayish purple eyes quickly darted across the room to the changing table nearby. It would be a pretty simple matter to just trot over there, grab a fresh diaper and the changing supplies, and get changed out of her wet diaper into a new one. Rainbow Dash was right in that the filly had seen both her mommies perform plenty of diaper changes before, so she should be able to copy what they did with relative ease.
However, something else was currently at the forefront of the tomboyish pegasus' mind. It didn't seem like she'd really gone that much in her sleep, even if her diaper was still wet. "I should probably try to use the bathroom before I get changed," She thought to herself. "Just in case. Wouldn't want to waste a diaper." And with that, Scootaloo left the nursery, opting to keep the diaper on in case of any further "accidents".
Yet as fate would have it, the pegasus filly with a lovely coat of orange happened to step out in the hall at the same moment that an unfamiliar (to her at least) pegasus stallion was approaching her position. The stallion seemed tall and a bit on the lanky side, with a coat that seemed a pale sea green in color. He had eyes a slightly lighter shade of grayish-purple than Scootaloo's own, a blonde mane and tail in which the mane was styled like a mop top while the tail hung loose, and a cutie mark that depicted an orange feather and two green flourishes.
Upon spotting Scootaloo, the stallion's eyes briefly seemed to go wide. But then a spark of realization flashed across them. This had to be his sister's foal that he'd heard about, it was his new baby niece. Not wanting to let this opportunity go to waste, the stallion trotted up to the young pegasus and looked down at her. "Hey there, kiddo!" He greeted in a chipper and upbeat tone of voice. "Nice to meet you! My name's Zephyr Breeze, but you can call me Uncle Zephyr, because I'm your uncle."
"'Uncle Zephyr'?" Scootaloo blinked slowly in confusion. Now that she thought about it, she vaguely recalled Fluttershy mentioning that she had a little brother once before.
Zephyr Breeze nodded his head as he scooped the little filly up and brought her close to him! "You already know my name?! Gosh, you're such a smart little foal!"
"I'm not a foal!" Scootaloo groaned in protest!
Zephyr seemed to think otherwise. "Oh of course you are, kid. I mean after all, you're wearing a diaper. Only foals wear diapers," Then he sniffed as a faint odor tickled his nostrils. It was now that he spotted the damp patch on his niece's diaper, and he quickly put two and two together. "And from the looks of it, it seems like a certain foal just had an accident. Couldn't keep your floodgates closed could you?"
Scootaloo whimpered, desperate to escape the humiliation she was being subjected to. "I didn't mean to! Besides, I barely wet this diaper," She knew that was a lie, it had been soaked a good deal. "I was just on my way to use the bathroom before I got changed."
Zephyr only pulled his niece tighter as he scolded. "It's a bit late to try using the potty after you already had an accident. But it's okay," His voice took on a much more cheerful tone. "Your Uncle Zephyr's here now. I'll get you all nice and clean, and then we can spend some quality time getting to know each other. Now, where's your nursery?"
The tomboyish filly reluctantly pointed a hoof to the room she'd just exited from. "Over there." At the least she would get out of her wet diaper soon, even if she was just going to be placed into a new one without a chance to prove that she could go without having one on.
The stallion smiled as he carried his niece over his right shoulder. "Thanks for the tip, kid."
"I have a name!" The tomboyish pegasus grumpily declared. "It's Scootaloo."
"Oh, what a lovely name!" Zephyr Breeze cooed as he carried Scootaloo into her nursery. "I gotta say, you're very lucky to have my awesome big sis as your mommy. It looks like she's got everything a foal your age could ever need. But she always did seem to have a knack for caring for others. I guess that's just something big sisters do."
All Scootaloo could do was groan and roll her eyes. As grateful she was to have her wet diaper taken care of, there was something about the way her "Uncle Zephyr" was talking that she couldn't stand. It was that subtle, almost condescending tone of voice he was using. The kind of voice one would use when talking to an actual baby, and Scootaloo was no baby even if she looked like one. But how would she ever convince this stallion that such was the case?
Zephyr soon set his niece down upon the padded surface of the changing table, quickly stripping her of that old, soggy diaper that was discarded into the trash. Bending down, he opened a cabinet under the table and pulled out a new, plain white diaper. "Surprised your mommy hasn't gotten you those diapers with the colorful designs and patterns on them," He commented to himself. "Oh well." Then he retrieved some wipes and a canister of foal powder.
