Spirit of Christmas

Chapter 1
Spirit of Christmas

Hello all.

As I’m sure many of you know I have been working on a new story. It’s actually somewhat old, been in the works for a while now, since last year to be precise. Some of you may remember Zappy’s Christmas writing challenge. In it, each participating author was given the name of another participating author who had to be used in their story. The deadline was Christmas. Heh, I think I missed it. ;P

Anyway, my subject was/is Piper, and this is the story. Ironically, as long as I’ve taken with it, I’ve managed to beat the author who got me as a subject. How’s that story coming Heid? ;) Ooooooo, the pressure is on now. Heh.

Truthfully, my story, titled "The Spirit of Christmas" is not completely done. The very end needs some wrapping up, but I am on the last chapter. Given the story will be serial posted by chapter, and there are 12, I figure I have a few weeks to buckle down and finish it off.

I would like to especially thank Piper, for his tremendous amount of help. At first it simply was an exchange of information about him and his life, but expanded beyond that. You see, most of this story was role played between Piper and I. The characters, overall plot and direction of the story are mine, but most of the main character’s reactions are his. It allowed for many interesting angles of plot that I seriously doubt I would have come up with on my own, as each of us bounced ideas off the other. It was an exceptionally productive way to write and I hope to do it again someday.

I would also like to thank Nomdreserv for graciously posting the story on his site. The link is:

http://home.att.net/~nomdreserv/Stories/onixmas1.htm

BTW: This story is a bit different than my usual fare. Most of the story is concerned with male AR. I have said in the past that I do not mind male AR, as long as the story is good. I like to think that is the case here. ;) But, for those who want their fix, don’t worry, there is plenty of female AR by the end.

Enjoy,

The Oni.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

By The Oni

Rod rubbed his eyes and glanced at the clock display in the corner of his screen. “4 AM” it read. He sighed. These role playing sessions could take forever, but they were fun. His online acquaintance, a guy who called himself Dark Oni, had just used his wits, and the broad ranged rules of fantasy gaming, to youthen yet another threat to his magical character.

Piper smiled to himself. “Now if only he’d stop asking for a freaking Elven sorceress to attack him.” he muttered. Typing goodnight he signed off and shut the computer down. He’d really planned on doing more work today. He’d actually started to when Oni signed on; six hours ago. Still, there was always tomorrow. Such was the advantage of working at home.

He stretched, his back giving a twinge of pain. The lights of his Christmas tree reflected in the dark computer screen. Christmas, the greatest time of the year, was only a week away. Unfortunately, it just didn’t feel that joyful.

As he readied for bed, he reflected on this. He wasn’t depressed. It was just that he didn’t feel as excited about things as he had when he was young. The tried and true saying “Christmas was better when we were kids.” rang especially true to him. Becoming a kid again had been an obsession for him ever since he had stopped being one. The lights and decorations just seemed to kick it all into overdrive.

Trying to compensate he dressed himself in a pair of red pajamas, just right for the season. He looked his 29 year old self over in the mirror. He wished he were a kid again. In fact, ten years before he’d actually asked Santa Claus for that very thing. Pity magic like that didn’t really exist.

As he mused over the whole unfairness of a non-magical universe his attention began to focus on his face. His chin was smooth. Nothing too out of the ordinary except for the fact that he hadn’t shaved since the morning and stubble tended to grow like crabgrass on him. He shrugged it off however and headed for bed.

Climbing up onto the high mattress Rod could have sworn it was taking more effort than usual. He liked his bed high. It was one of those little illusions he’d created to pretend he wasn’t so grown up. However, he’d had to almost literally drag himself onto the mattress.

He laid down in the bed, trying to give relief to his tortured spine. That’s when strange observation number three kicked in. He’d expected to feel the usual wave of pain, relief and release of tension that he normally felt from his back. Instead, he felt nothing. His back felt fine.

He lay there for a moment, pondering. If his life were a story, he knew what would come next. The room would get bigger, the bed would expand, and his clothes would balloon around his thinning limbs and frame. He’d start to get younger, just like in all the stories he’d read and written. At the completion of that thought, he burst out laughing.

“Okay, no more late nights. I’m starting to lose it.” R. C. muttered to himself. With that, it occurred to him that he’d forgotten to brush his teeth. So, with a remaining chuckle he got out of bed like a good boy, and nearly lost his balance. His foot missed the rug at first. He was used to being careful when leaving bed due to his back problems and it probably was the only reason he hadn’t fallen. It didn’t make him feel any better.

Suddenly very worried he carefully got out of bed. His mattress didn’t really look that different, until he stood against it. The top now came up to his ass. Piper managed to pant out, “What’s going on?” Somehow he realized his voice was not right either. The bed had always been high. Two feet tall to be exact since he’d always liked the illusion of being small. Now however, the mattress, like his voice, was higher than he remembered. Panicking he scrambled to the mirror and stared into it. A young teen stared back.

It was like he was staring at himself out of another time. There before him was a boy, fifteen at the most. His face was thin, as was the rest of his body. His pajamas slightly covered his hands and feet but that was normal. Another little illusion he’d created for himself, but nothing compared to the one he was now sure he was staring at. He pulled at the pajamas, almost tearing the top off. Staring in wonder he saw that his chest, like his face, was quite hairless.

He thought of screaming, but figured it wouldn’t do much good. It seemed the pajamas had shrunken with him, which was why he hadn’t noticed. It occurred to him that what was happening was basically impossible, but then, your own eyes were hard to refute. Still, it was late, and he was tired. “I’ve gotta be dreaming.” He commented, fully believing it. He probably would have just gone back to bed at that point, if not for the knock at the door.

Glancing through the peephole, which was at eye-level for a change, Rod’s conviction that this whole thing wasn’t real actually got stronger. Waiting outside the door was a girl, or a very short woman. She wore an all green outfit, boots, tights and tunic with a floppy hat. She was so obviously dressed like one of Santa’s elves that it was almost ridiculous. ?Almost’, because despite the clothing, she was most definitely a women, and rather well endowed. What stood out the most to Rod however was her short, extremely red and curly hair. It was so striking that he almost missed the pointed ears.

?Yeah, dream.’ he thought to himself.

At that moment the ?elf’ smiled at him, waved and said quite clearly though the door, “No R. C., only a dream come true.” Her voice was very high, almost tinny, yet it froze Piper for a moment.

?She knows what I’m thinking?’ he wondered.

Without hesitation she replied, “Yup. Comes with the job. Now, may I come in? I’d use the chimney, but, well, you don’t have one.” She giggled after the statement. It almost sounded like bells ringing.

Resigned to whatever tricks his mind was playing on him Rod opened the door. He was barely able to mutter a greeting.

The ?elf’ laughed again and bounced into the room. Giving Piper the once over she commented, “Great! It’s working already.” Piper felt a nervous tingle down his spine when he heard that.

Closing the door Rod shook his head, trying to regain some of his senses in the absurdity of the whole situation. “Uh, what’s working?” he asked. He smiled sheepishly as well. As strange as this visitor was, she was still extremely attractive. Just a little shorter than him. He’d have guessed she was five foot nine, but realizing he’d lost some height he amended the guess to a little over five feet. The pointed ears stood out even more with her right in front of him. Basically, she seemed harmless enough and was very cute. Absently, Rob began to understand The Oni’s obsession.

“Your wish of course!” she returned. “I know, I know. We’re behind. Way behind. But eventually we get to everyone. Well, maybe not everyone. Unless they die while waiting I suppose. But that’s not my department. By the way, I’m Lori, I’ll be in charge of your wish.” she adds, her delivery very fast, like a machine gun spraying words at Piper’s mind.

Missing most of them he simply asked, “Um, what wish?”

She grinned and poked him playfully in the arm. “The one you made to the boss silly. Santa. Christmas of ’90. So sorry for the delay, but we get so very very busy sometimes. It’s hard. Well, not as hard as it used to be. The computers do a lot of the work now, but then, there used to be fewer people too, so I guess it evens out.” she continues

Standing there like a ?Silent Bob’ to her ?Jay’, Piper finally tried to get a word in edgewise. “Excuse me.” he said. Of course, it did nothing as his companion’s line of thought traveled back to the fifties and how she was actually shot at once because someone thought she was a Communist.

“And I said, ?Fine Joey, you just won’t be getting your wish then.’ Course, that’s when I stopped wearing red. Besides, I think green goes much better with my hair anyway. So, whaddya think of it?”

“Your hair?” the dazed teen asked.

“No silly. Your wish. To be a kid again.” She admonished, giggling once more.

Rod grinned at her. “Oh, so that’s what’s going on. I wasn’t sure, since my clothes still fit. Heh, it probably would have been more fun to have them stay the same size. Not that I’m complaining!” he added quickly, worried at upsetting her. “It’s, it’s great. I feel, energetic and.....” , glancing one more at the elf he began to stare at her ample assets.

His response was immediate and strong, his dick hardening almost instantly. An idle thought came to his mind as he wondered how much talking she’d do in bed, in the throes of passion. His face immediately flushed with heat as he recalled her mind reading capabilities.

“Oh, geez. I’m sorry!” he stuttered, feeling a massive surge of embarrassment as Lori’s face turned pink as well.

“Oh my.” She commented. “Heh, don’t worry. My fault for prying. Turning the mind reading off now.” She smiled after a moment though and added, “Don’t feel bad. It’s perfectly natural, being you’re a teen and all. Hormones and all that. Besides, you are kinda cute.”

R. C. blushed hotly again. ?She thinks I’m cute.’ is all that went through his mind. He didn’t notice as Lori’s face took on a look of concern and worry. Her following words buzzed out of focus as he wondered what she looked and felt like under her green outfit. He moved closer to her, prepared to give her a kiss.

“Wait a sec.” She pondered. “You were nineteen when you asked to be a kid again. That means you didn’t want to be teen. You wanted to be younger. I’m sooooo sorry. I’ll fix things right up.” With that, she gestured at him.

Piper blinked, his lips puckered as her words sunk in. “Uh. Wait. Don’t. Noooooooooooooooooo!” he spoke, his voice rising in pitch. The room and the elf before him both grew larger. He could feel the air whoosh past his ears as he sank, the elf before him rising. For an instant Lori was his height but quickly rose above him, the cute harmless looking sprite becoming more imposing with each passing second. The entire experience made Piper feel completely powerless. Before his descent finished his pajama bottoms dropped to the floor, causing a cool breeze to hit his ass. His excitement down below quivered and dimmed to a light tingle.

Looking around at his suddenly gigantic surroundings Rod became a bit frightened, but it quickly faded. He noticed that his pajamas did not shrink with him and his top fit him like an overcoat. Tentatively he placed his hands in front of his face. They were completely covered by his now gigantic sleeves.

It took a moment for it all to sink in. His longtime wish, one he still fantasized about, had come true. He was a little boy again. He laughed at this, his voice very high and sounding more like Lori’s than the deeper tone he was used to. He playfully shook his arms, causing the sleeves to flop around. "I’m little," he said with giddy disbelief. "I’m little!"

“There. Now I’ve got it right.” a voice exclaimed from about. He looked at Lori, seeing the elf was now about half a head taller than him. He only came up to her nose. “Happy?” she asked.

Piper smiled and nodded. "Great!" he piped, thrilled at the pitch of his voice. "I... can’t believe it..." He stared down at himself, at his smooth, skinny shins poking out of the bottom of his pajama top, his feet buried in the bottom half that had piled onto the floor.

Lori noticed him staring at the clothing. “Oh, sorry. I’ll make the pajamas spelled to fit you, no matter what. Okay? Here goes,” she said, as she gestured once more.

Rod smiled as he felt the top’s material move up his chest and shoulders, almost tickling his sensitive skin. It took a few seconds for him to realize he still had no pants on. Looking down in panic Piper saw the privates of a boy, as bare as the rest of him. “Shit!” he exclaimed, crouching quickly to pull his pajama bottoms back up. He heard Lori giggling.

“Oh, don’t be ashamed R. C., I think you’re adorable.” She commented, as she leaned over and gave him a peck on one of his blushing cheeks. “Besides, isn’t this part of what you were thinking a minute ago?”

Rod felt more heat reach his head. “Um, not exactly.” His feelings for the elf had not disappeared but instead had been transformed to match his age, a time when he’d just begun to wonder about girls. This one was fascinating, bedazzling even with her gorgeous hair and mysterious curves. Little Rod was spellbound.

The grin on the elf was almost blinding. She then patted his head and ruffled his hair. “Ohhhh, you are so cute!” she exclaimed highly.

It was funny how one could be called cute in two so very different ways. Piper felt even more embarrassed and stared at her feet speechless, noticing for the first time the pointed toed slippers she wore.

Lori seemed oblivious to his plight. “Anyway, my job here is done. Enjoy your gift. I’m sure you’ll have a great time. Bye-bye now!” With that she snapped her fingers and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Rod shook his head in disbelief, taking almost a minute to recover his senses. “Well, that was weird.” he commented to himself. “Now, I should be waking up in three .... , two ...... , one .......” Upon reaching the final count Piper closed his eyes and willed himself awake, fully expecting to find himself in bed. When he opened his lids again however, he found himself still in his living room. It was still huge too.

After a few seconds, the pounding excitement in his heart was finally interrupted by a thought. Lori hadn’t told him how long this would last. After another moment however, he shrugged it off. This was his ultimate wish come true. He felt he’d better take advantage of it.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It is interesting what different individuals will do in the same situation. Returning to childhood is a dream that many people hold. The lack of responsibility one has. The freedom to do what one wants. The sheer energy and playfulness involved. The possibilities for having a good time are endless. However, since it was already late into the night, Piper’s options were rather limited. So, he did the first thing that came to mind.

Padding into the bathroom Rod turned the water on. He wanted a bubble bath. As a man it was a frivolous and decidedly too feminine thing to do. As a boy however, it was great fun. Of course, there was no bubble bath solution in his home so he had to improvise.

“Hmmmmmmm.” Rod hummed aloud, pondering his great decision. “Does ?Pert’ or ?Head and Shoulders’ lather better?” After a moment he decided to compromise, and dumped both in.

Stripping his pajamas from his now diminished body, Piper climbed onto the toilet lid to get a good look at himself in the mirror. Surveying himself, he guessed he was around ten. Puberty had not begun to set in anywhere. All the different body hair he was used to seeing on himself was either missing or invisible, and all his body parts were properly proportioned. He had the perfect child’s body.

Reaching his fingers into his mouth he noted that four of his molars were missing. No detail had been missed. Smiling again he decided to get back to enjoying things.

He decided he needed bath toys. Gaining a mischievous grin he ran out into the apartment to search, bare ass naked. He was free. Free of adult constraints. Reveling in his own childishness and the exciting sense of naughtiness he hadn’t felt since living at home with his parents.

A search through the closet netted him a CFL mini football. “That’ll float.” He decided. He unearthed a few of his old stuffed animals and decided to put them aside for later. Entering his office he plucked a black rubber panther paperweight from his computer desk. In the kitchen he pulled out a few of his plastic containers, knowing they would make great boats. Imagination was a vital tool for this project.

He returned to the bathroom with his prizes just in time to dump them into the overflowing tub. “Oooops.” he declared, shutting the water and draining some of it out of the tub. He tossed a couple of towels down on the floor before realizing that no real little boy would truly care. In fact, he wondered what a normal boy would do in this situation. Laughing a bit at the idea that came to mind he climbed onto the side of the tub and hopped in. The resulting splash was huge. Rod could swear some bubbles had reached the ceiling.

He played in the tub for an hour, splashing gleefully as his experimental Panther rocket crashed and his ships were sunk by the great football shaped meteor from Planet X. He also relished being able to fully lie down in the tub and stretch his legs out. Eventually though, as all children inevitably do, Rob became bored.

He pulled the drain and toweled himself off. When he was done with that he put his robe on, immediately giggling at how large it now was. The sleeves completely covered his arms and the back trailed far behind him. It didn’t bother him however. He was a boy now, so he did what all playful little boys did. He again used his imagination.

King R. C. the Piper marveled at the beauty of his glorious new robe. Taking his scepter, also know as a plunger, in his hand, he strode into his thrown room and sat himself in his large throne, right in front of his magical entertainment box. Rod laughed at his own descriptions. “And they say television ruins your imagination.” he scoffed, delighting in how the fuzzy material of his couch felt against his bare bottom.

He flipped through the cable channels, finally deciding on Cartoon Network. At first he’d wanted to be naughty, and had gone to an adult channel. After a few minutes however he realized that it simply did nothing for him anymore. He just wasn’t built the same. Even so, this was still better than when he’d first been a kid. Being his apartment he could watch whatever he wanted, and stay up as late as he liked.

Eventually he got thirsty and poured himself some Coke, spilling a little in the process. He wiped some of it up but stopped when the commercial ended, running to sit on the polished wood floor in front of the TV, not wanting to miss anything. He was rewarded a few minutes later when he laughed in mid gulp and, for the first time since Junior High, soda shot out his nose. The joy of it all caused him to laugh even more despite the loud yawn the eventually interrupted it.

Feeling tired he pulled the comforter he kept in the living room over his body and grabbed the giant stuffed tiger he kept on his nearby loveseat. Cuddling his soft friend between himself and the floor, Rod decided to go to bed right after the next program. He never made it.

When Piper came back to the land of the conscious his first thought was that he’d fallen out of bed. That made sense, until he heard the cartoons. Jolted awake Rod found himself half naked and lying on the living room floor. On the TV Pikachu was about to start an attack and on the comforter was a spilled glass of soda.

Piecing together what had happened Piper groaned, knowing he must have gotten drunk. He decided that at least the hallucination had been worth it. Being a kid again would be awesome. He sighed and rose to his feet, instantly realizing that the room was still quite a bit bigger than it was supposed to be.

“I wasn’t dreaming?” Rob breathed, hearing the high voice of a child once again. “I wasn’t dreaming!” he giddily declared, jumping up and down. He decided to shed the cumbersome robe before running to his bedroom.

After a quick peek through his drawers Piper pulled on one of his T - Shirts. They were the only things he had that would still work as clothing and even they came down to just above his knees.

Glancing at his now gigantic bed Rod felt the urge to fly. Giggling, he pulled a beach towel from the linen closet and tied it into a cape. He then leapt up onto the mattress and began to bounce on the ample cushioning. He was flying, just like Superman. It was marvelous how light and flexible his body felt. What was even better was he couldn’t even reach the ceiling with his outstretched hands, never mind bump his head on it as he usually would.

Reflecting on how silly he was acting caused him to giggle. Hearing the sound of his own voice again caused him to laugh even more. He was interrupted by the ringing of his phone.

Dropping to bounce into a sitting position next to the bed stand, he picked up the receiver. “Hello?” his high voice queried, making him wince. He should have let the machine get it.

“Hi,” came a familiar voice after a second’s hesitation. “Is Rod there?”

It was his client! Rod took a moment, trying to think of what to say. Only his panting could be heard.

“Hello?” came the voice again.

“Uh, hi!” the boy chirruped, fear tingling in his belly. “No, he’s not here right now. He’s, uh, getting the mail.”

“I see,” came the slightly annoyed but amicable voice from the other end. “What’s your name?”

“Ro-, uh, Rudy,” R.C. replied, smacking himself in the head.

“How old are you, Rudy?”

“I’m, uh, ten.”

“Huh.” The man didn’t sound convinced. “Do you think you could do me a favor? Do you think you could write down a message for Rod?”

Rod leaned back on the bed. “Sure. Shoot.”

“Do you have a paper and pencil?” the man asked patronizingly.

“Will crayon do?” Rod asked sarcastically, annoyed.

“I suppose,” the man replied hesitantly. “Write down that Glenn called. That’s G-l-e-n-n. Got it?”

“G...l...e...n...n...” Rod dutifully recited, staring at the ceiling. This guy was boring him. He wanted to get back to saving the world.

“Tell him to check his email, and call me if he has any questions... can you spell all that?”

“Let me try,” Rod replied, and played with his lower lip as the man slowly repeated himself. “Ooops! I need more paper! Hang on!” He purposely dropped the receiver onto the table and hopped off the bed, hurrying off to the bathroom.

He returned five minutes later to find that the phone line was dead. Shrugging, he put the receiver back on the cradle. The message had already faded from his mind, but he was sure that the man would call back if it was really truly important. As he resumed bouncing on the bed, he felt a strange elation briefly come over him at how naughty he had been.

The rest of the afternoon provided many more chances to play. Piper tried on more of his adult clothes just to see how funny they looked on him now. He liked his suit the best, managing to actually get all of it on, right down to the dress shoes. He tried to talk as low as he used to, but the silly sound of his voice sent him into laughing fits. Acting in front of the mirror he pretended he was at a party and had suddenly felt light headed. Light everything in fact. He laughed, vividly picturing the look on imaginary faces as he envisioned himself collapsing into the suit.

“Holy shit!” he exclaimed in his childish voice. “I’m all widdle and stuff!” Slapping his hands to his cheeks in imitation of a famous movie scene he screamed, then burst out laughing again.

“No ma’am. I can’t go someplace private. You’re a stranger. Ha!” He flopped the sleeves and dangled one of his big shoes on his foot. In truth, the contrast of the very adult clothing and its size caused him to look even younger. He absently wondered what it would be like to shrink even more.

Feeling creeped out at the idea, Rod decided to do something else. Scrambling out of the clothes and leaving them strewn about, he decided some video games were in order and turned his Playstation on. Not bothering with clothing, he simply curled up in a blanket on his bed. He periodically ran out to find every bag of chips in the apartment and munched on them, leaving the half empty bags on the floor when he’d move on to the next batch. He gobbled down ice cream too, tossing the dishes in the sink and ignoring them.

It was evening before he finally got onto his computer and attempted some work. It was hard though. His keyboard was unwieldy and the work was boring. Before long he began wondering what else he could do. He grinned as a light came to his eyes.

To be continued.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 2

Opening the stairwell door cautiously Rod peeked around the corner to make sure there was no one there. Walking down eight flights of stairs hadn’t been fun, but he had the energy now and wasn’t tired. He padded quietly out of the doorway, his bare feet cold against the tile floor.

Wrapping the beach towel around his small frame Piper eyed his target, the apartment building’s Jacuzzi. He’d used it before of course, but now he could actually swim in it. The only problem was children weren’t allowed down here unattended. “Well, some rules are stupid,” he whispered.

Scampering to the changing room, Rod took off his T-shirt and laid it down. He’d had nothing in his apartment to fit him for a swim. Even his underwear slid to the floor. He’d decided then that he might as well go skinny dipping. The element of risk gave him a naughty thrill and he reveled in it.

Leaving the change room he gazed upon the Jacuzzi and smiled, dropping the towel to the floor. After a moments hesitation he sprinted at his target and leapt in, pulling his knees to his chest and cannon balling into the water. The resulting splash made the one in the bathtub look like a light drizzle compared to a hurricane.

He swam and played, pretending to be a dolphin, gleefully enjoying how the bubbles make his bare skin feel. Things were just about perfect, so that’s when they came crashing down. Surfacing for air Rod felt strong fingers grip his arm before he could open his eyes. When he recovered he managed to see a very angry woman in a bathing suit, accompanied by what looked to be a thirteen year old girl.

“Young man?! Where are your parents?” the woman asked sternly, already pulling him from the water. He resisted, not wanting his nakedness to be visible, but he had no hope of fighting her strength. When his waist broke the water he could hear the girl break into laughter and embarrassment flooded him.

“Oh my God!” she squealed. “He’s naked! That’s sooooo funny.”

“Quiet, Mary.” the woman ordered, stopping the laughter but not bothering to cover him up, perhaps thinking his exposure was an appropriate punishment. Piper for his part clamped his hands over his bare genitals.

“Where is your apartment!?” she yelled at him, dragging him away from the Jacuzzi and handing him a towel. He was starting to shiver, cold and wet. Having a female teen pointing at him and laughing wasn’t helping matters either. Frankly, Rod was scared.

“Um. Well....” He stalled wrapping the towel around him.

“Speak up!” After a moments pause she added, “Fine, the apartment manager can straighten this up.”

Rod was terrified. No one was going to believe him if he tried to explain things. He’d been so stupid to do this. Panicking he pulled desperately on the woman’s grip, forcing her to drag him, but unable to break it.

He could hear Mary behind them comment nastily, “Heh. Stupid kid. Your mommy’s gonna be real upset naughty boy. I hope she gives you a spanking.”

For a moment it reminded him of his sister, making fun of him as he was about to get punished. He was determined not to let it happen. As they neared the elevators he saw one of them open, and took one last shot at escape.

The woman yelled out in pain as he kicked her in the leg. Her grip loosened and he managed to pull out of it. She made a grab for him as he scrambled for the elevator, but only managed to snatch the towel from his body. He mashed the ?close door’ button as quickly as he could as the woman got her bearings back and the teen walked briskly towards him. The doors closed on her just before she made it to them and Rod breathed a sigh of relief as he pushed the ?8’ button.

Naked again, he cupped his hands over his genitals and fidgeted as he watched the elevator climb one floor at a time.

Exiting on his floor he quickly found his way to his apartment. Unfortunately for him, the door was locked. He’d left his key with his shirt. A spike of fear hit his stomach as he tried to figure out what to do next. He was so engrossed in his thoughts he didn’t notice the footsteps behind him.

A familiar hand once again grabbed his arm. “So that’s where you live you little hoodlum.” he heard the woman say.

Turning, he felt a sting on his cheek as Mary slapped him. “Little brat. That’s for kicking my mother,” she exclaimed.

“Mary, don’t. We’ll let his parents handle this.” With that she knocked on Piper’s door. He was frantic again. They wouldn’t find any parents! They’d take him to the building manager and they’d think he didn’t live in the building! They’d call social services!

Rod was so panicked that he didn’t even notice his door open.

“Excuse me.” The woman asked, “but is this yours?”

“Rodney? What did you do?” a very angry but familiar voice declared. He jerked his head up in surprise to see Lori looming over him. He instinctively covered his privates again, not wanting the elf to see. She was taller than she’d been last night with much longer legs and now wore what looked like a conservative business suit. Her ears were no longer pointed either but it was definitely the elf. Her hair and eyes were unmistakable.

The woman answered for him. “He was downstairs in the Jacuzzi, unsupervised. He was also naked when my daughter and I walked in.”

“Not like the baby had anything to show.” Mary commented sharply.

Rod wallowed in embarrassment as the adults talked about him like he wasn’t even there. Even the girl, who he’d have bought cookies from just yesterday, was demeaning him.

Lori answered the woman. “I don’t believe it! You know, I thought he was mature enough to stay at home for a couple of hours but it seems I was wrong. Thank you for telling me about this.” With that Lori took his other arm, allowing the woman to let go.

Suddenly Rod realized he was saved. The words stung, but Lori had in fact saved his ass. A moment later she had ripped the towel off of it and was smacking it. Repeatedly.

“How dare you embarrass me like this Rodney. You want to act like a little kid, I’ll treat you like one.” the elf declared.

Lori’s blows hurt more than Rod could have ever imagined. She seemed very adept and her hand left his bare bottom red and burning with pain in moments. He yelped despite himself and uselessly struggled to get away from her grip. Tears came quickly to his eyes and he started to bawl. “Sto-ha-ha-op. Please.” He whined.

After about ten strikes Lori released him and stopped. “Inside. Now.” She ordered. Seeing that both the woman and daughter were smiling at him he complied, covering his privates and sniffling loudly.

“I hope that wasn’t unpleasant for you, but I felt he deserved it. Especially since you found him that way.” Lori said to them.

The woman waved her hand. “Oh, don’t apologize. There’s nothing wrong with a little spanking. In fact, I still use corporal punishment at home.” Mary looked a bit uncomfortable at that statement and glanced away. “If you need someone to look after him while you’re out, Mary would love to baby sit.” The neighbor finished.

Lori smiled. “Thank you. I’ll think about it. My name’s Lori by the way.”

“Amanda.” The woman responded. “Good luck.”

Lori nodded and closed the door. She turned to Rod with her arms crossed and waited a moment to let the tension build. He was frightened, unsure of what she was going to do next. Finally she spoke, “Are you insane? You could be in foster care by now if I hadn’t decided to peek in.”

Rod sniffled loudly. “I - I’m sorry.” He replied weakly to the looming figure. She was huge compared to last night and Piper suddenly wondered if he had gotten younger.

She then grabbed onto his ear and pulled him around the apartment. “Sorry doesn’t begin to cover it buster. Look at the messes you left. I know you didn’t live like this before your wish.” she bellowed.

“Ow. Sorry. Ouch. I wasn’t thinking. Ah. I was just having fun.” He whined.

“Yeah. You certainly did. Well, it would seem that you do need supervision now. I’ll be happy to provide it. Any questions?” she asked.

A confused Rod looked up at her, trying to grasp the situation. It was embarrassing. Just last night he’d tried to kiss her and now she had just basically appointed herself his mommy. He’d read about the Oedipus complex before but seeing it work in reverse was ridiculous.

“Um, can I get something to wear?” he asked in a weak voice.

Lori’s face immediately softened. “Oh, did I scare you? I was just trying to be convincing. I didn’t want them to think your mother would condone such behavior. Not that I’m your mother, but still I .....” she paused, realizing he was still naked. “Oh. Shirt. Right.” Reaching behind her back she produced the shirt he’d left in the changing room, seemingly from thin air, and handed it to him. He gratefully pulled it on.

“Tha - Thanks.” He replied nervously. After a moment he asked, “Um, why are you so tall?”

Lori looked puzzled for a moment then exclaimed, “Oh! That. Forgot.” She bent over and pulled her heels off one by one. When she stood in her pantyhose she seemed to drop right into the floor, losing a foot of height in an instant. Piper knew some women wore heels to look taller but this went way beyond that.

“Magic.” She said simply, upon seeing his look of surprise. She was grinning from ear to ear.

He finally smiled, nodding. “You still look bigger than before though.” He commented.

“Well, I need a bit more of a height advantage if I’m going to be looking after you.” She smirked. “Are we agreed?”

He hesitated, rubbing his still sore behind. Despite the spanking she had saved him from a stupid decision. In truth, he figured he’d need a parent as long as he was little and there was no way he’d be asking his girlfriend. “Okay. You can look after me. But only as long as I’m little.” He said.

Lori grinned again. “Of course.” She replied.

R.C. finally got his eyes to stop tearing and set about picking up the living room. He felt the need to have his new guardian pleased with him, even though the realization made him blush. He also realized he wanted her to stay. Almost need it. He decided he just desired the company.

"Good boy." Lori said. "I’ve already put your adult clothes away and I’ll clean the dishes in the sink. The bathroom is your responsibility."

"Sorry about the mess, it is the maid’s year off," he quipped, wanting to sound less childish.

"Maid? Oh." the elf’s eyes lit up in understanding as she got the joke. "Heh. Funny. Still, I want things clean if I’m going to be staying here."

“Right.” He agreed as he worked.

The comforter was amazingly heavy to his scrawny arms, but he somehow managed to carry it to the washing machine and stuff it in. The bathroom was shockingly bad, the tiled floor still coated in water. He was mortified. Had he really done all that? What had he been thinking? He honestly had no good explanation, even to himself.

Once he was done with the bathroom, he grimaced as he felt his T-shirt slap wetly against his knees. He decided to take a shower to remove the chlorine of the hot tub, and find a new shirt.

Turning to the door, he noticed Lori leaning against the jam and smiling at him. "Looks like you had fun." she commented.

He remembered that he had. Lots. His face felt hot, but he returned her smile with a grin. "I-it was nice," he confessed.

"Good. I’m glad." she returned. "It was the point of the whole thing right? I mean, otherwise why do it? You just need a little help keeping things in check."

"I guess." He shrugged. "I never expected to be... bad. I guess I was pent up from years of being mature."

She giggled at his remark. "You weren’t bad. Rambunctious yes. Wild, maybe. A pig, yup. But, not bad. And maturity is something no kid has." She walked into the room and began to run the water.

"I did. The first time around." He muttered. He stepped close to the elf. "Hey, Lori? What, um, do your ears feel like?"

Turning, she raised an eyebrow at him and answered simply, "I really don’t feel them at all. They just kinda, y’know, sit there. Like yours."

"May I?" He asked, tentatively reaching for the tip of one of her ears.

Her eyebrows went up in understanding. "Oh. Feel like to you. Um, okay. Just this once." she replied, bowing her head to him.

In awe, he gently touched his finger-tips to her ears and traced them, feeling their warmth, their texture. One of his hands moved on to her fiery hair, equally fascinating to him.

She looked at him and giggled again. "Hey, you going to feel everything?!" she asked sarcastically.

He traced her cheek briefly before removing his hands. "You remind me of a cute girl I met at summer camp. Long red hair down her back. I had a crush on her for years."

"I see. A crush. How cute. Must be driving you mad that you can’t do anything with me," she said jokingly. She shook her head then, her hair suddenly changing color to blonde. "Guess I should remove the temptation. As a concerned guardian of course."

His blush was not so pleasant this time. "No. I wouldn’t try anything. Even if I could," he muttered.

After a moments silence she tapped him on the nose. "Alright. Now, is this going to be your bath or mine?"

Glancing at the tub, he stepped toward the door. "Yours. I’m all ’bath’ed out. I’ll go take a shower." Pausing in the doorway, he said, "The red suits you. Really."

She gave him a wry smile, squinting her eyes. "Okay. If it makes you happy. Now shoo. There are things little boys shouldn’t see. And close the door."

Rod screwed his face up in annoyance as he left. "Oh please." He whispered. She really knew how to take an idea too far.

"Oh, do you have any bubble bath?" she asked innocently.

"No, no bubble bath." He shut the door.

Rod could hear movement and rustling in the bathroom and the sound of clothes dropping. He felt like peeping. Just to get back at her of course, not that he didn’t know what a woman looked like. Confirmation of that caused another rush of warmth to his face. Compromising, he dropped lightly to the floor and peeked under the door, to see a pair of bare white feet step out of panty hose.

Fair is fair, he decided; she had seen him naked. Grinning, he opened the door and walked back in. He could see the clothes on the floor and was about to turn the corner to get a clear view of the tub. His belly did flips and his skin tingled at his bravado, and his voice shook slightly. "Sorry, I forgot my sponge."

"And your manners." she finished. For an instant all he saw was a flash of light and then he made out Lori standing beside the tub, arms crossed over her chest. She was not embarrassed however. She had no reason to be, considering she was fully clothed again.

Confused, Rod looked at the floor, wondering where the clothing had gone.

"Magic." She once more answered his unasked question. "Now out, naughty boy. I’ll think up a punishment later."

He smiled a ’can’t blame a guy for trying’ smile and scooted out of the room faster than he intended. God, she was humiliating. Cute, but humiliating.

The door lock clicked behind him.

He felt a bit upset at himself for betraying her trust. "Oh relax," he chided himself. "It was just a joke. And she didn’t trust you, anyway. She keeps reading your mind."

In the master bathroom, Rod had a bit of trouble reaching the elephant shaped showerhead to adjust it. He had to stand on tip-toe on the molding just to reach it, but was then able to pull it a foot lower. "I love this thing," he decided. He set the water running and stepped onto the scale.

The read-out jumped up to 225. "Stupid thing," the boy muttered, giving it a stamp and trying it again. 190. Sighing insufferably, he gave up and reached into the shower to adjust the water temperature.

Doffing the wet T-shirt and absently kicking it into a corner, he stepped into the shower and bathed. It was a different experience for him. Although the nozzle wasn’t too high for him, he still found himself reaching over his head for soap and shampoo. It was actually rather annoying. And for the first time in a long time, shampooing made his arms ache.

When he was finished, he had to shove against the shower door with his weight to overcome the magnetic strip. He had barely toweled off when he remembered the work he needed to get done, and rushed back into his office, wrapped in a towel, to sit at his computer again. Folding his skinny legs underneath himself Indian style he concentrated on his work.

After about ten minutes he heard the outer bathroom door open and footsteps slap on living room floor.

Five minutes after that he heard a knocking at his door.

"Yes?" he piped out, carefully keeping any annoyance from his voice at being interrupted. He swung his now free legs impatiently.

Lori opened the door and walked in. Her dry hair was red again, he noted happily, trying not to be too thrilled by it. She wore a pink robe and on her feet was a pair of pink bunny slippers. She was also holding a mug. "I thought you might like a cup of hot chocolate while you did your ’homework’." She said, emphasizing the last word to let him know it was a joke.

The boy’s eyes lit up. "Ooo! Thank you!"

She grinned and placed the mug on his desk. "Careful, it’s hot. Anything else? The kitchen is about to close. Well, not really, I will be making supper. But until then it’ll be closed."

He smiled at a thought. "Marshmallows?" he pleaded, giving her puppy-dog eyes. Glancing down at the towel he was wearing, he suddenly remembered his state of dress, and was grateful that his new guardian hadn’t chosen to comment.

She paused, smirking at him again. "I suppose. Though if you start bouncing around that’ll be it for sweets. I saw what you ate earlier. Probably explains some of it. Your body is different now. Sugar, bad!!" she finished, speaking the last in a Frankenstein monster’s voice and poking him gently in the tummy to point his body out.

"Aw, I’ll be all right." He pouted, before he could stop himself.