Clumsily, Zephyr moved back and forth with the wet wipes as he tried to remove any traces of his niece's accident from her coat. A task that was made even more difficult by her constant wiggling around. "Could you hold still, please?" Zephyr impatiently grumbled. "How am I ever supposed to change you if you keep moving?!"
"But it's so cold!" Scootaloo protested with a shiver.
"Well, you don't wanna get a diaper rash, do you?" Zephyr scolded in that condescending tone of his. "Just hold still. This is hard enough for me as it is. But I can't wait for your mommy to come back and do it. What kind of uncle would I be if I let my niece get a rash when I could've prevented one?"
"You could just let me change myself!" Scootaloo thought to herself as she folded her hooves across her chest. But she knew there was no way she would ever convince her uncle to let her do that.
At last, after a great deal of trial and error, Zephyr Breeze managed to wipe his niece clean. He then sprinkled a generous amount of foal powder over her rump, and taped up the new diaper as best he could. As he did so, the scent of lavender slowly filled the air. "Huh, that's odd. Never figured my sis was big into scents like that." He commented while lifting Scootaloo off the changing table.
Well, the pegasus stallion didn't dwell on the matter for long as he set Scootaloo down on the nursery floor. "Just stay there while I go wash my hooves, okay, Scootaloo? Be a good little pony for your Uncle Zephyr."
"Okay." Scootaloo reluctantly agreed. It wasn't like she could really go anywhere anyways.
Satisfied with the answer he'd received, Zephyr darted off to the bathroom to wash his hooves. Then he came back, quickly noticing that his niece seemed to just be sitting there with a rather pronounced frown on her face. That wouldn't do; he had to find a way to make her happy. And as it so happened, that was when his eyes took notice of the many toys lying on the nursery floor. That gave him an idea. "Why don't we go and play in the living room for a while?" He proposed to the little filly while scooping up some of the toys.
The tomboyish filly decided it was in her best interest to agree. But as she was soon picked up and carried over Zephyr's shoulder again, she started thinking unhappily to herself. "Where are you, Mommy Fluttershy and Mommy Rainbow Dash? I could really use your help right about now." It took everything she had not to start crying then and there. She had to be brave and be a big filly, big fillies didn't cry.
While Scootaloo was being subjected to an unannounced and unexpected bonding session with her Uncle Zephyr, across town Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were just concluding their shopping session. It had taken longer than either pegasus mare had expected.
Needless to say, Fluttershy was quite concerned as she and her special somepony exited Barnyard Bargains. "Oh! This was a bad idea! Why did I let you talk me into this?!" She complained aloud. "Scootaloo's probably woken up by now and is wondering where we are."
Rainbow Dash brought a hoof up to her special somepony's mane, lightly stroking it to calm her down. "Relax, dear. Scootaloo's a big filly, she can take care of herself for a little bit."
"I know, I know," Fluttershy breathed slowly and deeply as she tried to settle down. "I just feel so bad whenever I have to leave her alone. I want to be there for her, to protect her and comfort her. To let her know that it's gonna be okay and that she doesn't have to worry about anything."
"You can't protect her forever, you know," Rainbow pointed out. "It's been almost a year now since you took her in and told me what you were doing with her. I know you've wanted a foal of your own to raise and take care of, but it's not good for Scootaloo if you keep constantly sheltering her and treating her like a baby. Just because she's okay with some of the things we do to her doesn't mean we can keep doing what we're doing. We need to start letting her grow up, even if it means she gets hurt."
Fluttershy tried her best not to cry. "I know you're right, Rainbow Dash. That's why we're together. You know me better than anypony. And you also know Scootaloo. But you don't know her like I do. You weren't there when she told me what it was like to grow up without a family, without any sort of mommy to care for her. It's not right that she should have to grow up without getting to experience a proper foalhood."
"And she's had about a year now to experience it on her own terms," Rainbow firmly replied. "Look, even I admit that maybe treating her like a foal has done her some good. But I also know that she wants to be treated like a big filly too. She wants to have some independence," Then she added. "We can talk more about it with Scootaloo later, ask her what she wants now. That should be what's most important, even if we may think we know better. Take it from somepony who was pampered a lot as a kid; it does things to you."
The pegasus mare with a butter yellow coat reluctantly agreed with her fellow mare. "Well, let's just head home and make sure Scootaloo's okay. I'm sure she will be but I just can't help but worry all the same."