"I’ll be watching." she warned playfully, before leaving to return to the kitchen.

Rod suddenly felt the need to be very careful about how he’d act from that moment on. He didn’t want to be cut off from sweets! He needed to behave. Getting his work done would help.

He self-consciously touched the spot she poked, feeling how skinny he was. He thought being ten again wouldn’t make him quite so... weak. And childish. He must have remembered things wrong. Sighing, he carefully sipped the hot chocolate and placed it on a coaster to cool before turning back to his work.

"Let me know if you need help finding anything!" he called out, actually hoping to be of some help.

Lori returned to pour the marsh mellows into his mug. "Oh, I’m okay. Anything you don’t have I just create anyway. Don’t you worry, just concentrate on your work." With that she patted his head and left.

The boy felt a tingling in his belly at her touch and found himself grinning again. She really was the nicest person in his life right now. Shivering, he then took a moment to get dressed in the red pajamas, the only outfit in his size.

He struggled through the work, having to correct himself several times, then decided he would leave more thorough testing until when he was less distracted.

Around seven, he heard a knock at the door.

Feeling a surge of joy at being released from his ’homework’, Rod jumped out of his chair and hurried into the living room to see who was at the door. The peephole was over his head now, and it felt strange having to stand on tip-toe to take a look.

Seeing a pizza delivery boy on the other side, he unlocked the door and swung it wide. To Rod’s surprise, the ’young’ pizza boy turned out to be more than twice his size.

"Yes?" Rod asked, suddenly feeling intimidated.

The teen looked annoyed. "Hey kid. Where’s your mommy?"

Rod’s brow furrowed. Huge teen or not this was his house and he wasn’t going to be talked down to. "Don’t be rude. How much is it?" He snapped back.

Glaring, the teen kneeled down to Rod’s level and poked him hard in the chest as he replied, "I’ll be what I want to be. Now get your mommy little boy, I’m in a hurry."

The boy glowered back at the teen, but swallowed hard; his body was trembling. Despite himself, Rod began to wonder where Lori was. He wanted her protection.

"I’m right here," Lori declared from behind.

The teen’s eyes lit up upon seeing her and he rose, ignoring the frightened Rod completely. He was obviously enamored by and more interested in the gorgeous redhead in the robe than the little boy who looked ready to cry. "Um, large mushroom, ma’am. That’ll be $12.62"

Lori paid him and thanked him. To her charge she commented, "Now Rodney, I don’t want you opening the door to strangers. Understood?"

"Oh-kay," he whispered. Feeling a little faint, R.C. walked away from the door and pulled himself onto the couch. He stared at his bare little feet poking from his PJs. He felt completely powerless. And the worst part was, he’d wished to be that way.

"Lori? How long does my wish last?" He asked.

Carrying the pizza into the kitchen the elf raised an eyebrow and responded, "Till whenever. But, once it’s over it’s over. Now c’mon, dinner is served."

The smell of the pizza brought a smile back to his face. "Pizza! Great!" He hopped up and hurried into the kitchen.

Standing next to Lori, Rod measured himself against her, wondering how much taller she’d made herself, and why. He found himself only coming up to her neck and when he sat in the kitchen chair, only his toes touched the ground.

As for the pizza, she gave him one slice at a time, explaining that he couldn’t be sure how much he’d be able to get down now. "I’m sorry for the quick fix, but I thought you deserved a treat after today. I’ll make my famous toadstool surprise tomorrow night."

"Toadstool?" Smiling politely, he changed his next words. "I’d love to taste your specialty. Does it have more than mushrooms in it? The dish?"

She shrugged. "No meat. Mostly vegetables and the like. You’ll love it." She poured him some orange juice.

Rod was surprised yet again when two pieces of pizza were more than enough to fill him up. The orange juice was enjoyable, though he’d rather have it for breakfast. Pop was the beverage of choice for pizza, and he told her so.

"Finish the juice, it’s good for you. If you do I’ll let you have some cola. Alright?" she asked.

He became a bit annoyed at having to make a deal for his own soda. "Yes," he said, lacking some enthusiasm. He had to expect a hard time from a red-head.

Lori cleaned up after they finished, allowing him to take the half-filled glass of soda with him. "Be careful with that." she warned. "I don’t want you spilling it like the last one."

"I know," he said simply, a bit trite. “Sheesh.” Still, he was sure to place it on a proper coaster in the living room. He turned the television on, not even thinking of changing the channel when he saw the cartoon network.

"Lori?" he asked again. "Do a lot of people wish for what I did?"

"You’d be amazed,” she called from the kitchen. “Quite a few. It’s very popular this time of year." When she joined him in the living room, she noticed the cartoons and asked, "Did you finish your homework?"

Rod felt guilty again, like he was avoiding work. He squirmed a little. "As much as I could," he evaded. "I got too tired to think. I need a break."

"I see," she commented, sitting down next to him on the couch. Her robe billowed a bit and he could see she was wearing a pair of shorts underneath.

Rod blushed, yet felt a tingly excitement as well. He’d loved to have seen more. Tucking his feet up under him, Rod carefully leaned down against her and put his head on her shoulder.

Without a word she picked up the remote and turned to one of the network channels. Rod felt indignant that she had changed the channel without even asking. "Can you change it back?" he asked her carefully. "I was watching that."

She giggled. "Oh, does little Roddy want his cawtoons." she joked in a high voice. Glancing at where he touched her shoulder she added, "And what in the world are you doing?"

He blushed an ugly red. He was too riled up to speak for a few moments, but he removed his head from her shoulder. “What should I tell her?” he wondered. “That kids and parents sat like that?” He realized he should... but he couldn’t get his voice to work.

His humiliation eventually chased him from the room. He went back to his room, and closed himself into his bathroom. He glared at the red-faced kid in the mirror. "What are you lookin’ at?" he muttered.

She knocked on the bathroom door.

He glared at the door, not wanting to open it. "What?" he choked out, near tears. His voice strangled.

Through the door she asked, "Are you upset? I’m sorry, if you want to lean on me it’s fine. I’ll even watch cartoons with you. That is what you wanted isn’t it?" There was concern in her voice.

Tears erupted from his eyes and he wiped them quickly. "Yes," he gasped, trying to keep the tears out of his voice. The cry-baby in the mirror didn’t look ten. The tears and redness made him look younger. He hated that look.

There was a pause. "Okay. You better hurry then. ’Power Puff Girls’ is about to start."

"Okay," he replied, trying to stop crying. He heard the door creak open. Lori stood there, her face held a worried expression.

"You’re crying. I’m so sorry. It’s my fault isn’t it? I was still thinking of you as an adult. I didn’t mean to upset you." She said.

"I- I- I- can’t help it," he gasped, trying very hard to make it a lie.

She waited, allowing him to regain some control. Eventually he managed to dry up his face quite a bit. The tears had actually cleared his mind and soothed him.

"C’mon." She said gently, holding a hand out to him. “You’re a kid again. Enjoy it.”

Wiping his nose on his sleeve without even thinking about it, he took her warm hand in his smaller one. She seemed even bigger to him now and very motherly.

Without a word she led him back to the couch and sat down, pulling him against her. She wrapped her arm around him gently and snuggled him close.

He hugged her back. She felt huge and soft in his small arms and despite himself he loved touching the strength he felt in her. Strength he was no longer sure he felt in himself. He lost himself in the cartoons.

Young Rod was mesmerized by the bright colors and cheery sounds of the childish entertainment before him. He’d forgotten how much fun cartoons were to watch. Around nine o’clock Lori separated herself from the boy and pulled his attention back to her. "Okay, enough of that for now. Time for a certain little boy to go to bed."

Rod felt it was a bit early for that. Besides, he was comfortable there. "But I’m comfoble here," he mumbled sleepily in protest.

Despite the protest she stood him up and gave his bottom a gentle pat. "Too bad. Bathroom now. You have teeth to brush. March." she ordered.

The spell broken, Rod didn’t bother arguing. He grumbled his way to the master bedroom (boy, did it seem a long way) and into the bathroom.

She followed him, standing at the door and watching him "Y’know, we really should move your stuff into the other bathroom." She commented.

The face of the sleepy child in the mirror was puffy with impending slumber, and again looked quite young. In bringing his hand over the counter, he misjudged and cuffed the edge. It was annoyingly in his way. Was it higher? He brushed his teeth as he stared at himself. "This is my room," he murfled to the elf.

"Yes. But while I’m here I’m going to use it. The couch is too small and that other bed looks much more your size anyway," She answered, seeming to not leave it up for debate.

Rod imagined himself crawling into bed with her. "Okay," he relented. "Girls need the closet space more, anyway."

She glared slightly at him, "Actually, I keep all my things out of sight in other ways I’ll have you know." Reaching up she pulled a toothbrush out of thin air.

He spit the toothpaste out of his mouth and said, "I wish I could do stuff like that."

With another gesture all of Rod’s things, except the brush that was presently in his mouth, disappeared from his bathroom. "It is fun." she added.

His teeth felt a little funny. Rinsing out, he looked closely at his front teeth in the mirror. His top lateral incisors were a little out of alignment! Standing up straight, Rod tried to take a measurement against the elf, but she walked by him and leaned over the sink to brush her own teeth, the paste magically appearing on her brush.

"Lori?" he asked, tremulously. Was his voice higher?

She turned to him. From her full mouth she mumbled, "Are you still here? I want you under the covers, now."

"How old am I?" He asked her instead, his skin tingling in fear.

"Old enough to know better than to disobey me. Do you want another spanking?" She threatened.

"No, wait!" He said, holding up his hands. "Just... am I still getting younger?"

She spit the paste from her mouth and rinsed it. "You are a kid again. That was your wish and that was what you got." she answered simply. "Now, why are you still standing there?" A paddle materialized in her hand.

His eyes popped out and he scurried past her, out of the bathroom. "Don’t!" He called back. He hurried into the guest bedroom and hopped onto the bed, thinking of nothing but escaping the paddle.

She called behind him, "You better be under those covers too." He yanked back the green comforter and scooted underneath, trembling. Why was she being so scary?

She stood in the doorway, her silhouette standing out in the light of the hall. The paddle was gone and she kneeled down to tuck him in. "Good boy. Don’t be so stubborn. When I tell you to do something I want it done. It’s for your own good. Nighty night." She kissed him on the forehead and began to leave.

Rod felt the room was awfully dark. Strange shapes and shadows seemed to be moving in it. "Lori? Could you l-leave the light on? Low?" He blushed. "I’m not used to this room in the d-dark."

"Would you like a night light?" She asked sweetly.

"Um, well... that light there is on a dim switch, and, um, it would be nice." He felt foolish.

"I think that would be a waste of electricity and probably too bright for you to get to sleep. Wouldn’t you agree? I could conjure up a night light with ease." She countered.

"Oh-okay," he conceded, feeling very small. He could see the little lumps of his feet under the covers, more than a foot from the end of the six-foot bed.

She gestured at the electrical outlet near the door and it shimmered. After a moment a night light with a happy smiling mushroom on it stared back at him. "There, now you won’t be scared. You’re all safe and snug. Sleep tight, don’t let the bedbugs bite." She told him, her voice very soft.

"Lori?" he gulped. "How little will I get?"

"Shhhhhhhh. No more questions tonight. Rest now." she commented, and walked away.

After a few tense moments in the quiet, Rod carefully got out of bed. Taking a pencil from his computer desk, he stood against the wall with the nightlight and marked off his height. He would have to wait until morning to get the measuring tape. What was happening to him?

"Do I hear something?" Lori called from the living room.

Rod’s heart leapt into his throat and his skin tingled once more as a chill passed though him. Holding his breath, he slipped the pencil back into its holder, and hurried back under the covers.

From the safety of his bed, he explored his body. Did it feel a bit pudgier? The cheeks certainly seemed that way. And his teeth were still crooked.

He fell asleep still pondering his worries.

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 3

When he awoke, he found himself in the office, huddled under a warm green comforter in the guest bed. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, confused. "How did I get here?" He asked himself, at first thinking he must have passed out after working all night. Then he noticed his voice, and it all came back.

It was morning and he could smell eggs cooking in the kitchen. He got out of bed and hurried over to the wall to check his height against last night’s mark.

The mark was gone. Completely. Not erased but somehow vanished. He glanced down at the nightlight. It seemed to be smiling up at him.

Frightened, the boy backed away from the plastic mushroom. Gulping, he plucked up a pencil and marked his height again, then went to the tool box in the closet to get his tape measure.

When he returned the mark was once again gone.

Lori then appeared in the doorway. "Good, you’re up. Breakfast is ready." She announced cheerily. The elf then looked at him strangely before smiling. "Oh, playing carpenter I see. That looks like a fun game. Later though. Time to eat now." She ordered.

"Be right there," he replied shrilly. "I have to go pee."

As he passed her in the doorway, he tried to measure himself against her again, but she bent over to take the night light out of the wall. "Need any help?" She asked.

He started at that, a little frightened at her question and replied hastily, "I’ll be fine." He hurried into the bathroom with the measuring tape and closed the door.

R.C. gazed at the frightened boy in the mirror. How old was he? He checked his teeth again and found that they felt slightly different from the night before. He swore they were more crooked.

Beginning to hyperventilate Rod stripped his pajamas off. He looked his body over, looking for signs. How old did he look? Eight? Certainly not ten!

There was a knock at the door. "Hurry up Rodney. Your food is getting cold." Lori said.

He began to feel like he had no privacy whatsoever. "Just a minute!" he called out. Placing the tab of the measuring tape under his heel, he stretched the tape out as straight as he could, and marked the top of his head with his fingers. Nervously, he glanced at his fingers. He was interrupted as the bathroom door opened.

"What in the world are you playing at in here?" Lori demanded. The tape seemed to jump from his hand.

"Do you mind?" he screeched, hoping she would close the door. "I’m not decent!"

She smirked. "I see. Wasn’t that how you expected to find me last night? I said I’d think of a punishment. Now stop fooling around and get your clothes on."

He sat down on the toilet. "Please close the door!" he insisted, his voice almost a whine.

"Fine," she commented. With a wave of her hand the tape measure disappeared. "But your toys go. I’m not having a repeat of yesterday." With that she closed the door.

Shivers ran up and down his spine as he realized that his heels didn’t touch the floor as he sat on the toilet seat, and worsened when he thought about what she was doing to him. He hurriedly peed, then flushed and picked up his pajamas. Out of perverse curiosity, he decided to check the size label on the jammies. The label read, “Roddy’s size.”

Getting dressed, the boy washed his hands and tried to ingrain into his memory the point where the sink counter pressed against his torso. He then prepared himself to join Lori.

Entering the kitchen, Rod nervously held out his arms to the elf. "Good morning." He said.

She knelt and gave him a hug. "Good morning. Breakfast is on the table. I made mushroom omelets." She happily told him.

The first thing Rod noticed was that Lori was fully dressed in her suit. When she stood up, he could see that she was also very tall again, due to the magical heels. "Why are you all dressed up?" he asked as he sat at the table. He looked down, noticing that only the tips of his toes now reached the floor.

"Well, today is a workday right? If it’s going to look like I’m your mommy I really should be gone for the day shouldn’t I? Lucky for you it’s Christmas break. You get to stay home. Oh, and you’ll find appropriate clothing in your new closet. It’s in the guest bedroom. Now eat! Do you like it?" She asked cheerfully.

Rod shoveled some omelet into his mouth from the plate mere inches from his face. He used to like omelets fine, but today this one seemed to need a blot of ketchup. "Good," He responded, more to the idea of her leaving him alone again as she played working girl.

She looked at her watch. "You better get dressed as soon as you finish that up. Mary should be here in about 15 minutes."

Rod almost choked. "Who!? What!?"

She looked at him seriously. "Well, I couldn’t just leave you alone again. You might jump in a fountain or something this time. Besides, her mother said she’s eager to baby-sit you. She’s already watching a pair of children your age. Drink your juice."

"There’s no way a thirteen-year-old girl is as mature as a man in a boy’s body!" He protested, ignoring his drink. "I’ll be fine alone! I got it all out of my system." He felt his anger rise considerably as heat flushed through his skin. He was sick of being treated like a little kid.

"Really? Well, if that’s true then this will be it. Now stop slouching. It’s bad for your posture." Lori commanded.

His nostrils flared. "Okay, enough playing around! I don’t want you looking after me anymore, and I certainly don’t want some teenager in here pawing through my stuff!"

"Don’t be silly." Lori said, waving her hand dismissively. "You are a child right now. You need watching and a parent can’t always be there for you. This is part of the whole, little boy, so stop whining and accept it. Besides, she won’t touch your things, my magic will make sure of that. I promise."

"I am NOT whining, I am ARGUING!" He angrily replied, sliding to his feet. He was coming close to shouting, the anger within him turning his face dark red. "YOU are only here because I INVITED you here! NOW I want you GONE!" He stomped his foot.

She stood, her tall form causing his gaze to meet her squarely in the stomach. "Don’t shout at me." She said calmly, making him even angrier at her nonchalance. "Throwing a temper tantrum will do nothing for you. You are reacting like a child. You are one. You need to be watched. None of this is negotiable. Now sit down and finish your food."

His voice hoarse from straining, Rod shouted, "GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!"

She sighed, then grabbed him by the shoulder and sat down, pulling him over her knee. Before he could react she had his pajama pants down and was spanking him. Without a word she gave him half a dozen blows. The blows hurt even more than they did the last time. Thankfully there were fewer.

"NO! N-UH! STOP!" He screamed, writhing in agony before she stopped.

"Are you sorry for yelling at me?" She asked.

"Yes!" He cried, with truth. Now he was afraid of her, of how she so easily disposed him without even getting upset.

"Are you going to do it again?"

"No!"

"Are you going to question me again?"

"Only with good reason!" He promised.

She hesitated for a moment and Rod was frightened by what she might do next. She then said, "All right. That’s fair enough." Pulling his pants back up she shifted him so he was seated on her lap, facing her. Hugging the crying boy to her chest she said, "Shhhh. Don’t cry sweetie. I’m not mad. No child wants supervision. Even when they need it."

Rod actually found himself craving her comfort. He lost himself in her warmth, happy for the moment, that the punishment was over, that she was not angry with him for being so childish.

After a few minutes she quietly asked him, "Do you want me to help you get dressed now?"

All pride gone for the moment, the boy nodded, smiling at the idea of being so pampered. How long had it been since he last experienced such a luxury? Too long, he decided.

She stood from the chair, keeping him in her arms. She was so very tall in this form and he thought the floor looked terribly far away, even though he realized this was probably close to his adult height. He snuggled more tightly against her breast, idly noticing the air whooshing around his bare feet as she carried him to his new room.