Yet as the two pegasi were making their way through town, Rainbow Dash happened to look up to the sky. She saw the Wonderbolts flying by overhead, and it was clear to her what their destination was. Immediately, a look of grave concern crossed her face. "That can't be good." She said to herself.
"What is, Rainbow?" Fluttershy asked as she ceased in her trotting, taking note of her fellow's mare worried expression.
"The Wonderbolts never fly back to the academy as a group, not unless there's an emergency," Rainbow firmly and somberly declared. "And if it is an emergency, that means it's an all hooves on deck situation: Even reserves might have to be called up."
"But what about Scootaloo?!" Fluttershy commented with concern.
The rainbow maned pegasus sighed as she looked at her special somepony. "Look, I'll just hightail it to the academy and see what's up. Maybe they won't need me after all. If they don't, I'll fly back to your place as fast as I can! I Pinkie Promise: Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." Then after repeating the motions, she flapped her wings and took to the sky!
Fluttershy watched her fellow pegasus disappear from sight over the horizon. Then she remembered that there was something she had forgotten all about until just now, something perhaps just as urgent as the potential emergency Rainbow Dash might have to deal with: Her little brother was supposed to be stopping by for a visit today, and she knew he would almost certainly want to see her "foal".
So the animal loving pegasus opted to head to the most likely place a pegasus would be if they were coming into Ponyville for a visit: The balloon port. Hopefully, she hadn't been keeping her brother waiting for long.
Unknown to Fluttershy, her brother was already at her cottage and currently deep in what he believed to be an attempted bonding session with his "baby" niece Scootaloo. "There we go," He cooed while setting the padded little filly down on the floor of the living room. "Now, what do you wanna play with? I made sure to get a wide variety of toys for you, so take your pick."
Scootaloo just continued to frown while wondering silently to herself where her mothers were. Was it really taking them this long just to do some grocery shopping?
Well, until they returned Scootaloo realized she was at the mercy of the "grown-up" in this situation. So if he wanted her to play with toys, that was what she was gonna have to do whether she wanted to or not. But which toys should she play with?
The tomboyish pegasus' eyes scanned over the selection that had been presented to her: There were the obligatory foam alphabet blocks, which she could stack into a variety of different buildings if she so chose. Then there were the shakable objects like rattles or those colorful foam tools that squeaked when you did anything with them. And of course there was a good assortment of stuffed toys: Some of them similar to animals Scootaloo had seen Fluttershy tend to, and others based on ponies both real and fictional.
One of those stuffed ponies was what looked like a hoof-stitched plush of Daring Do. Scootaloo could well remember being introduced to that series about the brave adventurer by Rainbow Dash, a pegasus very much like the brash speedster herself in that she never seemed to be afraid of anything. The filly couldn't get enough of Daring Do's adventures, she had been read every book in the series at least twice over for a bedtime story.
Looking at the Daring Do plush and then eyeing some of the other toys that were laying about, the gears in Scootaloo's head began to turn. She first moved to grab the Daring Do plushie, but then quickly set it aside. She had to make some arrangements to craft her very own Daring Do adventure, which would hopefully be enough to satisfy her Uncle Zephyr without causing her too much humiliation or embarrassment in the process.
Using most of the alphabet blocks, Scootaloo constructed a building that loosely resembled a temple (at least in her mind). Then she started to trot about, although trot might be too kind of a word considering the thick diaper pushed her legs apart, and made her waddle about rather clumsily. Still, she moved around, placing some of the stuffed animals at various spots that included two within the "temple" itself. And last but not least, she picked up the rattle and put it in the center of her own fictional creation. She now had a treasure that Daring Do could seek out, all that remained was to combine all the elements into her own little story.
Scootaloo used an orange hoof to pick up the Daring Do plushie, and began to speak in an exaggerated tone of voice. "I'm Daring Do, the bravest adventurer in all of Equestria! I'm not afraid of anything!"
Zephyr Breeze seemed to be intrigued by the make believe session he was witnessing, as he asked in a playful voice. "Where are you going today, Daring Do?"
"To the depths of the Tona... Tona..." The little pegasus filly stopped as she suddenly struggled to remember the name of that basin Daring Do frequently visited in her stories. "The basin!" She said at last, deciding that the name of it was unimportant. "There lies the Temple of the Lost Foal, and the Golden Rattle of Youth."
"Ooh! How mysterious!" Zephyr replied with a coo as he watched his niece bring the Daring Do plushie in for a landing on the floor of the living room.
The tomboyish pegasus did her best to ignore the constant crinkles from her diaper as she toddled about, moving the Daring Do plushie across the perilous landscape she had constructed. After all, it wouldn't be a Daring Do adventure without obstacles to overcome. She tried her best to imagine herself as Daring Do, that fearless adventurer on a quest for another long lost treasure from Ancient Equestria.
Daring's daring adventure took her across the heart of the basin: Over a series of stones resting above a quicksand pit (actually just a bunch of leftover alphabet blocks spaced far apart), past various strange creatures whose names couldn't be pronounced properly, and finally up the very steps of the Temple of the Lost Foal itself. Yet when the pegasus finally reached the center of the temple and saw her prize waiting for her, she found her way ahead blocked by two strange animals holding spears.
"Halt!" One of the animals declared. "Who are you and why have you come here?"
Daring Do quickly replied. "I'm Daring Do! I seek the Golden Rattle of Youth!"
"Why?" The other animal guard demanded of the intruder.
Daring Do gulped and swallowed hard. She hadn't really given thought to that. "Because..." She tried to think of a good reason as to why she should have the treasure. At last, however, an idea came to her as she told the guards. "I want to make sure the rattle is safe from the clutches of the evil Ahui...whatever his name is. If he gets his paws on it, all of Equestria will be doomed to a kingdom of eternal foalhood! Even the princesses will be powerless against him!"
It seemed that was enough to convince the animal guards, as they lowered their spears and allowed the adventurer to trot past them.
Of course, it was never as easy as it seemed to retrieve an ancient treasure. Every temple always had its booby traps, and this was no exception as the stone pedestal the rattle was on gave a click. And then, almost without warning the temple began to shake! Lava started to spill into the room through a series of holes Daring was kicking herself for not noticing until now!
Luckily, this wasn't like that other temple she'd been in. This time, Daring Do could use her wings. And with her wings it was an easy task to escape from the temple before it was filled to the brim with hot, boiling lava that would've cooked her alive!
"And so, once again the day has been saved thanks to Daring Do!" Scootaloo stood up and boldly cheered as she held the plushie high in the air, momentarily having lost herself in the experience.
Zephyr had seen the whole thing, and he clapped his hooves together as he cooed. "Oh, that was so adorable! You have such an imagination for a little one!" He even pretended to wipe a tear from his eye.
Even if the praise was probably exaggerated, Scootaloo found herself responding to it by saying. "Thank you." It actually felt pretty good to receive praise from somepony for putting on a show, even if it had been for an audience of one.
The moment was quickly interrupted, however, as the filly heard a loud growl coming from her stomach. She knew at once what that meant.
And it seemed Zephyr Breeze did too as he trotted over and again picked his diapered niece up off the floor. "Sounds like somepony has a rumbly in their tummy," He spoke in that exaggerated tone of voice again. "Guess it's time for num-nums. Let's see what's on the menu for today, shall we?" And he carried the little filly to the kitchen.
Fluttershy was waiting impatiently by the balloon port (which really just consisted of a small stand where the hot air balloon resided when not in use). What was taking her brother so long to get here? It wasn't like him to be late without a reason.
Minutes ticked by slowly, yet Zephyr Breeze was nowhere to be seen. That struck the animal loving pegasus as odd. Had she somehow gotten the dates mixed up?
"Oh, I knew I should've asked for a specific time!" Fluttershy thought to herself as she kept on waiting, pacing back and forth since there was nothing better to do with her time. Scootaloo was almost certainly awake by now, wondering where her mommies were. It was times like this that made the pegasus mare wish she were a unicorn like Rarity, able to just teleport to wherever she wanted with the flick of a horn.
At last, a reddish-pink coated earth pony mare happened to take notice of Fluttershy's constant pacing and called out to her. "Excuse me, miss," The mare spoke up. "Is there something I can help you with?"
"Actually there is," Fluttershy replied as she momentarily ceased in her pacing and contemplating. "You wouldn't by any chance have happened to have seen a pony named Zephyr Breeze, would you?"
"Well, do you know what he looks like?" The earth pony mare pondered as she put a hoof to her chin. "Anything that might stand out about him: Coat color, cutie mark, size, that sort of stuff."