He felt himself being sat on the bed and his pajama top was soon pulled from his chest. He looked down at himself, staring at his skinny chest. It felt funny to be in this position after so long.

Lori picked up a child’s T-shirt from the bed and showed it to the boy. It had a shot of Pikachu casting lightning at Charizard. "This okay?" She asked.

He found himself grinning at the animated shirt. "Okay." He responded. He knew it was childish, but he couldn’t help but like the colors and the way the lightning sparkled. He lifted his hands obediently over his head for the fitting.

His guardian helped him maneuver his hands through the sleeves as she pulled it on him. She then told him to stand up.

The boy did as he was told and stood up on the bed. He was still half a head shorter than her. She pulled his pajama bottoms down, telling him to pick up his legs. He felt the air play across his tender bottom as he stood, waiting.

She then presented a pair of underoos and told him to step into them. He stepped into the underwear, wincing when they make contact with his bottom. She snapped them playfully, making him jump, and laughed. She then pulled a pair of jeans on him and finally told him to sit down so she could put his socks on.

He sat down, feeling silly, but enjoying every second of her ministrations. This was what being a kid was all about. Lori tickled the bottoms of his feet joyfully, to which he gave out a high-pitched giggle that surprised himself.

Finished with that she put his socks on, just before the doorbell rang. "Come on." She stood and held her hand out. "Mary is here."

He took her hand, almost not noticing how much bigger it seemed from the night before. He allowed himself to be led to the door. When they stopped, he again compared himself to Lori’s height, to find himself staring into her upper stomach. His tongue told him that this crooked teeth had almost disappeared, leaving gaps beside his incisors... yet he wasn’t panicking. “It’s all part of the wish.” He decided. Lori knew what she was doing. She loved him, and she wouldn’t let anything happen to him.

Lori opened the door to reveal Mary standing with two young charges.

The first to enter was a girl of about Rod’s height, with light brown hair and green eyes. She smiled up at Lori and very politely said, "Hello."

Lori smiled warmly. "Why hello dear. What’s your name?"

"My name is Jenny, ma’am," the girl replied in the same polite, quiet tone as she moved in from the doorway to make room. She had on a pair of jeans, a green shirt with a small bow at the collar, and white sneakers with pink tracings.

"What a polite little girl. I’m happy to meet you Jenny. I’m Miss Philip and this is Rodney," Lori said happily.

"Rod, actually," R.C. was quick to interject. If the girl was close to his height, then she was close to his age. He peered at her, trying to decide what age that was.

The other child entered, a boy from down the hall, who was half a head shorter, and probably a year younger, than the girl. He had short, dark brown hair and bright blue eyes. He was not so prim and proper as Jenny. The boy had on a pair of faded purple cotton pants, slightly too small for him, a white T-shirt with an equally faded logo, and thoroughly scuffed running shoes. "My names Chris!" He almost shouted at Lori before running into the room.

Lori grinned a bit at that, as if thinking about something. She then spoke to Mary. "Now Mary, I should be home by six. There’s money on the kitchen table if you need anything. I told Rod to be good for you and you have permission to punish him if you must. A light spanking at most though. I’ve left instructions on everything else, from food to TV hours," She added.

Rod stared incredulously at Lori, finding it hard to swallow the sudden weight of all her new restrictions. The boy then turned to face Mary with an embarrassed shyness, his hands clasped behind his back. "Uh, hi, Mary."

The teen nodded to Lori as she entered the apartment, seeming bored. She did manage to give Rod a smirk but didn’t bother to acknowledge his presence otherwise. She wore sneakers with blue jeans and had on a ’N’Sync’ concert shirt. Her black hair had the same medium cut he’d seen the day before. "I got it Miss Philip. Mind if I make a few calls while I’m here?" Mary asked.

"Not at all, dear. Just no male friends okay?" Lori answered. At Mary’s nod she knelt down in front of Rod and hugged him. "Be good my big boy." She said, kissing him on the cheek.

Rod actually found himself rather embarrassed at her actions in front of his new playmates. He blushed lightly, a confusion of emotions going through him. He felt anger toward Lori for putting him through this, and yet he felt fear that Lori -- Lori’s strength -- was leaving him with three kids bent on exploring his apartment. "Don’t go." He let slip out before he could think.

Lori merely smiled. "I’m sorry honey, but mommy has to. I’ll bring you something when I get home." With that she ruffled his hair and left.

A terrible hollowness entered his chest as he watched the door click shut. Taking a deep breath to try to fill it, he turned to survey his unwelcome guests.

"Oh don’t go mommy. Boo-Hoo. Yeesh, what a baby," Mary commented. Walking to the middle of the living room the babysitter put down a bag and opened it. To the group she said, "Okay brats, you can play with your toys now. I’m going to call some friends so don’t bother me till lunch, got it?"

"Don’t you have a cell phone yet?" Rod grumped as she walked past him. He was starting to feel like his old self again. He blamed Mary for breaking his peaceful mood.

Mary looked at him strangely, pausing in her retort. After a moment she said, "If I had the money for a cell phone do you think I’d be babysitting you rug rats? Besides, what’s it to you? Go play with your toys."

He shrugged. "I just think it would be cool if you could walk around, talking to your friends as much as you wanted," He replied, trying to earn brownie points. "You could go anywhere, even outside or to the mall. Say, are your friends online? I have direct access to the internet, you know. Do you want to sign on?"

She blinked at him, rather confused at what was coming out of this boys mouth. She quickly recovered however and sneered, "Yeah, well if wishes were horses kid....... Not like I said no to one." After a moment though her expression softened. "Hey, thanks for the offer, but I’d rather talk to them. What are you anyway, some kind of genius?"

He smiled kindly -- or sweetly, considering his young face. "I’m older than I look. Can I get you something to drink?"

She smirked again and shrugged. "Sure. Got diet?"

He frowned and patted his tummy. "I don’t think so. Do I need it? You certainly don’t."

The girl chuckled at the joke. "Whatever. Soda’s fine." With that she plopped down on the sofa and picked up the phone, dialing a number.

The other two children stared at Rod in shock. Jenny’s eyes were especially wide. "You made her laugh. How?"

Mary’s voice interrupted his response. "Hey Cheryl! How’s it going?" She said into the receiver and kicked off her sneakers. Her short hair bobbed over the arm of the couch as she spoke very quickly and excitedly to her friend. Within moments she was lost in teenage babbling bliss.

Rod motioned for the two children to follow him into the kitchen. Once there, he tried vainly to reach the cupboards before sighing and dragging a chair over to stand on. "You make people laugh by saying things that make them feel good," He told them over his shoulder. "You guys are still pretty young to start thinking about other people and their feelings, but you might want to start. Jenny, you’re on the right track. Being polite is the first step, then comes being considerate, then downright generous. Coke?"

"Sure. Thanks." Jenny replied.

Christopher however reached up his arms and demanded of Rod, "I want to help too! Let me pour."

"Let me get the glasses first," Rod replied, keeping his voice patient.

Having pondered what he’d said, Jenny returned with, "You’re not that much older than me y’know."

"Sure I am, Jenn." He looked back at her, smiled and winked in an un-childish way.

She shook her head. "Nu-uh. You’re only a little bigger than me. You can’t be more than eight."

Rod paused and let out a sigh. His suspicions were confirmed. He had gotten younger. Still, it didn’t seem that bad a thing. At least he had playmates close to his new age. Putting four glasses on the counter, Rod jumped to the floor without thinking about it and pulled two cans of Coke from the fridge. He handed one to Chris and said, "Be careful."

The boy nodded, taking the can carefully in his hands before opening it.

Facing Jenny, Rod said, "That’s the way I look. But I have a secret." With that, he turned back to the glasses and opened the remaining can of Coke. His confidence was definitely returning. He felt in control, and was starting to get more comfortable with his situation. Maybe today would be fun, after all.

Jenny squinted at him as if trying to notice something she hadn’t before. Finally she replied, "Well, ya look eight."

Rod grinned, but his happy thoughts were interrupted as he heard a full can of coke impact with the floor. "Ooops," He heard Chris say.

Rod turned to see the fizzling tonic spreading across the kitchen floor. Stooping quickly, he scooped for the can before it could pour much out. At his normal age, he would have been impressive, but this time, his smaller hands missed their mark and sent the can rolling across the tile, spreading the dark mass even further. Chasing it, he eventually got a grip on the can and lifted it from the floor. He placed it on the counter and reached for the sink sponge to clean up.

Jenny turned to Chris and whispered worriedly, "Chris! Why weren’t you careful? Now Mary’s gonna get mad."

"I’m sorry. I tried but it slipped." He whined.

Looking worried Jenny turned to walk out of the kitchen. "I’ll go tell her." She said.

"Jenny," Rod called quietly but urgently. "No big deal. I can clean it up myself. It is my place, after all."

Jenny stared back at him then shook her head once more. "But she’s babysitting us. We should tell her."

"And get her mad?" He asked pointedly. "She won’t like it, so why tell her? Look, if I can’t clean it up like it didn’t happen, then we tell her. Okay?" He was already sopping up the pop with the sponge.

Jenny wrinkled her brow, looking confused. "But ..... um .... well, okay. I guess. It seems wrong though. She’s the adult."

Rod almost laughed at the absurdity of a thirteen year old being called an adult. He had to appreciate the idea, though. He remembered how he used to think the ten-year-olds on “Escape to Witch Mountain” seemed so grown up when he was five. Still, he knew Mary wasn’t even close. "No, she isn’t. She is barely a teenager. She isn’t even in high school yet." He protested.

Jenny glared at him. "Well, she’s a lot older than you. She’ll know how to clean it up right."

"I know how to clean it up right because I’ve done it before," Rod returned, getting irritated. "See? I’m cleaning it up. Then I’ll wipe the floor with some water, just like your mommy does, and everything’ll be perfect." He wrung out the sponge in the sink and ran water over it to rinse it out.

Rod’s actions were interrupted however as Mary entered the doorway. "What in the world is taking so lo ........?" She managed to get out, before her expression changed to annoyance when she spotted the sponge. "Okay. What happened? Fess up!" the babysitter ordered.

Jenny spoke immediately. "Christopher dropped the can by accident and Rod was cleaning it up. We were gonna tell you."

"I’m sorry." Chris told the teen.

Rod suddenly felt very frightened despite his previous bravado. "J-Just a little spill," he replied, stooping to rinse the floor. "I’ve got it taken care of."

"Great. Can’t leave you brats alone for a minute." Mary muttered to herself, ignoring Rod’s statements. "Gimmie the sponge. Next time just tell me, alright?" In truth, she seemed more annoyed than angry.

Still, Rod felt the desire to prove to her that he knew what he was doing. "I didn’t want to bother you," Rod replied sheepishly. "You were busy. I know how to take care of it. I know where all the sticky spots are. Please, take your drink and make yourself at home. Your friend is waiting for you, isn’t she?"

Instead of taking his invitation, Mary glared at him and snatched the sponge from his hand. "Alright, I’m getting a little sick of the ?Braniac’ routine kid. Cheryl knows to wait for me and I should have known better than to let kids in here alone. Won’t make that mistake again. Oh, and it’s so great that you know how to get rid of sticky spots, but what if little Chris, or I had slipped on the wet floor, huh? Not so bright then are you? Now go play with your toys. I’ll take care of the stupid soda. Just don’t you dare think of hiding something from me again."

Rod’s cheeks flushed bright red and his jaw clamped shut. He was afraid of what words might’ve come out of his mouth. Almost seeing red, he didn’t notice his gums tingle as he stormed out of the kitchen.

When he entered the living room Rod saw Christopher already on the floor playing with a truck. Jenny however was glaring at him. "I told you we shoulda told her. Now we won’t get to do anything." She scolded him.

"If you hadn’t been a big useless baby, and helped me, we would have been done!" Rod exploded. "Or you could have taken her drink out to her. Did you think of that? Huh? Or is your cerebral cortex still too underdeveloped?" Suddenly noticing that his socks were wet with soda, Rod plopped down on the floor and yanked them off angrily.

Jenny looked at him in confusion and sadness. For a moment she almost looked ready to cry. "I’m not a baby! You ... you’re the one who’s bein bad! Just because you’re so smart doesn’t make you right, y’know."

Rod let out a big sigh. "I’m sorry, Jennifer. You try. Some day, you are going to be really smart, and you’ll probably make tons more money than me."

The girl sniffled and turned from him without responding. She then pulled a doll from the toy bag and began to play with it. She kept her back to him.

Oblivious to the scene before him, Christopher asked Rod, "Wanna play?"

Rod looked dubiously at the truck Chris was holding and said, "Not really."

He stood, gathered his socks, and brought them down the hallway to his room. He then headed into the bathroom to be alone with his pouty reflection. He leaned against the counter, with his chin supported by his elbows, and gazed at himself. The boy in the mirror had a prominent roundness to his cheeks, and the gaps in his teeth were quite noticeable. His nose was still the upturned shape he had liked so much as a ten-year-old, but now it had a pudgy, button aspect to it. A healthy spattering of cute freckles had also bloomed across the bridge of his nose since last he’d looked.

What was he to do? How could he convince Lori that he wanted to go no farther? He’d have to make it good.

After a couple of minutes he heard Mary shout, "Philip!? Come here!" She didn’t sound angry, just decisive.

Startling at the voice, but then sighing, he trundled from the room. "Yes, Miss?" He inquired.

Mary paused, surprised at his deference, but quickly recovered. "Okay kid, kitchen’s clean. I’m really not upset with you, but watch it from now on. I hate it when you brats make my job harder." Sitting once more on the sofa she added, "Oh, and if you want to play video games your mother wrote it was alright. At least until lunch. Just keep it down." With that, she turned the channel to VH - 1.

"Let me know anything I can do to make it easier," Rod replied and headed for the master bedroom. He hardly thought of it as his anymore, he realized in annoyance.

Christopher ran after him. "Can I play too?" the younger boy asked.

"Oh, and be careful with Chris. He likes to play rough." Mary shouted to him, above the music video she was viewing.

"Uh..." R.C. looked at the eager boy and sighed. "All right." The boy didn’t seem so small anymore, bouncing along beside him.

R.C. lifted the Playstation onto the bed and turned the TV on. He had to jump up to get onto the raised mattress, but felt rather satisfied to be perched so high. "I don’t have a lot of two-player games. Let’s see..."

"I got ’Pokemon’ in the bag," the younger boy announced before running back to the living room.

"Whatever," Rod thought, though he was curious as to how the game worked.

Rod could hear Mary shout, "No running in the house!" and after a few seconds Chris walked back into the bedroom, game in hand.

He gazed at the boy as he fumbled with the game CD. He used to have a childhood friend named Chris, though this boy wasn’t much like him. He chuckled at the strange coincidence.

The two of them played for almost an hour. At first Chris won easily and enjoyed it greatly, but as Rod’s superior reasoning deciphered the mechanics of the game the six year old became easier and easier to beat. He also became more and more frustrated. Despite himself Rod found enjoyment at winning and really didn’t care if the ’child’ he was playing with was upset.

Finally, getting angry, Chris threw the controller at the floor. "Stupid game." He whined.

"Hey! Be careful with that." Rod wasn’t too worried about the controller, as he had given the boy the cheap plastic controller that came with the game, reserving the more expensive one for himself. However, Chris’ behavior was likely to get worse. "Time to stop."

"No! I’m gonna beat you!" Chris exclaimed, hopping down to get the controller back.

Rod rolled his eyes and piped, "What-ever!"

Sensing the disdain in Rod’s voice the boy became angrier, quickly punching the older kid in the chest. "Shut up!" He whined.

Rod was mostly surprised that the punch hurt as much as it did and became angry him self. "Ow!" He exclaimed, glaring at the other boy with murder in his eyes. "Do not hit me!" Rod growled, biting each word off.

Chris pouted. "Don’t tell me what to do!" He snapped before pushing Rod with both hands.

Twisting his body, Rod deftly avoided the push, quickly grabbing one of the boy’s wrists and pulling him along with the momentum. Chris fell forward and soon found Rod sitting on his back. "Say you’re sorry," the older boy demanded.

Instead of apologizing, however, the boy beneath him merely struggled and grunted furiously. Undeterred, Rod began to tickle the boy. Most of his anger had fled, though he was ready to do battle if things grew more serious.

"Say sorry!" He ordered again.

Between giggles the younger boy cried out, "Noooooooo! Stop ittttt! Stooooopppppp!!!!" The last was in a very loud screech Rod was sure could be heard outside the bedroom. Rod gave Chris a little swat on the behind and climbed off.

"Ow!" Chris exclaimed, popping back to a seated position and looking angrily at Rod. Mary walked into the room a moment later, as Rod slid off the bed.

"I heard a scream. What’s up?" She asked.

"Chris got rough, like you said," Rod replied, looking up at Mary. "But I tickled him. Geez, you’re tall!" Rod was at least a foot shorter than the eighth grader.

Mary gave a short laugh. "Cute. Good response," She told him. She then glared at Chris and said sternly, "Christopher Atkins, what has your mommy told you about hitting?" The boy looked at her with a terrified expression.

"But ... but, we were playing." he whined. He looked at Rod pleadingly.

"He didn’t really hit, he just pushed," Rod replied. "I think he was getting bored with the game." Rod looked back at Chris.

Mary raised an eyebrow. "Alright then. Try to be quieter." With that she left the room. Rod could swear he felt his gums tingle, but the tight hug from Chris distracted him as the other boy almost bowled him over.

"Hey! Ease up!" Rod protested.

"Thank you, thank you." Chris exclaimed, hugging Rod tighter than was comfortable. Backing up the boy beamed at him. "Wanna wrestle again?" He asked.

Rod felt unsure, almost afraid. "What if you hit me again?"

The boy shook his head. "I won’t hit you. Yure my friend now. I promise."

"Well, okay. Let me get the game off the bed, first." Rod tucked the Playstation away and climbed onto the bed to face his friend. "Remember, no hitting, kicking, scratching, all that." Absently, Rod noticed that the boy sure seemed more imposing to him, now that they were facing off.

"Kay." the boy nodded, bouncing on the cushion. After a moment he leapt at Rod.

Rod caught him and worked at simply overpowering the boy. It wasn’t as easy as before but it still took Rod little time and effort to pin Chris. This time the other boy didn’t complain, instead simply saying, "You win! Again!"

Rod gave Chris a victory tickle and let him up. They went a couple more pins before stopping. Chris attacked with more energy but could do nothing to beat his bigger, more experienced friend. Still, he was happy when Mary called them for lunch. And Rod was happy for the break. Boy, was he hungry!

To be continued.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 4

The boys jumped to the floor and raced out of the bedroom. Upon reaching the living room Mary looked up from the table and said, "Hey you two! I said no running! Got it?"