"He's kind of on the tall and lean side," Fluttershy explained to the best of her ability. "He has a sea green coat and a blonde mane and tail. The mane looks kind of like a mop top."
The earth pony mare put a hoof to her chin as she seemed to vaguely recall. "Now that you mention it, I think I saw a pony like that a little earlier. I didn't get a name though. Looked like he was headed off towards the Everfree Forest for some reason."
Upon hearing those words, the pegasus mare with a butter yellow coat's gentle blue eyes grew wide! A sudden look of realization crossed her face and she gasped! "Oh my goodness!" And without saying another word she raced away! Her brother had arrived earlier than expected!
At the same time this was happening, Rainbow Dash was flying away from the Wonderbolts Academy as fast as she could! Her destination was clear in mind now that she knew she wasn't needed by the Wonderbolts after all. "Hold on Scoots! Hold on Fluttershy! I'm coming!" She thought to herself while making a beeline for Fluttershy's cottage. If indeed Fluttershy's brother was coming by for a visit today, she wanted to be there before he could so that somepony would be able to explain any possible misunderstandings about Scootaloo.
As fate and coincidence would have it, the two pegasi met up on the path leading out towards the Everfree Forest and Fluttershy's cottage. In fact, they almost collided since Rainbow came swooping in for a landing! "Oh, honey, I thought you'd be with the Wonderbolts." Fluttershy commented after stopping to catch her breath.
"Turns out the emergency wasn't that serious, the team had everything covered without needing to call up the reserves," Rainbow Dash explained, before noticing her special somepony's troubled expression. "What's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost or something."
"It's my brother, Zephyr Breeze," Fluttershy explained to the best of her ability. "He arrived earlier than I expected. He's probably already at the cottage."
At that Rainbow quickly put two and two together, and her heart became filled with dread. "You told him the truth about Scootaloo, right? How she's our child but she's not an actual little foal, right? Right?!"
The animal loving pegasus whimpered and kicked at the ground. "I never got around to it. Everything's been so busy over the past few months: Between you moving in with me full time, getting the paperwork in order to officially adopt Scootaloo, planning our wedding and of course caring for Scootaloo, I haven't had time for much of anything else. I've even had to cancel spa dates with Rarity, I've been so busy."
The rainbow maned pegasus gulped. "Oh, that's not good! Zephyr's sure to get the wrong impression if we don't clear things up!" And then she took to the sky again! "Well come on, then! We've got no more time to waste! We'd better get back home before your brother has a chance to do too much damage!"
Fluttershy followed from the ground as best she could! And all the while she was thinking to herself. "I'm so sorry about this, Scootaloo! Please try to be brave and hold on! Help is on the way!"
By now, Zephyr Breeze was in the kitchen in Fluttershy's cottage, and had plopped Scootaloo down into a high chair that seemed to be just the right size for her (if maybe just a tad bit too small). He didn't dwell on the matter for long, especially since his attention was quickly drawn to the cloud of foal powder that billowed out from his niece's diaper. "Guess I went a bit overboard on the powdering. Oh well, at least we know you won't get a rash." He replied.
"Yeah, thank goodness for that." That was all Scootaloo could bring herself to say in reply as she tried her best to get comfortable. Normally, she didn't mind eating from a highchair every now and then. But she knew this time would be different. She knew she wasn't going to be able to feed herself; her Uncle Zephyr wouldn't let her.
Zephyr, for his part, just tied a bib around his niece's neck as best he could. Then he made his way over to the fridge and opened it, sticking his head inside while his eyes scanned every nook and cranny. But he didn't see anything that would be appropriate to give to a foal. At least, nothing that seemed nutritious and delicious. They always said foals had sensitive taste buds.
Then, suddenly, the stallion got himself an idea. "How about I fix us up some peanut butter and zap apple jam sandwiches?" He proposed to the diapered little filly. "I'll even cut off the crusts for you. Something tells me you're one of those ponies who doesn't like crusts. I don't like 'em either, never did and never will."
The tomboyish pegasus filly reluctantly nodded her head in agreement. She was getting hungry, after all. "Okay, fine," She agreed and then decided to ask. "Can I feed myself since it's just sandwiches? I won't make too much of a mess."