Rod stopped, rubbing at his tingling mouth. "Sorry," he replied, worried. Was something happening to him, even now? His tongue located a loose tooth in what used to be the gap to the left of his front incisors. It located another, more solid tooth to the right. His T-shirt felt the same, but the cuffs of his Baby Gap jeans had gone from lightly brushing the tops of his bare feet to resting quite noticeably on them, and catching on his heels as he walked. He wanted very badly to go look at himself in the mirror again. "I’m going to wash up," he called, and hurried to the bathroom.

Jenny was at the sink, already washing her hands. When he hurried up beside her to stare at himself in the mirror, he noticed something that sent a shiver up his spine -- the seven-year-old was now a couple of inches taller than he! He experienced another shiver as he saw his teeth in the mirror. The new teeth were baby teeth, all right, and his two front teeth were crooked, the right one slightly shorter than the left.

Jenny made no comment as she wiped her hands on a towel and began to walk out of the bathroom. His heart thudding in his little chest, Rodney lathered up his hands.

Chris walked up to the sink to wash his hands too. Rod was thankful to find he was still somewhat taller than his friend. It made him feel like things hadn’t gotten too out of hand. The other boy then playfully bumped Rod out of his spot at the sink.

Rod stumbled and bounced off the wall, shocked at how easily he was moved aside. With a flare of annoyance, he hip-checked Chris back so he could finish rinsing. Chris giggled and proceeded to wash his hands on the side of the sink.

Afraid again and panting, Rod dried his hands and headed out of the bathroom, trying to think. There had to be a trigger to his regression. What was it?

When he returned to the living room Rod saw that Jenny was already sitting quietly at the table, ignoring him. There were tuna sandwiches and chicken soup in the middle of the table and Mary was laying out paper plates and bowls "Let me check your hands." she told him.

Rod showed his hands to the sitter, noticing how small and chubby they were becoming.

"Cool. Help yourself." She commented. Raising her voice she yelled, "Christopher! Get your butt out here. If you’re dumping toilet paper in the toilet again you’re getting a spanking."

Climbing onto a chair, Rod gulped inaudibly as his feet entirely left the floor. He glanced at the food, made a face, and looked instead to Jenny. "Uh, Jenny, I’m sorry. I was a jerk. Forgive me?"

Jenny looked at him shyly, seemingly trying to decide if she was over their earlier argument. Looking down at her lap she said, very quietly, "It’s okay. Chris doesn’t like it either when I tell."

Leaning closer to her, Rod whispered, "With him, I’m not surprised. What a trouble-maker!"

She giggled at that. "Yeah." She agreed. After a moment she looked him in the eyes as a smile formed at the corner of her mouth and her pupils seemed to sparkle. Rod had the feeling the girl was forming a crush on him. As she stared at him however her expression changed to one of confusion. Finally she said, "You look different."

He cleared his throat and quickly recovered by saying, "This is my ’sorry’ face," and distracted himself with the chicken soup.

Chris then walked into the living room smiling, taking Jenny’s eyes off Rod for a moment. Following a quick hand check he was soon kneeling on his chair reaching for food.

Having a hard time with that himself, Rod wondered if he wouldn’t be better off kneeling like Chris. Noticing that Jenny was sitting however, he decided to stay put.

The girl had taken to staring curiously at him again but eventually decided to eat as well. There was little conversation at the table after that, unless one counted Mary’s angry comments, when Chris used his straw to blow bubbles in his milk and soup. Eventually the three children finished, and returned to the living room floor to play while their sitter cleaned up.

Rod decided to keep some distance between himself and Chris, not really fond of the child’s tendency to take him by surprise. The younger boy went back to playing with his truck while Jenny squatted down across the room with her dolls. Rod noticed she had a pile of clothes for them and a male doll as well. He closed his eyes and shook his head, suddenly feeling like Odysseus staring at Scylla and Charybdis.

He attempted to sail between them. Curious, and feeling less inhibited about it, Rod walked over to the duffel bad and pawed through its contents.

Jenny asked, "Rod? Would you like to play with me? We could play house."

Finding primitive Lego blocks, a few stray dresses, and a coloring book, Rod sighed. This was going to be a long afternoon. Retrieving the dresses, he added them to Jenny’s pile and sat down. "I don’t know how to play house," he hedged.

She smiled, continuing to stare at the doll she was dressing. "It’s easy. I’ll be the mommy and you can be the daddy. And the little dolls are our kids."

Looking at the girl, Rod was surprised to find that his tastes had changed again. He recognized that she was beautiful for her age, though he felt a little uncomfortable about being near a girl. Thinking about the other girl in the room, he noticed he actually felt a good deal of respect for Mary, who was now so large to him that she might as well have been a substitute adult. He shrugged. "Okay. What do we do?"

Jenny took him through the game step by step. Between them they acted out the everyday life of a family, through the eyes of a seven-year old girl of course. There was a lot of caring for the children and, ironically, shopping. Apparently, Rod thought, little girls weren’t that much different from big ones.

Rod enjoyed making occasional quips like only a father would, happy to make Jenny giggle. He found himself having fun, though he did think a some of it was stupid. Still, he liked Jenny and it made her happy.

After some time, Rod found himself staring at his toes out of boredom. He wondered how much of this Jenny could take. It wasn’t until they decided to take a ’family’ vacation that Chris interrupted them, by crashing his truck into the dolls.

"Accident!" he yelled.

"Hey!" Jenny complained.

Rod grabbed the truck. "You’re under arrest!" he declared. "I’m impounding your vehicle!"

Jenny laughed at that and suddenly it was Chris’ turn to complain. "Hey, give that back!" he demanded, reaching for his toy. Standing, the two boys engaged in a tug-of-war. Chris yanked with energy, but Rod knew how to brace his feet better.

"Where’s your license?" Rod demanded of Chris.

Giggling, Jenny rose to cheer Rod on. After a moment though, she noticed something she thought was strange. Rod was shorter than her. Looking at her friend strangely she said, "Hey. You used to be taller than me. What happened?"

Finally, Rod let go, sending Chris stumbling away with his prize while Mary turned the volume on the TV up, seemingly annoyed with the noise the children were making.

Rod looked at Jenny in surprise. "You noticed?" He felt uneasy, with her staring at him.

The girl’s eyes went wide. "Noticed what? What’s goin’ on?" She looked him over from head to toe. "Your jeans, they’re really big!"

Rod looked around desperately for an escape from the question. What could he say? What would she do? She glanced over at Chris, who was now standing next to Rod, still oblivious to the girl’s discovery. "Wow. You’re almost as little as Chris."

"No way!" Chris commented, finally seeing how much shorter his friend had gotten.

Rod looked between their faces, trying to gauge their reactions. "It’s... it’s because I’m barefoot," he tried desperately.

Jenny shook her head. "Nu-uh. I took my shoes off too." Suddenly a worried expression came to the girl’s face. "Mary!" she called, "Something’s going on. Rod’s shrinking!"

Chris simply continued to stare, finally whispering, "Cool."

His breath caught in his throat, Rod looked over at the babysitter. Mary looked over at them, annoyed that her music video had been interrupted. "Oh, yeah, I see." she commented emptily. Rod’s heart joined his breath.

After a moment however Mary said, "Wow. He’s as small as one of your dolls. Jenny. Real cute game." With that the teen returned to watching TV.

Jenny scrambled to the sofa. "No. We’re not pretending. He’s really smaller. Look!"

Mary sighed and walked with Jenny to where Rod was standing. After looking the two boys over and glancing at Jenny’s height the babysitter said, "Look, Jenny, he’s the same height he was when we walked in this morning. Fun is fun but this is a stupid game. If you tell me again I’ll count it as fibbing, and you know what happens then.

Jenny stiffened and nodded, not wanting to be bad. With that Mary returned to her entertainment.

Rod felt he needed to think. "Excuse me," he said, then hurried off to the bathroom and shut the door. He could hear feet padding after him so he locked the door, really not wanting to talk to the kids just then. His mind was awhirl. The baby-sitter hadn’t noticed, but the kids had. What did it mean? What could he do?

Realizing he actually had to go to the bathroom, he dropped his pants and underwear and sat on the toilet. His feet barely touched the ground, and he almost fell into the large-seeming seat. His pants and underoos slipped off his dangling feet as he went, giving him a frightening idea of how small he really was.

He could hear the knob being tried and after a moment Jenny yelled, "Mary. Rod locked the bathroom door."

A few seconds later, Mary angrily yelled back, "Well tell him to unlock it before I get angry! It’s not safe for him to do that!"

Rod didn’t want to get into trouble but he didn’t like having go give up his privacy either. "Just a sec!" he called, his voice shrill. He hurriedly finished peeing and flushed the toilet, then pulled on his underwear and pants, and opened the door.

Jenny and Chris had been standing on the other side of the door and pushed their way in with him. After closing the door again Jenny asked worriedly, "What’s goin on?"

Chris stared at him in awe and finally inquired, "Are you a troll?" He sounded as if he were hoping it were so.

Rod screwed up his face. "A troll? What makes you think I’m a troll?"

Chris looked at him as if her were a moron. "You’re shrinking! It’s got to be magic. This is so cool."

Jenny was still concerned, "Is it magic? My mommy said there was no such thing."

"Hah! Shows how much she knows." Chris told her.

"Shut up, Stupid Head." Jenny silenced him, then spoke to Rod again. "So, is it?"

Rod looked down at his jeans, which were fitting him perfectly again, the cuffs showing his bare ankles. He’d left his T-shirt un-tucked, and it now hung down to his crotch. "Yeah," he replied, somewhat numbly. What could he do? "Magic."

"I knew it!" Chris almost cheered. "Lemme do it! Lemme do it!" Jenny just stared, trying to take it all in.

Rod looked at Chris blankly. "Let you do what? Get smaller?"

He shook his head. "No, bigger! Can ya make me bigger than Mary?!"

Rod shook his head. "If I could, I’d probably be bigger than Mary right now."

"I don’t get it," Jenny wondered. "Why would ya want to be smaller?"

Rod looked at Jenny. "I didn’t want to be this small," he replied, before sighing. "Follow me."

Chris pouted but followed Jenny and Rod as they left the bathroom. He led them into the office, his new bedroom, and pulled a photo album from the bookcase. He sat on the bed with them and started paging slowly through the chronological pictures. They started with him as a baby, then a four-year-old, and so on. He stopped when he got to his first grade group picture. In front of the fidgeting kids was a sign indicating the grade, and the date, ’1976’.

After a moment, he turned the page, showing his seventh year. Then his eighth. His clothes went from 70’s style, into the 80’s. He watched Jenny for her reaction.

"I don’t get it." Chris commented, but Jenny did.

Almost bouncing up and down next to Rod with understanding she said, "I know, you used to be bigger. Real big." Furrowing her brow she began to count on her fingers. "Let’s see, it’s 2001 ......" After a moment she gasped. "You... you use’ta be an adult?" she asked in shock.

Rod nodded. "This is my place. Not my ’mother’s’. I own it."

"Wow." Chris repeated, but Jenny was more skeptical.

"Nu-uh. This has to be a trick. You gotta be fibbin’," she said, shaking her head. It seemed very hard for her to accept the truth.

He flipped further through the photo album. The pictures of him were smiling less and less often. After his thirteenth year, they jumped ahead to 17 and 18 years of age at the end of the album, showing him as a skinny teen with unmistakable acne.

Jenny’s expression seemed to show she was slowly accepting Rod’s explanation. After a moment however, she looked worried again, and turned to face Rod, her eyes beginning to tear. "Wha-what’s happening? Are we gonna get littler too?"

"Maybe," he said with a serious expression, then laughed. "No. Not unless you ask Santa nicely. Once upon a time, when I was nineteen, I took the kids of a friend of mine to sit on Santa’s knee. As a joke, I took my turn on his lap and asked him to make me young again. My wish just came true. I wanted to be ten. And only for a visit." He looked down at himself worriedly. "I don’t know what is happening to me, anymore."

Jenny calmed down, seeming to accept the idea of Santa easily. "Oh. Well, maybe Santa thought you wanted to be even younger," she reasoned simply. "So, wanna go play some more?"

Rod marveled at her innocence, and easy acceptance of the whole situation. He liked her even more now, and found that the idea of playing was even more appealing. "I guess," he replied.

Chris however had other ideas. "No fair. I wanted to be bigger. That’s what I’d ask Santa. Call him!" the boy demanded.

"I don’t know his number," Rod answered Chris dismissively. Turning back to Jenny, he asked, somewhat eagerly, "What do you want to play now?"

She shrugged. "I dunno. Any ideas?"

Rod thought about playing ’doctor’ with Jenny and blushed at the naughty thought.

"I know. Lets’ wrestle!" Chris said, tackling Rod from behind.

"Ugh!" Rod hit the bed struggling. "We did this already," he complained, working on prying Chris’ grip from his torso.

"But now you’re smaller. I can win!" Chris declared. The comment caused a chill to pass through Rod.

"In your dreams!" Rod grunted, squirming. Despite his bravado Rod found it difficult to break the other boy’s grip. It took him maximum effort this time to turn the tables and pin Chris.

"Okay. You win." Chris giggled. He then added, "We’ll play again next time."

Panting, Rod sat on his opponent, desperate for a chance to rest. He looked at Jenny.

"Help me tickle him?" he pleaded, finding this time that he needed to hold Chris down with both hands and legs. She was smiling at their antics and quickly nodded at his request, joining him atop the younger boy. Rod silently prayed that they could tire Chris out enough to go off somewhere by themselves.

The two of them mercilessly tickled Chris until he squealed, "Ha, ha. Gotta, go. Gotta, go!"

Jenny immediately stopped the tickling and got herself off of him. "Where you gotta go?" Rod asked the exhausted boy.

The boy started to squirm. "Gotta, pee." He was looking desperate.

“Let him go Rod. He can’t hold it long.” Jenny said.

Rod smirked, enjoying the sense of power over his desperate prisoner. "Oh, all right," he replied, getting off the boy.

Chris scrambled to the bathroom, holding his crotch along the way. After a moment he heard the boy wail, "Nooooooo."

Rod looked at Jenny, and couldn’t help but snicker. She seemed more concerned. "Rod! That was mean. Now Mary’s gonna be mad at him."

"I didn’t do anything! I thought he could hold it after we stopped tickling him."

They could hear Mary responding to the crying boy. "Chris? Oh geez, I thought you were a big boy! Ugh, let’s get you cleaned up. What a friggin baby."

Chris seemed to be sobbing now. "Nuh, nuh my fault!" The rest of the conversation was hidden by the closing of the bathroom door.

Rod’s smile disappeared. "I forgot about ?Her’. Let’s hide."

Jenny paused, not wanting to. "But... we’ll get in trouble."

"For playing hide and seek? Nah." Eventually, Jenny gave in and let the boy lead her off.

Taking Jenny by the hand, he hurried off to the large closet in the master bedroom. "Stay here, I’ll get us some chocolate milk."

After leaving the girl in her hiding place and returning to the hall, Rod could just hear Mary’s muffled voice from the bathroom. "Unbelievable. Your pants are soaked. I’ve warned you to be more careful! This time you get a spanking."

"Noooo." he heard Chris whine.

Rod knocked on the door. "Mary?" he asked, with an unwanted tremor in his voice. "It wasn’t his fault. We were tickling him..."

"Come in." Mary ordered. When Rod opened the door he could see that Chris’ pants and underwear were already off and the girl was cleaning the boy with a towel. A shot of sympathy went through Rod, especially since his age was not that far from the younger boy’s now. Without turning the babysitter said, "Thanks for the honesty Rodney, but Chris still knows to pay attention better. He should have told you."

Rod swallowed. "He did tell me. I didn’t get off him fast enough. I didn’t know he’d wet himself."

Mary looked at him for a moment, thinking. "S’okay, you didn’t know. Well, Chris, looks like your friend got you off the hook. You still need cleaning though."

Rod closed the bathroom door and hurried off to the kitchen. Dragging a chair to the cupboards again, he quickly pulled down two soup cups, scooped ice cream into them, and drenched them in chocolate syrup. He was about to run off when he remembered to get two spoons... oh yeah... and cover his tracks. He imagined the surprised, delighted smile he’d get from Jenny for the treat. He trotted back to the bedroom and ducked into the closet with his prizes.

Jenny was waiting for him and smiled happily when she saw what he had. After a moment though she frowned. "My mommy said I can’t have ice cream till after dinner."

"We just had lunch," he reasoned. "This is desert for lunch."

She hesitated. "I dunno, Mary....."

"I’m a grown-up, too, remember? This is my house, and this is my ice cream."

Jenny thought a moment then shrugged, "Okay." She took the ice cream and dug into it.

Rod smiled and kissed her on the cheek, then dug into his own. Jenny wiped her cheek and blushed, looking away from him. The cold of the ice cream numbed his mouth and sent tingling chills down his spine.

Rod felt around on the closet floor and came up with a watch. "Cool! This is where it is. Must have dropped from my pants when I hung them." He tried to secure it to his wrist, but found it too large. Shrugging, he fastened it around his chubby ankle. A perfect fit. Picking up his bowl, he scooped up a heap of ice cream and sucked it into his mouth.

Rod relaxed, seeming to accept things as they were. He was happy to be with Jenny and couldn’t understand why he ever thought she was a stupid baby. In fact, he thought of her as older now, and pretty smart. He scooped more ice cream into his mouth, thinking about how much of a waste of time spoons can be.

He again wondered what games Jenny might want to play. Rod scooped some chocolate sauce onto his index finger and traced a smudge across Jenny’s left cheek, then the right. He giggled at the comic shock on her face.

She giggled back and attempted to return the favor, her finger dripping with chocolate. They set about tracing lines on each other’s faces, giggling merrily. The laughter was interrupted by Mary’s voice, coming from the living room. "Rodney? Jenny? Where are you two?" she called.

"Playing Hide and Seek!" Rod called out, then covered his mouth and snickered.

"Oh brother. Look, I’m not in the mood. Both of you, out here, now!" she shouted.

Rod became annoyed that she was interrupting them. He was tired of the teen’s commands. "Out where?" he piped innocently, then snickered again.

“Get out here!" Mary almost screamed. Rod felt the cold tingling return. It was all over him now, like goose bumps.

Jenny looked a bit worried, and began to stand up. "We should go.” she whispered.

Rod pouted, not wanting to lose the fun, but also a little afraid of opening the door for some reason. A part of him actually felt like he could stay hidden from Mary in there. It was a great hiding place after all. "I’m not finished," he whined, and brought the cup of half-melted ice cream and chocolate to his lips. The tingle continued to tickle his skin as he sipped the ice cream. Jenny hesitated, not sure who to listen to.

An angry shout was heard, "That’s it. Both of you are gonna get it now!" The voice neared as it spoke.

Rod’s clothing felt like it was sliding slowly over his skin. He put the ice cream cup down behind him, thinking to hide it from Mary. Jenny became frightened and began to work the closet door.

Rod stopped Jenny, and pointed behind her to a huge, empty travel case. "We can fit in there!" he whispered urgently. An extremely scared Jenny nodded and crawled into it. Rod followed as the tingling in his skin continued.

Before they could both get comfortably in, however, the closet doors opened wide, revealing the very angry face of their babysitter. "Out. Now!" Mary growled. She glared at the spilled syrup and ice cream on the carpet. Rodney slowly extracted himself and stood up with a guilty, fearful look on his chocolaty face.

Jenny whimpered meekly and walked out of the closet. Mary gave the girl a swat on her bottom that caused her to jump. "Owwww. I’m sorry." Jenny cried out. Rod covered his own bottom in sympathy and fear.

"Sorry don’t cut it. Look at this mess. You know you aren’t supposed to have ice cream. And you are to come when I call. You know that Jennifer! You’re usually such a good girl. Your mommy is going to hear about this." Mary said angrily. Jenny sniffled, cowering in fear.

Rod’s face fell. He’d gotten his good friend in trouble.

"Yeesh. Now I have two more brats to clean up," Mary complained. "Wait for me in the bathroom, Jennifer. Take Rodney with you."

Rod realized that Mary had to be blaming Jennifer for the whole mess. Remembering that the babysitter couldn’t see the changes, he compared himself again to Jenny, and found himself now much shorter. He also found he had to almost jog as he followed Jenny hurriedly, his hands still covering his bottom. His baggy jeans rubbed audibly against each other as he scampered behind her.

"Ugh, and why did you let him play with the syrup like that Jennifer? What a mess. I am really angry, young lady." Rod felt the tingling start once more and he literally could see Jenny growing a bit in front of him. Rod tried to do a tooth-check, but all he could tell was he had all his teeth.

By the time they reached the bathroom Jenny was beginning to cry. Chris, wearing a towel around his waist and sitting in the living room, saw them and smiled wickedly at Rod. He hurriedly got up and followed them.

Jenny started to whine. "It’s not fair. I didn’t do anything. You did. And now yure too little to get in trouble," she complained.

Rod hurried into the bathroom. Even on tip-toes, he could only see his face in the mirror over the sink. His hair had faded from a chestnut brown to a dirty blonde. Fear overwhelmed him, and his eyes teared. He was a good deal smaller than Chris now!

The collar of his T-shirt had slipped off one shoulder, and the shirt covered half his thighs. His jeans had slipped past his hips and were barely clinging to his chubby behind.

The other boy walked through the doorway and intentionally bumped Rod again, knocking him to the floor. The jolt was enough to make Rod cry in earnest.

Giggling, Chris easily pulled the now younger boy’s pants off. "My pants now. Yule be in diapers soon anyway."

"No!" Rod screamed, getting back up and jumping at the bigger boy, his underoos tangling around his ankles. "Give em back!"

Chris pushed Rod down once again and sat on him, taking the underwear off as well. Straddling the other boy he began to tickle his stomach before pausing. Chris then commented, "I like your shirt too." He pulled it off Rod as well, leaving the little boy naked on the tile floor. Rod then felt the tickling return in force.

Still sniffling, Jenny ignored the two boys, cleaning her face at the sink.

"NO, NO, NO!" Rod freaked out, trying to kick and punch his assailant. Then, he suddenly felt the need to pee. "Jenny, help! I... I need to pee!" Rod was able to squirm enough to interrupt the tickling, making Chris struggle for a better grip.

The girl glanced at him and shrugged. "Go ahead," she commented lightly. "You’re the know it all adult. Should be easy for you."

Chris, spurred by Rod’s urgency, tickled him more. Rod struggled valiantly to keep control of himself, but eventually the tickling of bare flesh wore through, and all of Rod’s reserves left him. A spurt came out, and as if it were a signal, his bladder relaxed. His one thought was, "At least I wet Chris."

Unfortunately, when Chris felt the warmth he jumped off his defeated foe, leaving his towel on top of the other boy. Rod was unable to stop the flow and continued to wet himself and the towel.

Wiping off the dampness with toilet paper, Chris proceeded to get dressed in Rod’s jeans and underwear, each of which fit him perfectly now. He pulled the T-Shirt on over top of his own. "I win!" he declared. Looking at Rod he warned, "And you better not tell."

Rod lay spent, crying, in a puddle of urine. He was small, humiliated, and friendless.

Finally, Jenny put a hand on Chris’ shoulder and pulled him away. "Leave him alone. He’s just a little kid." she commented.

"Jenny?" Rod pleaded, his voice sounding babyish. "I’m sorry you got swatted. Please... please be my friend?" He struggled into a sitting position, clutching the wet towel to his round tummy.

Chris smiled and left the bathroom with his head high. After a moment Jenny pulled a large wad of toilet paper off the roll and helped Rod clean himself. If he wasn’t beyond embarrassment already, Rod would have been mortified to be cared for by such a small child. "I am your friend. But... I’m mad at you. Now I’m really in trouble." she told him.

"I’ll be good," he promised, and he meant it.

She nodded. "Okay. I’ll protect you from Chris next time."

He sniffled pitifully. "He -- took -- my -- clothes," he hiccupped.

She shrugged. "They didn’t fit anyway. Who cares?"

"But -- but -- they -- are -- magic," he managed, then swallowed his tears. "If I put -- them -- back on, they’ll -- fit again." He noticed the watch still attached to his ankle and pulled up his foot to check the time. If he could still read the time, at least that would be something. He frowned. The digital numbers were changing too quickly. The minutes, even the hours. The hours were... ticking backward! His heart skipped a beat.

Jenny had just finished cleaning up the urine and tossing the wads in the toilet when Mary finally entered the bathroom. "Okay, in the tub. Both of you," the sitter declared. After a moment she asked, "Hey, where are Rodney’s clothes?"

Jenny grinned slyly at Rod before turning to Mary to answer. "Chris came in here and took them from him. I tried to stop him but he just wanted to beat Rod up."

"Yeah!" Rod added, glad that Mary was good for something.

Mary’s face went cold. "Oh, did he? You two get ready for a bath, I’ll handle Chris. Christopher!" she yelled as she left for the living room. The sounds of whining and spanking were music to Rod’s ears.

He was surprised when Jenny kissed him on the cheek. His eyebrows shot up in surprise and he touched his chubby cheek with his hand.

She then started to undress. Rod didn’t know what to think of the girl’s stripping. He half expected to be excited, or embarrassed, but when all was said and done, it meant nothing at all to him, other than the fact that he wasn’t the only one naked anymore. He felt relieved and disappointed at the same time, then stared again at his own body. He hated the way his tummy stuck out and tried to suck it back in. After a few seconds however, it popped out again. He kept trying, not even noticing as Jenny brought him a towel to cover up with.

By the time Mary returned with the pilfered clothing Jenny and Rod were each wrapped in towels, ready for a bath. She began to run the water immediately. Once she was satisfied with the running water’s temperature, Mary sat on the toilet and motioned to Jenny, patting her leg. "C’mon Jennifer. Time for your punishment."

"It was my fault!" Rod jumped in, his voice almost piercingly high. "Jenny’s a good kid! Don’t hurt her! She always tells the truth! Ask her!"

The girl obediently laid her self across the teen’s lap, despite Rod’s protests. "I know she’s a good girl Rodney, which is why she knows she needs to be punished. She’s supposed to watch out for you so it wasn’t your fault."

Rod sat on the side of the tub, looking sorrowful. Jenny, her face to Rod, closed her eyes. Looking at Jenny’s face, he smiled. "At least we had fun, eh?" The girl opened her eyes and smiled at him, nodding.

Without a word, Mary lifted the towel up and gave the girl four swats on her bare bottom. Jenny winced at each strike, looking ready to cry by the end. When she was done, Mary sat her down next to Rod and checked the almost full tub. Jenny looked uncomfortable sitting on her sore behind.

Rod bent over and took the watch from his ankle. "For you," he told Jenny, showing her the reverse timepiece.

She held it, looking at it in wonder. "Thanks," she replied. Rod beamed, feeling pure joy for the moment.

The next fifteen minutes were rather strange to Rod, sitting naked in a tub with an older girl while an even older one scrubbed the both of them clean. He found the best thing he could do was sit still and deal with it, except for a foot he used to tickle his tub partner. Being taken care of wasn’t that bad. It was almost fun, a part of being a kid. He just wished Mary wasn’t so rough. "Ouch," he complained, imagining that the teen was trying to scrub his puffy cheeks off of his face.

"Deal with it," she commented back.

Eventually they were both clean and wrapped in fluffy towels, one of which covered him from armpits to ankles. Mary pulled out a pair of blue overalls and a red shirt with a very cute picture of ’Pikachu’. "Found these in your room," she said. "I don’t know why you were trying to wear those huge things before."

Rod made a face. "I don’t like Pikachu!" he pouted. He felt it made him look like a baby.

"Like I care," Mary commented, pulling the shirt onto him anyway. The outfit included a smaller pair of underoos and he was soon wearing it.

While he was coming to respect Mary’s power over him, he privately felt she was terrible with kids. "Please?" he whined. "Let me pick another one?"

"No, now be quiet," Mary ordered, handing Jenny her backup shirt. The girl had already pulled her jeans and panties on.

"Aw!" Rod fussed, crossing his arms over Pikachu. They were soon led back into the living room, where Chris waited in his underwear.

"Now Christopher, don’t even think of getting rough again. Understood?" Mary warned. A feeling suddenly came over Rod, and he stuck his tongue out at Chris behind Mary’s back. Chris stuck his lip out in response.

To be continued.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 5

Leaving the children once more with their toys, Mary plopped back on the sofa. Spotting Chris’ truck, Rod was quick to commandeer it and drive it around. Chris turned to Jenny and asked. "Wanna play house?"

Rod stopped driving, not happy at the idea of being left out.

Jenny thought for a moment and nodded. "Okay."

"Can I play?" Rod asked, feeling competitive for Jenny’s attention.

Chris smiled. "Sure. I’ll be the daddy this time. You can be the baby."

Jenny smiled at this as well, not realizing how Rod felt about it. To her this was just a game, and the suggestion made perfect sense. "Alright." she said.

Rod shook his head. "I’m not a baby. I’ll be... I’ll be..."

Turning to Rod Jenny pleaded, "Oh, please Rod? It’ll be fun. I forgot my baby dolls."

Rod sighed. "Okay. But I wanta be the kid, not a little baby."

Jenny looked disappointed. "Oh. Ok, I guess."

Rod didn’t like seeing her sad. "Okay, I’ll be the baby," Rod gave in, feeling a chill at the idea.

In contrast, Jenny clapped her hands, beaming at the idea. "Oh, thank you! Chris, since you’re the daddy, you’ll have to go buy the diapers."

Really not liking his shirt, Rod had an idea. Slipping the overall straps from his shoulders, he took the shirt off and offered it to Chris. "Magic shirt? It’ll fit ya! Try it!"

Chris took the shirt. "Thanks, baby." He then nodded at Jenny’s comment and took off for the bathroom.

"Roddy, you’ll have to crawl. Babies don’t walk. Okay?" she told him, trying to help him play. She was definitely taking a liking to caring for him.

Rod screwed up his lips in consternation. "What?" He pulled the straps back over his shoulders. "Mommy’s do the shopping, you know," Rod added. "Daddy’s are supposed to be out at work all day." Rather than crawl, Rod simply sat down and stuck a thumb in his mouth.

"I know." she said. "But, I told you I’d protect ya, so I stayed."

Rod felt warm and fuzzy inside at that. After a moment, he crawled over to her now larger form and leaned against her. Without warning, Rod’s imagination kicked in. He could see Jenny as his young mother, and he was a little baby, almost old enough to walk.

She tickled him under the armpits as he stuck his thumb back in his mouth. "Good baby. Now where is that no good daddy?" she asked. Rod giggled at the comment.

As if on cue Chris returned with a hand towel and wearing the t-shirt, which fit him perfectly. Jenny said, "Oh good. Baby has a diaper now. Let’s put it on."

Expecting them to put the towel over top his pants, Rod shrugged and let Jenny lay him down and spread his legs. She surprised him by unsnapping his overalls. Rod watched her with growing trepidation, glancing occasionally at ’Daddy’.

Fortunately for Rod, Jenny allowed the underoos to stay on, wrapping the towel around him with surprising skill. She then pulled the overalls back onto him. Chris was smirking down at him when Jenny broke his concentration with the words, "Bottle, daddy. I got one with my dolls."

Roddy gripped one of Jenny’s hands, feeling all warm from her smiles. He had even allowed some drool to escape from the corner of his mouth. "Ma-ma," he said, just for her.

She giggled. "Oh, baby’s making a mess." she commented, wiping the drool with one of her doll’s dresses. She then tickled him under the chin.

Chris returned with the bottle and shoved it into Rod’s mouth without warning. "Here baby, drink up." Rod reached up and gripped Chris’ arm, digging his nails in to get him to pull away.

Jenny pushed Chris away as well. "No daddy. Be gentle. Like this." With that she picked up the bottle and placed it gently between Rod’s lips.

Rod smiled as the nipple played between his sensitive lips, and he sucked on it, disappointed when only stale air came out.

The next hour went by quickly, with Jenny babying Rod and Chris being frustrated in his attempt to torture the boy. Jenny allowed Rod to stay in the overalls most of the time, except when she was play changing him of course. Rod enjoyed the entire thing greatly, even imagining Jenny and Chris as giant adults at times and the imaginary baby food and formula as real.

Finally, there was a knock at the door. Rod got up and quickly pulled the towel from his overalls. Wanting to be the first to see who it was, he rushed to the door and, completely unable to see out the peephole, just opened the door.

A strange woman stood there, looking down at him. "Oh, hello there." she commented. To Mary, who was approaching the door she said, "Hello Mary. Is Jenny ready?"

"Rod! Didn’t your mother warn you about opening the door to strangers? Bad boy," Mary admonished him after inviting Jenny’s mom in. "She’s just cleaning up her toys now. Aren’t you, Jenny?" Mary asked, receiving an affirmative.

Rod felt the tingling sensation pass through his body. He giggled at the feeling until he remembered what it meant and noticed everything get a little bigger. Chris noticed him shrink and smiled.

Little Rodney looked back at Jenny, unhappy and afraid to see her go. He ran over to her and hugged her. "Don’t go!" he pleaded.

The little girl shrugged. "Sorry Rod, but my mommy’s here. I gotta go. I’ll see you tomorrow. Don’t worry."

"But..." He looked fearfully at a leering Chris.

She whispered into his ear, "I warned Chris to be nice." Rod didn’t think it would matter. He kissed Jenny on the cheek.

"Jenny, come along. What is this Mary tells me about you being bad?" Jenny’s mother sounded angry. The girl looked worried, but also seemed to accept things. Rod respected her even more for it. She smiled and returned the kiss. "Thanks. I had fun."

"I love you." Rod said. He then turned to face Chris determinedly, standing with his feet spread for stability.

Mary closed the door behind Jenny and her mother, making sure the now childproof latch was secure.

Rod watched Chris closely, keeping his young mind alert.

"Alright you two. Behave. I’m gonna use the bathroom and I don’t want either of you leaving the room. Got it?" she bellowed, already walking towards the bathroom.

"Are we still friends?" Rod asked Chris cautiously.

The boy smiled and nodded. "Yeah. But I’m in charge now. An’ I wanna wrestle again." He came closer.

"I don’t think that’s a good idea," the younger boy replied, keeping Chris facing his side.

The boy smiled. "But I want to." he said, before lunging at Rod. Rod twisted his body around the charging six-year-old and gave him a push, sending him headfirst into the wall. The boy dropped on his butt dazed, blood beginning to drip from his nose.

The boy began to sniffle and Rod began to tingle. "You, you hurt me!" he cried, tears forming. "I - I’m gonna get you!" Getting up he reached for Rod again.

As Rod’s skin crawled, the enraged boy seemed to grow before him. Panicking, he dodged Chris’ grasp and ran, top speed, down the hallway, looking for somewhere to hide.

Chris hesitated, his nose felt wet. Wiping it with his hand he saw the blood, and began to cry in earnest. "Marrrryyyyyyy!!" he wailed.

"What?" an agitated Mary called back. Chris though had lost it at this point and simply wailed again, repeating her name.

His heart pounding, Rod ducked into the master bedroom and fled into the second bathroom. Opening the cabinet beneath the sink, he climbed in easily and closed the door.

"Darnit! This better be important." Rod could hear Mary’s muffled voice declare before he picked up the toilet flushing. A few moments later he heard the girl gasp. "Chris?! Oh boy."

Rod’s overalls were baggy now, beginning to hang on him in an uncomfortable fashion. He could make out the sitter comforting the other boy as his body continued to tingle. He still didn’t know why he was shrinking. "This is all so unfair!" he thought.

Overwhelmed with self-pity, he sat down and started to cry, his tears running down his little chest and under his overalls. Little Rodney’s teeth were growing closer together, but he barely cared. After what seemed an eternity to him, Rod’s tears dry out and he calmed down. A moment afterward he heard Mary calling out his name. She sounded concerned.

Rodney climbed out from under the sink, with some difficulty due to his very baggy pants. Hating his stupid overalls for making him look like a toddler, Rodney undid the clasps and yanked the overalls down, then stepped out of them. He would wear what he wanted, as soon as he found the clothes Mary had taken back from Chris. Hurrying to the bedroom door, which was huge to him now, little Rodney peered out and down the hallway. Was he in trouble?

Mary spotted him and calmly called to him. "Rodney. Come here."

With one hand pulling up on his loose underwear, Rodney walked cautiously down the hallway. How old was he now? Less than five, but surely not a toddler.

Rodney could see Chris sitting on the sofa, eyes closed, with a bunched up hand towel on his face. He figured there was ice in it.

Mary furrowed her brow. "Why did you take your overalls off?"

"Yuck," said his high voice. "I want my jeans." Rod stopped next to the office on the way down the hallway, looking for his other clothes. The doorknob was at his eye level.

"You’ll wear what I give you. Understood?" Mary ordered, her voice becoming mean again. "Now I’m going to ask you something and I want the truth."

Rod stood on his tippy-toes as he peered into the room, not looking at Mary. "Uh huh?"

Mary sighed. "Rodney. Come here. Now."

"Be wight there!" he called, hurrying excitedly into the room to get his jeans from the bed.