But the pegasus stallion only shook his head from side to side. "No can do, my little pony. What kind of uncle would I be if I let my niece get all messy trying to feed herself? You really shouldn't be trying to do things you're not big enough or old enough for."
"I'm not a helpless little foal!" Scootaloo whined and kicked about in her pampers.
"And who was it that had the little accident earlier, missy?" Zephyr half teased/half scolded.
Scootaloo just whimpered. "I didn't mean to wet myself! I couldn't help it! It just... happened."
The lanky pegasus stallion only replied. "Which means you're clearly not as mature as you think you are. So quit being a fussy little foal and let your Uncle Zephyr take care of you, okay? I don't think your mommy will be pleased to hear that you aren't being cooperative."
Reluctantly, the padded pegasus filly decided it was no use trying to argue with Zephyr. So she just resigned herself to her fate, waiting and watching while the stallion prepared the sandwiches for the two of them to share.
Zephyr Breeze was as good as his word, he did indeed cut off the crusts for Scootaloo. And Scootaloo was grateful for that. She wasn't really one for crusts (not that she cared if her sandwiches had crusts or not).
Yet even with Zephyr's insistence on feeding Scootaloo, traces of peanut butter and zap apple jam still found their way onto her cheeks when all was said and done. "My goodness! Somepony sure is a messy eater!" He seemed to coo. "Guess it's a good thing you had that bib on." He then retrieved a rag from the kitchen sink, wet it and used it to wipe his niece's face clean of smudges.
The padded pegasus filly was then promptly lifted out of her high chair. Only to, much to her surprise, have a glass baby bottle's rubber nipple be inserted into her mouth. She tried to open her mouth to say something in protest, but only succeeded in getting warm milk to drain from the bottle and into her mouth.
Zephyr smiled as he carried his niece back to the living room and sat down on the couch. "It's a good thing your mommy already had a bottle ready for you," He cooed. "You must be thirsty after eating those sandwiches. Probably needed something to help wash 'em down."
All Scootaloo could really do in response was suckle on the bottle's nipple, slowly but surely draining its contents as the warm milk traveled through her mouth and into her stomach. For a moment or two, she felt calm and at peace. Perhaps it was the warm milk making her feel just the tiniest bit drowsy, or maybe it was the subtle rocking motion Zephyr was doing as he held her in her lap. Either way, the tomboyish filly was content despite her current situation.
But just as the diapered filly was about to close her eyes, it happened. She didn't even have time to process it or react to it. All she knew was that her bladder started to empty itself right into her diaper, much to the filly's absolute horror! Amidst the relative quiet of the cottage, a faint hissing sound could be heard. Scootaloo's eyes widened in fright as she tried in vain to stop it! A dark, damp patch formed on the front of her diaper and slowly but surely grew bigger by the second.
Just as quickly as it had started, it stopped. Scootaloo's bladder was fully drained and her diaper had acted like a sponge, soaking it all up. Now she was left with another wet diaper. The tomboyish pegasus filly then did the only thing she really could do in this situation. Her eyes teared up and she started to cry, more so out of shame for what she'd just done rather than any discomfort.
"Hey? Why are you crying?" Zephyr Breeze asked with sincere concern, right before he looked down and noticed the wet diaper his niece was in. "Oh! Oh geez!" He exclaimed! "Hey! It's okay! You couldn't help it! Foals wet themselves all the time! Please, don't cry! I'll get you changed and into a clean diaper again! I promise, it'll be like it never even happened!"
It was at this very moment that the front door to the cottage all but flew off its hinges! And not one but two very frantic and desperate female pegasus ponies came almost literally flying into the living room! Quickly, their eyes fell upon the scene before them and with adrenaline coursing through their veins, they sprang into action!
Rainbow Dash immediately rushed over and snatched Scootaloo from Zephyr's clutches, letting the child bury herself into the chest of the pony she'd looked up to for so long. All the while Rainbow delicately patted the distraught child's back with a hoof, speaking softly and gently to her to calm her down. "It's okay, Scootaloo. It's okay. Your mommies are here for you now."
"'Mommies'?" Zephyr blinked in confusion as he tried to process the sudden turn of events he'd been subjected to.
"It's a long story," Fluttershy replied with a bit of a blush. "There's a lot of things I probably should've told you sooner, Zephyr. I'm sorry you had to find out about all of this in this way."
Rainbow, meanwhile, carried Scootaloo away while still seeking to reassure her number one fan. "Don't worry, squirt. I'll get you nice and clean. And then, if you still think you have to, you can use the potty. Okay?"
Scootaloo sniffled. Her eyes were red from crying so much. She just barely managed to croak out. "Okay." And soon, she and Rainbow Dash were out of sight.
That left Fluttershy alone with her brother. She took a deep breath and steadied herself, this was a conversation she'd been both anticipating and dreading ever since Zephyr Breeze had announced his intention to come by for a visit. "First and foremost: About me and Rainbow Dash. We're... you know..."
Zephyr nodded as he interrupted. "-Yeah, kind of got that impression when Rainbow said you and her were Scootaloo's mommies. I guess if there was ever a mare you'd fall in love with, it'd be Rainbow Dash. You two always were close."
"You don't mind, do you?" Fluttershy opted to ask even though she was sure she didn't have to.
"Nah, of course I don't mind," Zephyr innocently and sincerely replied. "Kind of hurts that it means my crush on Rainbow Dash isn't gonna amount to anything. But if it makes you happy, sis, then who am I to judge?" Then he asked. "So, about the kid?"
The pegasus mare with a butter yellow coat sighed again, knowing that this was the part of the conversation she'd really been dreading. "It's kind of complicated to explain. She's been through a lot. Like 'a lot' a lot. But she's not a baby, even if she looks like one. She has some... issues, and the diapers are a sort of coping mechanism if that makes sense. It's a way for her to experience a childhood she didn't get to have growing up."
"Figured she was adopted. What happened to her parents?" Zephyr questioned.
Fluttershy explained to her brother to the best of her ability. "From what she told me, her mom died in childbirth and her dad disappeared when she was really young. From then on she was an orphan. She lived in an orphanage here in town... until it closed down. Then she lived on the streets, until I 'borrowed' her to pass her off as my foal to Mom and Dad. And she's been with Rainbow and I ever since. We've actually been debating how far we should take all of... well, you know."
The lanky pegasus stallion scratched his head with a hoof. "So, if she's not really a baby then why does she have her own nursery and stuff? It is part of those issues you mentioned?"
Nodding firmly, Fluttershy explained further. "Somewhat. She doesn't tend to use her diapers much if she can help it, especially not for number two. But she still has problems at night or when she's napping, so the diapers are there as a precaution. Everything else is part of the experience. Some days she really likes it, other days she doesn't want anything to do with it. It seems to come and go depending on how she's feeling."
Zephyr Breeze looked down at the ground in shame. "Well, gosh, I didn't know it was so complicated. No wonder the kid seemed so upset. I hope I didn't make things worse for her."
Fluttershy put a hoof around her brother's neck to reassure him. "I'm sure you didn't. It's really my fault for not explaining all of this to you in advance. But as you can clearly see, I've been kind of 'distracted'. Just adjusting to Rainbow Dash living with me full time took months to sort out. And of course, there's the matter of Scootaloo's adoption; that's a lot of paperwork to deal with. Still, no harm was done. You meant well."
"You think so?" Zephyr asked with concern. "I just hope the kid can forgive me, especially for making her wet herself. I remember how much you and I struggled with potty training, can't imagine what it must be like for somepony like Scootaloo with all she's had to deal with."
"Well, it's not my place to say if Scootaloo will forgive you or not," Fluttershy commented. "That's up to her to decide."
As if by fate, it was at that very moment that the familiar voice of Scootaloo spoke up from afar. "It's okay; I already have." And both pegasi turned around to see the tomboyish filly standing in the hallway, now diaperless (at least for the time being).
Rainbow Dash happened to be standing close by, and she quickly sought to reassure both ponies on the couch by saying. "It's okay, dear. The kid said she had to do this. Figured it best if I let her speak her mind."
Scootaloo then trotted up to Zephyr and locked eyes with him. "You couldn't have known about my mommies, or about all the stuff I'm going through. Besides, I'm," She blushed and sheepishly looked down at the ground. "Not the best at changing myself if I'm being honest. And you did prevent me from getting a rash; that wouldn't have been very pleasant."
"Still, I just feel so bad that I treated you as something you weren't. Something you didn't necessarily want to be," Zephyr Breeze declared in a guilty tone of voice. "You sure you forgive you? That you're not just doing this because you think that's what everypony wants? It's okay if you're not ready to forgive me just yet, I'd understand if you needed time to process everything."