He felt a tingle again as he heard Mary grunt, "Oh, for the love of....." His underwear loosened more and began to slip as he made it to the bed. He grabbed a handful of jeans and pulled them to him, searching for the opening to put them on. He heard footsteps behind him and a hand quickly reached over and grabbed the jeans from his grip. A second later he felt his covered bottom smacked.

He squealed in surprise and whirled around to face his attacker, looking hurt. "I told you to come immediately. Now do what I say or you’ll get more swats." Mary ordered.

Kneeling in front of him she asked, while speaking very slowly, like one would to a small child, "Now Rodney, did you trip Chris into the wall?"

The kneeling teen was over a head taller than him. Rod felt a bit scared, but knew he should listen to Mary. She was huge to him now, and every bit the adult figure. He didn’t want her angry at him, but he didn’t want to lie either. Gulping, he nodded slowly. He almost felt like peeing.

She talked down to him once more. "Now Rodney. That counts as not behaving. Understand? If Chris bothers you again you are to tell me about it immediately."

"You were innuh bathroom," Rod complained, reaching for his jeans again.

Mary let the boy have the pants. "I’d have still heard you. I heard Chris," she explained.

"I’m sorry," Rod replied. He then eagerly sorted out the jeans and stuck his legs into them.

She patted him on the head and actually smiled. "It’s okay. He shouldn’t have been playing rough with you anyway. I reminded him of that."

When he pulled up the jeans and buttoned them, he frowned. The magic wasn’t working. The waistline came up well past his belly button, and left a lot of denim puddled around his ankles. Undeterred, Rod zipped up the zipper, expecting the magic to kick in at any time.

Mary smiled, watching him. "Y’know, Chris shouldn’t have beaten you up for them, but you were playing in his clothes. Let me get yours."

"They’uh my clothes!" Rod protested, almost in a panic. "Mine, mine, mine!"

Without another word Mary picked the boy up into her arms, and out of the jeans. She pulled his sagging underwear back up and then sat him on her hip. Rod cringed a bit, feeling mortified at his position.

"Yeah, that’s why they fit like a tent. Now where did you leave the overalls?" she asked.

"I don’t wemember," he lied, crossing his arms.

Mary squinted her eyes. "Are you fibbing?" she asked.

Rod felt guilty. Struggling to access some adult wit, Rod pointed back into the office. "In the closet," he replied, hoping to find some clothing other than overalls. However, when Mary walked to the closet and opened it, all Rod could see was five pairs of different colored overalls and various shirts.

"Geez, your mom must love these things. Okay, which color?" Mary asked.

Rod was near tears. "Blue," he mumbled, unhappily. Mary sat him on the bed, turning her back to him to reach into the closet. As she did Rod felt his underwear shrink until it fit once more.

Rod looked down. "Stupid magic," he muttered, and swatted his undies.

Mary quickly dressed him in the overalls and a white shirt. She pinched his cheek. "Oh, you are so adorable." If Rod didn’t know better he’d swear she was getting nicer.

He thought of something. "Mawy? How old am I?"

Mary grinned. "You’re 4 and a half honey." She held up four fingers and half of another from her other hand. "This many." Her voice seemed to be rising as well.

It astounded him that the young teen with budding breasts was bigger to him now than he would have been to her when he was an adult. "How old was I when I was in the Jacuzzi?"

She looked at him puzzled, but answered confidently. "The same as now silly. Good thing we found you too, you’re mother was worried sick." She frowned a bit. "Sorry I got so upset at you."

"I was bigger. Bigger than Jenny." He told her.

Mary laughed. "What an imagination." She picked him up onto her hip again. Rod gripped her tightly, afraid of being dropped. He tried to think of something else to say.

Mary walked back into the living room with him. "Now, I want you to apologize to Chris." Rod found being carried through the air to be a bold new experience. It made him feel powerless, yet it was fun in a way.

"Sorry for the blood, man," Rod told the boy as earnestly as possible. "I guess I overweacted."

"Good boy." Mary said. Rod felt a surge of happiness at the remark. The teen then sat him down on the sofa next to a still sniffling Chris. Everything was huge now as his feet stuck straight out in front of him. He couldn’t believe he was notably shorter than Chris even when they were sitting! "Chris, say your sorry for attacking Rodney." she ordered.

"I’m sorry," the boy said softly.

Leaning over to Chris, Rod cupped his hand and whispered into the boy’s ear, "She’s getting nicer!" Chris just glared at him.

"She didn’t spank you, did she?" Rod whispered again.

"Okay you two, you can watch cartoons until your parents arrive. Would you like some juice?" Mary asked.

Rod looked down at his couch with some worry. Oh well, it had been stain-guarded. "Yes, please."

Mary smiled and went to the kitchen. When she was gone Chris shoved him, hard. "Dat’s for hurting me," he said.

Rod stayed where he fell and swung his limber feet up to kick at his assailant. He drove his heels into the boy’s shoulder and crotch. Chris backed away, rubbing his sore spots.

"Mary!" Rod sing-songed. "Chris hit me again!"

"Did not!" Chris called out. "He kicked me!"

"He shoved me first!"

Mary returned with the juice. "Yeesh, what is with you two? I don’t care who did what. I want you two playing nice. Like you were when Jenny was here. Is that so hard?"

Rod sat up. "We were only nice because Jenny stopped him from being mean to me."

Chris grinned at that. "I can play nice. I wanna play house again!" he declared.

"Not without a mommy!" Rod declared with some insight.

Mary rolled her eyes and sighed. "Oh brother. No. I am not playing house with you two. Babysitting is close enough for me. If you two want to, go for it. Just behave." With that she put the juice in front of them and plopped down on the chair.

Chris grinned at that, and pulled the towel they’d used earlier from behind his back. "Baby needs a diaper." he whispered.

"Leave me alone!" Rod yelled.

"Rodney. Be quiet!" Mary ordered, pulling her headphones on.

Rod used both hands to carefully pick up his glass. His body felt so different that it was like he was manipulating a clumsy puppet, and he wasn’t going to take any chances with the juice.

Chris drank some of his as well, watching Rod. He finally asked, "So baby, what does it feel like to get so small?" Without waiting for an answer Chris continued, "You really were a baby in the bathroom. Is that how you’re gonna be later?"

Rodney felt saddened by the comments. Worried about what was happening to him. He curled up on himself, shaking his head. "No." he replied weakly.

"I’ll betcha cry a lot from now on. Have a buncha accidents. Your gonna need real diapers soon." The older boy continued.

Rodney started to gasp, fighting tears of fear. "Shut up," he replied.

"You shut up, baby. I can’t wait till you get smaller. Then you won’t talk back. Won’t hit me neither. Then I’ll really get ta take care of you. Jenny too. We’ll both do it," he said.

Rod started to feel very distressed. His pee-pee was tingling. Did he have to go? He had to hold it! "Shut up!" he yelled desperately.

"I don’t gotta listen to ya. I’m bigger. And you’re just a baby. Go ahead and cry," Chris added, laughing.

"Shut up! Shut up and leave me alone!" Rod screamed. Was that a trickle in his underwear?

Mary pulled her headphones off and turned to the two boys. "Yeesh. What the heck is it?" she asked.

"Rodney’s yelling at me," Chris answered.

Rod held his glass out for Mary to take. "I gotta go!"

Mary popped quickly off of the chair, took the glass away, and picked Rod up onto her hip again. "Well, why didn’t you just say so. C’mon." She walked quickly to the bathroom. Rod pressed his hand between his legs, worried that he might not make it.

Once through the door Mary pulled Rod’s overalls and underwear down and seated him on the toilet. His feet dangled far off the floor. The boy kept his hands tucked modestly between his legs. He found he had to stay carefully on the edge, or he risked falling into the toilet. "Don’t wook," he begged his babysitter.

Mary laughed but obliged him. "Heh, modesty. How cute." she commented.

Rod grimaced as the hot liquid hit his covering hands first, then rained down into the toilet. When he was done, he hopped off the toilet to wash his hands, but found he was too small to turn the faucet.

Mary lifted him under his arms and up onto a step stool he hadn’t noticed before. "Tanks," he said, and allowed her to soap his hands for him. Except for the fact his pants were down, this situation wasn’t so bad.

She pulled his underpants up and he could feel that they were a little damp. Mary noticed as well. "Hmmmmm, almost didn’t make it did you. Well, your mommy left padded ones, so we would have been okay anyway."

"Padded?" he asked weakly.

Mary nodded. "Yeah. In case of accidents. Do you want one?" she asked innocently.

He shook his head emphatically. "No!" The frightened little boy in the mirror had too many baby features, as far as he was concerned. His hair had lightened further toward blonde, giving him a cherubic appearance.

She felt his current underwear once more. "Well, probably would be a good idea anyway." With that she opened the bathroom cabinet and pulled out a pair of padded underpants. They had footballs on them.

"Mary?" he pleaded of the nicer girl. "Please, no?" He set about doing up his overalls, trying to not give her a choice.

The girl began to pull the ones he was wearing off but paused. She then smiled with sympathy. "Hey, I know it’s embarrassing, but what would you rather have, these on, or wet pants?"

"Wet pants," he replied with conviction.

Mary laughed loudly at that. "Oh alright. But be more careful next time, okay?" She pulled his overalls back up and returned the padded pants to the cabinet. Rod sighed with visible relief.

She then led him back to the living room by the hand. Rod noticed that Chris had been near the door the whole time. The four-year-old blushed and didn’t meet his eyes. Mary soon returned to her music and Rod to Chris’ side on the floor. "Next time you won’t make it," he whispered to the smaller boy.

The boy ignored him. He could make it. He had been making it for years. But his lower lip was trembling. Tucking an arm into his overalls, Rod discreetly pulled his underwear down so that the wet spot wasn’t on his skin any longer. Seeing what he was doing Chris reached in from behind and gave him a wedgie.

"Mary!" Rod yelped.

The girl glanced at them. Chris did his best to look innocent behind Rod. After a moment, Mary turned away again.

"Cry baby." Chris added.

Grumbling, Rod moved away from Chris, pulling his underwear out of his butt with his submerged hand. "Why are you doing this to me?" Rod asked his tormentor. "I did nice things for you! I stopped you from getting a spanking at least twice!"

Chris shrugged. "You made me have an accident too. An you kept beating me. It’s fun to beat you now. Real fun. ’Specially since you used’ta be big." The boy grinned.

"Treat people like you wanna be treated," Rod replied. "Be nice, and they’ll be nice."

"Heh, more grown up talk. Now you’re littler than me, an I like it a lot. I hate being the littlest. An I like even more you gettin’ littler."

"Well, I’m not!" Rod turned away to climb onto the couch.

"Ya, you are. Yule be a baby soon. Jenny will love that. She’ll get ta play with you. I’ll like it too, cause then she’ll play with me again," the boy continued. When Rod got halfway up, Chris grabbed the back straps of his overalls and held, keeping him from getting all the way up.

Rod finally lost it. He dropped back to the floor and tried to turn around, but couldn’t, because of Chris’ grip on his overalls. "Fuck you!" he shouted, trying to strike behind him. "You fucking god damn bastard! I hate you! I hate you!!"

Mary pulled her head phones off. "Rodney! No using bad words!"

Rodney felt completely helpless at his inability to strike at Chris, and Mary’s order angered him even more. He whirled on her. "Fuck you too!"

Mary glared at the boy and shot up out of her seat swiftly. Chris giggled as the sitter snatched Rod out of his grip and plopped him over her lap on the sofa. Rod could already feel the tingling. He also felt his overalls and underpants stripped from his body as Mary held him down. "No!" he shouted, more at the tingling than at her. "Leave me alone!"

She ignored him, giving the naughty boy half a dozen smacks on his bare bottom. He was bawling by the time she was done. Leaving his fallen clothes on the floor, she placed him back on her hip and strode to the bathroom. "Swear at me will you? Fine. No more being nice. You’ll wear those padded pants and you’ll like them. I don’t think you’ll need the overalls anymore either."

Rod was in anguish, both from the spanking and the firm belief that he just couldn’t take it anymore. He continued to bawl his eyes out as he thought of how small he was getting, and would get.

Mary stood him in the bathroom and retrieved the padded underwear. She pulled them onto his sore behind without warning, causing the burning to increase. His shirt had grown a bit and covered the top of the pants. Grabbing the boy by the wrist she led him forcibly back out. Chris was laughing at the spectacle. Rod continued to cry unashamedly, wishing detachedly that it would all just go away.

She sat him on the floor in front of the TV and returned the headphones to her ears. "Now unless it’s a major emergency don’t even think of bothering me again. Got it?!" Rod could see Mary was very angry before she turned her back to him as well.

Rod sniffled and wiped at his tears with his pudgy hands. Through his tears Rod saw a shadow loom before him. It was a now larger Chris, and he was dangling the towel again. "Baby forgot his diaper," he mocked.

Rod’s spirits sank to new lows as Chris shoved him onto his back. He kicked his legs violently, threatening the boy. But Rod was no match for the tall, lithe, and energetic six-year-old. He was even weaker now, and Chris easily caught one of his legs, and tickled the foot.

"Whaddaya want?" Rod demanded desperately. "Wanna wrestle? To beat me? Then let’s wrestle!"

Chris giggled, and sat on Rod’s stomach. "Yure too little to wrestle. You’re just a baby. I want to see what you look like in a diaper now." He reached under the shirt and tickled some more.

Rodney laughed uncontrollably, horrified at being completely overpowered by the sadistic little boy. After almost a minute of tickling Chris stood up, and tied the towel around the exhausted boy’s underwear. "Ha. You look funny. Suck your thumb," he ordered. "You sucked it for Jenny. Do it, or I’ll tickle ya more."

"I did it for Jenny ’cause she’s nice!" Rod retorted and tried to crawl out from under him. Chris sat on him again and tickled more.

Rod struggled for a while, squeezing his arms against his sides to protect his armpits, until he remembered the secret to defending against tickle attacks. He simply relaxed. Suddenly, the six-year-old’s unskilled fingers were merely prodding him uncomfortably.

Chris frowned. "Hey. What’re you doin?"

"Nothing. What’re you doing?" Rod tried to sound bored.

The other boy looked angry and grabbed at Rod’s hand. Separating the thumb from the rest of his pinned opponent’s hand he proceeded to force it between the other boy’s lips. "Suck it." he said.

Rod squirmed his hand until one of Chris’ fingers became available, then took a hard bite of the digit.

The boy screamed and leapt off Rod. "Owwwww! Mary, he bit me!" he whined.

Each of the boys looked to see their babysitter was already staring at them, her headphones off. It appeared she had watched the entire thing. After a moment she commented dryly, "Yeah. So he did. Maybe next time you won’t go shoving his hand in his mouth, willya Chris?"

She removed her head phones and walked to the boy, looking at the digit. "Oh don’t be a baby. He didn’t even break skin. Now are you going to leave him alone?" she asked. Chris just sniffled and nodded.

Finally breathing easily again, once Chris was off his chest, Rod sat up, sighed with relief, and yanked off the towel diaper. "Mary, I’m sorry about swearing at you."

She smiled and said, "Good. You should be. Next time I’ll be washing your mouth out. Oh, and no more biting either. Okay?" She finished with a smirk.

The child nodded somberly. "Okay."

She turned back to Chris. "And you. Keep away from him. I don’t know what’s up with you two and I really don’t care but I’m not gonna have one of you brats getting hurt on my watch. You hear me?"

The older boy looked fearfully at the teen but managed to say, "Y-yes Mary."

"Good. Now sit on the sofa and be quiet. Next time I’m disturbed I’m spanking both of you. I won’t care about why." With that she lay out on the chair once more and returned to her music.

Rodney stood up and climbed onto the waist-high couch. Being small was so much more work! He was having trouble thinking clearly, but at least he was calming down.

Chris glared at Rod but kept his distance, climbing onto the other end of the couch. It seemed a tentative peace, but it lasted until Lori got home.

To be continued.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 6

The elf walked calmly into the living room before even being noticed. Rod’s attention had become firmly locked onto cartoons again. "Hello all," she chimed.

Rod felt both chilled and overjoyed to see her again. She was much bigger than he remembered her. She was still in her business attire and was holding a grocery bag.

Mary stood up and turned her music off. "Hey Miss Philip."

Placing the bag on the floor Lori picked Rod up from the couch and hugged him. "And how’s my big boy?" she asked warmly. He glanced at the floor nervously. Mary was nowhere near this tall. He was uncomfortable by her motherly tone, but welcomed the kind attention.

After a quick hug she placed him on the floor. "Was he a good boy Mary?"

"I lost my clothes," he complained, meaning to tell her about the malfunctioning jeans.

"He... made a bit of a mess." Mary said. "I had to change him. He was pretty good though." Rod was thankful she didn’t say more. He felt a twinge of guilt, but honestly couldn’t think of what else Mary could have said. He had been a good boy for as long as he could remember.

"Did he wet his underwear too?" Lori asked unabashedly. “I noticed you changed him into the padded ones.”

The little boy felt very embarrassed. He blushed and looked angrily at the floor. "I was being sat on," he piped up, picking at the padded shorts uncomfortably.

Lori patted him on the head. "Quiet dear. Mommy’s talking to Mary."

"Um, he just got them damp. I thought it would be, um, safer to use the padded ones," Mary commented. Rod huffed and wandered out of the room. At least she wouldn’t bother him for a few minutes.

"So Mary. How much do I owe you?" he heard as he left earshot.

Chris bounded after him but stopped at the living room limit. "See ya later." he said, grinning. Rod ignored the jerk, expecting to never see him again.

Entering the bathroom, he got up on the toilet and stared at himself in the mirror. "I don’t wanna be you," whispered the four-year-old in the mirror, his eyes starting to tear. A couple of minutes later Rod heard the door shut. He then heard footsteps enter the kitchen.

Rod’s disgust with his padded shorts warred with his dimmed modesty as he tried to decide whether to just strip them off. Finally, he headed into the master bedroom, stripped, and donned his smallest adult T-shirt. It covered him to his ankles. He then heard a giggle, followed by Lori’s voice. "I thought only girls played dress-up." she said. Lori stood in the doorway, looming hugely. She still had her heels on.

Rod looked down at himself and a wave of despair washed over him. The T-shirt sleeves covered him to the elbow, the draping collar showing much of his smooth chest.

He wasn’t even half of what he used to be. "At least it’s mine," he grumped, fighting back tears. "Your stupid clothes stopped shrinking."

They’d only stop shrinking if somebody else put them on, breaking the spell. I saw Christopher wearing a shirt meant for you so that’s what must have happened. But, if you want your own clothes to fit....." She gestured and the shirt he had on began to shrink.

In a panic, he began rifling through his underwear drawer. When the T-shirt crept up to his groin, he pulled down on the hem to keep himself covered, but it continued to rise. He spotted the padded underwear on the floor near him and pointedly ignored it. Instead, he pulled a blue Fruit-of-the-Loom from his drawer and sat down to pull it on. It was enormous, its leg-holes providing an awful lot of ventilation.