The tomboyish filly only replied. "That's the thing. I didn't exactly like what you did with me: Treating me like a little foal and all that. But I didn't necessarily hate it either. It's kind of like what I've already been doing with my mommies, it was just kind of different with you. You were a bit more... patronizing, I guess."
"Yeah, I did go overboard, didn't I?" Zephyr admitted as he seemed to almost be on the verge of tears. "I really am sorry for everything I did. I didn't mean to make you feel bad or feel worse because of anything you were going through," He then got off the couch and lowered himself to the filly's level. "I can understand what it's like to be conflicted, to be scared about things like that. I kind of went through the same thing growing up, when I was an actual foal."
At that Scootaloo blinked her grayish-purple eyes slowly. "You did?"
"Yeah," The lanky pegasus stallion admitted. "I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this, but I was a late bloomer on just about everything related to foalhood developments: Learning how to walk and talk, giving up the bottle, sleeping in a bed instead of a crib, and of course potty training. Especially potty training. It wasn't like I was scared of the potty either. Pretty early on I realized that it couldn't be anything worth being scared of if everypony else used it no problem."
"So, why was learning how to use it so much of a problem for you, then?" The tomboyish filly pondered. "Once I got the basics down, it was pretty easy for me to teach myself how it was supposed to be done. It's only at night or when I'm asleep that I still sometimes have issues."
The stallion's cheeks flushed red as he confessed. "Well, it had more to do with the fact that I didn't like the idea behind it. I didn't wanna have to give up my diapers and start using something I'd never used before, especially when my parents expected me to use it on my own. I was afraid of what that would mean, that I'd be taking those first steps towards 'growing up'. I was so attached to my foalhood and all the innocence that came with it that anything that could take that away from me was something I dreaded. But then I met my big sister's new best friend at the time: Rainbow Dash."
"So, I inspired you?" Rainbow Dash commented in surprise. "I always thought your crush on me was just because I was the only mare in your life besides your sister and your mother."
Zephyr shook his head from side to side. "No. My crush on you came later, and it was because of what I saw in you. I saw how you weren't afraid of anything, Rainbow Dash. You never let anything stop you. I could see how much confidence you inspired in my big sister. So I wanted to be just like you. It was because of that that I started gaining confidence in myself," He then recalled. "Eventually, I realized my fears about growing up were silly. Yeah, I couldn't exactly go back to what I had in my foalhood. But I didn't have to completely lock it away for good, I still had the memories."
"So, even though I do have to grow up eventually, I don't have to necessarily give up my foalhood in its entirety?" Scootaloo seemed to conclude as she put a hoof to her chin, deep in thought.
"Something like that," Zephyr concluded. "I mean, what worked for me may not necessarily work for you. I'm just drawing from memory. I got to grow up in a loving family, something you have now with your mommies. So I can see why you might feel conflicted about not wanting to grow up like you should."
Fluttershy then reassured Scootaloo. "You can grow up at whatever pace you feel comfortable with, Scootaloo. Remember, you can always tell Rainbow Dash or I at any point if you want us to stop treating you the way we treat you now. We want what's best for you, and that's for you to be happy with who you are."
The tomboyish filly replied with a sigh. "Yeah, I get that. I know I can't keep acting like and being treated like a foal forever. I know I'm gonna have to grow up someday. And I like the fact that even when I do wanna act like a foal, I don't have to completely act the part: I don't necessarily have to play with foal toys, drink from baby bottles or..." She briefly shuddered. "Use my diapers for their intended purpose. I guess I just like having the ability to decide how big or little I wanna be, at least for now in the comfort of my own home."
"And there's nothing wrong with that, Scootaloo," Rainbow Dash smiled as she trotted over and nuzzled the tomboyish filly's mane with a hoof. "As long as you're happy and comfortable, that's what matters most. Your mommy and I know that no matter what, you'll still grow up to be a fine and awesome pony just like us!"
"So," Scootaloo reluctantly spoke up. "Is it okay if, at least for the rest of Uncle Zephyr's visit, I went back to diapers? I can still retain my bathroom privileges, right?"
"Of course, Scootaloo," Fluttershy smiled as she scooped her filly up and patted the child on the head. "If that's what makes you happy. And don't worry, I'm sure that you'll get the hang of making it to the bathroom at night before long. Then maybe we can see about putting you in big filly pants."