"Shrink this one!" he told the elf, looking way up at her.

Lori laughed again. "Oh, that looks so funny. I like it better that way. Besides, what if you have an accident again?""

He frowned. "I won’t have a kid sitting on me. Now, please?"

She hesitated but obliged as the underwear shrank to fit him. "Dinner will be ready soon." she commented, leaving the room.

He allowed himself a smile as he felt comfortable again. "Thanks."

After picking up a pair of white socks for her to shrink, he followed her into the kitchen. "What did you do today?" He noticed a booster seat on one of the table chairs.

"Went shopping mostly." she commented.

He thought back. "You said you’d get me a present?"

The tall elf smiled and pulled something out of the grocery bag. When she turned to face him Rod saw a large bag of assorted cookies. "You like?" she asked.

His eyes almost popped out of his head and his jaw dropped. "Wow!" he heard himself say. The bag looked to him to be the size of a sack of potatoes.

Lori opened it. "I probably shouldn’t let you ruin your dinner and all, but, heck, enjoy. Want some milk with that?"

"Oh yeah!" the boy exclaimed happily, scrambling into an empty chair.

Lori put the bag on the table and said, "Use the booster seat I got. You’ll be able to sit higher. So, did you have fun with your little friends?"

"They were okay," he replied distractedly as he routed through the bag. "Until I got smaller."

Lori poured some milk into a glass and put it down on the table. "That can happen. Some kids like picking on smaller ones. All part of being a kid." Without another word she plucked the booster seat out of the other chair and put in Rod’s, forcing him to sit in it. Rod squirmed and glared at her intrusion, but dared not say anything.

"There, now isn’t that better?" she asked.

"I’m too high," he complained. "The seat’s for toddlers. I like having the table near my face."

"You are a toddler. Right at the borderline anyway. Still, it’s your choice." With that she took the seat from the chair. "For now." she finished, smirking at him.

Rod shuddered slightly, hiding it by biting into a chocolate walnut cookie. "But these kids knew I was getting smaller but Mary didn’t. How come?"

"I knew they’d accept it. Most children believe in magic, or want to. Mary would have freaked out, and that would have just been annoying. Also more trouble than it’d be worth. Easier to keep the cloak in effect." She began to pull other food from the bag.

Rod imagined the attention he would have received from Mary if she had been worried about his size decrease. "Coulda been fun," he ventured. He pulled a peanut butter cookie from the bag and dunked it in his milk.

"Maybe...." Lori reflected, distracted by a thought. "But I just know she would have called 911 at some point and that would have been a huge mess to clean up."

The boy giggled as he imagined the call. "911? I’m babysitting a boy who’s getting smaller. Younger, I think. No, really! What? Drugs? No!" To Lori, he said, "She prob’ly woulda called your contact number. You left one, right? For your ’work’?" He pulled four more cookies from the bag and tried to stick them all into his milk at once.

"Yes. Fake but she’d have gotten in touch with me. Still, better to keep the adults oblivious. So, Mary told me Jenny took a liking to you. Get a little girlfriend did we?" she playfully mocked.

Rod reflected. "She was sweet. A little mis... misguided," he added, thinking of her compulsive tattling. Milk dribbled over his shirt as he slurped up the sodden cookies.

"Did you know that Jenny asked her mother if she could play with you tomorrow? Mary heard," Lori added, putting a pan on the stove and organizing ingredients.

"Tomorrow?" Rod hadn’t thought about tomorrow. What size would he be tomorrow? "What happens to me tomorrow?"

Lori shrugs. "You’ll be babysat again. I won’t be off ’work’ until the next day."

He swallowed, feeling a little queasy. "What happens to me the next day?"

"Oh, I don’t know. Whatever you might like."

"You mean, I can get big again?" Hope shone in his eyes. He hadn’t actually thought of it yet. "Can I wish it now?"

She turned, puzzled. "You only get the one wish Rod and if you stop it now it can’t be recast. Are you sure you want to end it now?" Rod thought about it, and found he wasn’t sure.

Still, Chris’ taunting voice echoed through his memory. He asked Lori, "How small will I get?"

"Depends on how naughty you are. Santa doesn’t like naughty children. You went down a lot while I was gone. Geez, what’s with you? Can’t behave?" she joked.

Stunned, Rod fell back in his seat. Being naughty? Of course! Why hadn’t he figured it out?

"Well, if you are a good little boy you don’t have to worry about getting any smaller. Think you can pull it off?" she asked.

"Can I get bigger for being good?" he asked hopefully. A loud burp erupted from his tummy.

"Say ’excuse me’" she advised.

"Scuse me," he replied obediently, then looked himself over. Was he bigger?

"And little boys are supposed to be good so don’t expect any rewards. Santa just punishes the naughty ones. Still...." she paused. He looked up at her hopefully, his large round eyes the essence of cuteness.

"If you manage to stay good until tomorrow morning, I might modify the spell. We’ll see." she commented, turning back to the meal.

With a relieved smile on his face, Rodney turned back to the table. He pulled another cookie from the bag, but it didn’t look so appetizing anymore. He put it down and took a drink of his milk instead, using two hands.

"Try not to get sick on those cookies okay?" she said over her shoulder. Lori proceeded to cook, frying mushrooms in the pan and heating the oven up.

Rod started to get bored. "I won’t have anymore," he told her, and slid to the floor. He felt like playing. He ran from the room, pretending to shoot the invading aliens only he could see. He played for about an hour before he heard Lori call from the dining room table. The snow snakes that had been swallowing his arms changed back into a pair of socks, which he took off and headed to the kitchen.

"Can you shrink these?" he asked nicely, holding up the socks. In the midst of placing food on the table Lori pointed at them and they shrank.

"Cool!" Rod declared, eyes wide as he felt them shift in his hands like they were alive. He sat on the floor to pull them onto his cold feet.

"C’mon up, dinner’s ready." she said, patting a chair while putting some grilled mushrooms and peas on his plate. He looked at the dish uncertainly as he climbed into the chair. He then poked at it experimentally with his spoon.

"Oh, it won’t bite." she laughed. "It’s good. Now, I expect you to eat all your veggies."

He dropped his spoon before he realized that he was too small to use it properly. Gripping the utensil like a shovel, he carefully scooped up a mushroom and shoved it into his mouth. It tasted very good, melting in his mouth. His baby teeth made eating feel very different. His food kept wanting to ooze from the gaps between them.

"You better eat a spoonful of peas for every mushroom." Lori warned. "They’re good for a growing boy."

Grimacing, he took a spoonful of peas. The squishy taste was as unpleasant as the first time he was four.

"Good boy," she commented. "Now try to finish your plate." With that she began to eat.

He chewed the next mushroom very slowly, biding for time as he watched Lori eat. “Why was she still human?” he wondered. Lori continued to eat, smiling at him when she noticed his gaze.

"Dontcha like being a elf?" he asked.

She raised an eyebrow. "Huh? Oh. Well, I thought you’d be more comfortable with me this way. If you prefer....." He heard her kick off the heels. She immediately shrank a bit in her seat while at the same time her ears grew to a point. She looked at him and asked, "Better?"

He smiled. He had one of Santa’s own elves taking care of him! How cool was that?

He had to work to get the load of peas into his mouth. When he tried to swallow the mess, he started to gag on it. He was full, and his body really didn’t want the gross mouthful to enter his stomach. It just didn’t compare to the load of sweet cookie mush already down there.

Still, the little boy forced it past his tongue, but he underestimated the vehemence of a four-year-old’s stomach; a spray of green suddenly flew from his mouth and across the table. He covered his mouth as he started choking, feeling more squishy food rise from his stomach.

Lori made a face and said, "Rod? What’s the matter? Are you sick?" She got napkin and started to clean the mess on the table. Unable to talk, he slid off the chair and ran for the bathroom, holding his hands over his mouth. Vomit was dripping from his hands the entire way, staining his shirt. He could hear Lori following.

Reaching the bathroom, Rod bent over the toilet and let the gagging run its course. Cookies didn’t seem like such a happy thing anymore. Lori entered behind him and immediately knelt by his side, rubbing his back. "It’s okay honey. Let it out," she said soothingly.

Rod felt comforted by her ministrations. When his stomach was done emptying itself, he felt okay again, if a little dazed, and disgusted. He tore off a wad of toilet paper and wiped his mouth. Lori helped him, then pulled his shirt over his head. "This is a mess. I’ll get you another one." she said.

Rod just nodded as he flushed the toilet. He then tried to wash his hands, at first not remembering to use the stepping stool. Lori patted the stool. "Step up honey." She then wet a wash cloth and began to clean his hair.

Rod stepped up, noting miserably how little height he gained on the elf in the process. The stool didn’t even bring him back up to four feet. The elf gave his hands a good wash before wiping his head and hands dry. She then told him to wait there as she got a shirt.

He felt she was coddling him, but he didn’t seem to mind. He turned back to gaze at the kid in the mirror, grimacing at the bare, protruding belly, and the full cheeks splotched with color.

Lori returned with a baby blue shirt. There was a teddy bear on it. He held his hands up to ward the thing off. "No way!"

"Ohhhh, c’mon. Please? It’ll look soo cute on you." she gushed.

He gestured at the mirror. "I need LESS cute!"

"You’re missing the point here," she said seriously. "You are now four. A four year old would wear this. So, wear it."

"But, would a four-year-old choose to wear it?" he postulated, one little finger in the air.

"A four year old wouldn’t have a choice," she trumped him. "And neither do you. You want clothes; I provide them. Like any other mother." She opened the shirt above him, ready to put it on.

He closed his eyes and lifted his arms over his head. “Be good”, he reminded himself, “if you ever want to grow up again.” Lori pulled the shirt over his head, poking his chubby tummy when she was done. At least it was covered, Rod reflected.

"Alright, guess dinner’s over. Go ahead and play." Lori suggested.

He yawned. "What time is it?"

Lori glanced at her watch. "Almost 7."

"Is that all?" he asked, yawning again. "I think I need a nap."

Lori nodded. "True. But then bedtime isn’t far off anyway. Want to watch TV till you nod off?"

"Kay." He folded his arms over his offensive teddy bear and wandered from the bathroom. Lori went to clean away dinner as he went to the television. Hearing her work he was kinda glad to be too little to help.

"So, what did you want from Santa? This time I mean?" Lori asked from the kitchen. "Christmas eve is tomorrow."

Rod felt excited. He straddled his stuffed tiger like a horse; its back was at the perfect sitting height. "I get more presents?" he asked, his voice squeaky with excitement.

"Of course." Lori responded, walking back to the living room. "You are a kid again. You deserve some new toys. It’s been a while since you got any."

"How’s about a magic ring that makes me whatever age I wanna be?" Rod asked.

Lori laughed. "I doubt it, but you never know. Still, I’d keep the list to normal things. Want to make it now?"

"Okay!" he squealed. Commercials from the cartoon network flooded his young mind. "A Lego castle! Ooh, a whole Lego town!"

Lori handed him a sheet of paper and a pencil, seemingly out of thin air. All angst about his predicament was pushed from his mind as the excitement of Christmas flooded him with joy.

Eventually, Rod finished and handed the list to Lori. The elf promised to give it straight to Santa. He then laid forward on his tiger and focused on the cartoons.

The cartoons were getting a little weird. They were meant for an older audience, and Rod was slowly losing interest. His mind wandered, and he began to imagine what it would be like on Christmas day, to open presents almost as big as he was.

Lori noticed, and popped a tape in the machine. "How about this Roddy?" she asked. The Sesame Street theme started up.

Rod felt a little chagrined at the old show, but the feeling quickly passed and he became involved with the program. The more he watched, the more he got into it. After a while he was actually laughing along with the kids on the tape. He realized he’d been wrong about it before. It was fun. He especially liked the new character, Elmo. He wished he’d been on when he’d been a kid the first time. He found himself discussing the show with his pet tiger, pointing out characters he remembered. He wished he could have met a Muppet. They looked so friendly.

Eventually, he began to doze off, dreaming about his tiger pal walking around on two legs, talking, pouncing on him... He became aware again only with he felt himself lifted into the air and into warm arms. He didn’t open his eyes, instead cuddling more securely into what he knew was Lori’s body. He felt warm and secure. Instinctively, he wrapped his arms around Lori’s neck and laid his head on her shoulder, under her sweet-smelling hair.

As soon as he was seated on the bed his shirt was pulled off. He then felt his pajama top pulled through one arm. "Give me the other arm, Roddy." he heard Lori whisper. His head lolled as he obliged. He could feel the other arm go through the sleeve and his top was buttoned soon after.

Lori then laid him down. Rod was mildly surprised when he felt her tug his underwear down his legs. After a moment he heard a strange rustling. Coming more awake, he stayed where he was and squinted one eye open. There was a padded undergarment in the elf’s hand. Rod could think of no other word to describe it but a diaper. His mind wandered as he dreamed about arguing the diaper. When he came to again, she was already sliding it into place. "I don’t need it," he mumbled.

"Of course you do. You used to wet the bed at five, didn’t you? Well, you are even younger. Now hush." she said.

Rod didn’t like being dismissed so easily. "No," he replied, his voice loud with sleep. "I’ll just go pee before bed." He began pushing the diaper off.

"It won’t make a difference and you know it," she said, dismissing him. She swatted his hands. "No Roddy."

Rod hated the idea of wearing the diaper to bed, but he did want to be good. He just wished he didn’t have to. "It will too!" he replied. "It’s what my mom did. She didn’t make me wear no diaper!" He was getting grumpy. She had spoiled a good doze.

She raised an eyebrow. "Don’t yell at me," she warned. "I don’t care what she did. I am putting this on you so you don’t wet the bed. Now stop fighting me."

Rod became angry at her. "You wear it!" he replied, kicking it off. He felt the tingle once more.

"I’m not less than four years old." she said, smiling.

Realizing what he’d just done Rod suddenly felt very sorry. "Oh no," he moaned. His entire body tingled, and the pajama top slid slightly across his skin.

She held the diaper up in front of him. "Legs please." she said calmly.

Rod saw it was more a pull-up than anything. He raised his chubby legs, imagining he could tell they were slightly smaller.

She pulled the garments back on. "Good boy." she said sweetly. She quickly followed with the pajama bottoms and pulled the socks off last. Again she couldn’t resist tickling one of his feet before handing him his smaller stuffed tiger.

"What’s his name?" she inquired.

"Tigger," he replied sleepily.

Lori pulled the covers aside and got Rod under them. Giving the child a kiss on the forehead she added, "Goodnight my little boy."

"Night," little Rodney answered, cuddling the tiger. Lori shut the light, leaving the glowing mushroom on once more.

Some time later, Rod awoke, feeling uncomfortable. He had been sweating, and his crinkling diaper was becoming unbearably clammy.

Not wanting to get in trouble, his drowsy mind got the idea that he could toss and turn ’in his sleep’, and should his diaper come off, it would not be his fault. Slowly, one toss at a time, the diapers and his pajama bottoms worked their way down his legs until he had kicked free of them. Smiling in relief as the sheets dried his damp skin, he retrieved his tiger from the floor and went back to sleep. He didn’t notice the tingling as he fell back into darkness.

Rod awoke to a bright light. He was being shaken steadily. The first thing he noticed was the lights in his room were on. The next thing was he felt very cold. Not only that, but wet.

"Rodney!" he heard Lori exclaim. "Why isn’t your diaper on? Look at what you did."

When Rod opened his eyes he could see that the bed was soaked and he was laying right in the middle of it. Dread filled him. "Hm?" he asked, pretending to not know what she was talking about. "It musta come off in my sleep." His voice was especially high.

"Really?" she asked. "Then, why did you get younger too? That only happens if you are bad. If you did it on purpose. Now, answer carefully, did you just fib to me?"

"No," he answered reflexively. "I was asleep!" He felt another tingle. His large pajama top became even larger.

"39 months, Roddy. Was lying to me really worth it?" she asked before she pulled the sopping covers back. He looked up at her fearfully, caught in his lie like a deer in headlights.

The bed was soaked, along with the pajama bottoms he had kicked off and the bottom of the top he still wore. A whine started in the back of his throat. He couldn’t help it. He was small, he was soaked, and he hated it. The pajama top covered his private area but not for long as Lori wisked it off. Wrapping him in a towel she picked him up into her arms. She bounced him a little, like a baby he realized. "You SHOULD cry," she commented harshly. "So much for being good till morning. Still, I should have known you were too young to keep it up for long."

They reached the bathroom and Lori plopped him naked onto the closed toilet lid. He noticed a potty chair in the room as Lori began to run the water in the tub. He squirmed on the cold lid as his feet dangled off the floor, his heels bouncing against the chilly porcelain. As her words sank in, his eyes widened. "No!" he whined. "It wasn’t my fault! The diaper... it was... already wet! It woulda given me a rash!"

"You mean you’d already peed in it?" she asked.

He wasn’t sure of the answer. He’d felt wet. "I guess," he whined. How old was 39 months, anyway?

"Stay." she ordered, leaving for a moment.

He pulled his heels onto the toilet lid and stood to look in the mirror. Looking back at him was a sorry sight. It was a sleepy, cranky three-year-old with pee glistening on his tender skin, which had already begun to turn red from irritation.

When Lori returned she was holding the training pants. She gave him a light swat. "Sit down, you might fall. There’s no pee in here. Maybe some sweat. Even if you had peed in them you should have gotten me to change you, not just kicked them off into the bed. Either way, the spell knew. It works independently of me."

Standing on the lid, he was about even with the elf’s abundant breasts. "I couldn’t sleep!" he continued to whine as he sank back down. His fatty skin creased alarmingly as he crouched. Babyhood was not far off.

"You would have. You were tired enough. Now, no more complaints. Got it? Or do you want to be under three?"

Rodney hugged his knees, closed his eyes, and sniffled. He just wanted to go back to bed and wake up a man again. When the water was done he was placed in the tub and briskly scrubbed clean.

"Ow!" he whined. Whining seemed to be his default way to communicate now.

"Sorry." Lori returned. She went more gently after that.

When done, Lori wrapped him in a towel and wiped him dry, finally sprinkling some baby powder over his irritated skin. The smell of baby powder frightened him, and he started sniffling again.

Carrying him out to the living room she sat him once more in front of the TV. The towel fell easily to the floor and she sat him on it, naked. Lori then handed him a sippy cup. "Here’s some juice. Now sit and watch TV while I go deal with the bed. Don’t even think of moving from that towel." Rod noticed the clock on the VCR read 10:41.

The little boy huddled on the towel with his sippy cup. He looked himself over, and started to cry. He was a toddler. Barely more than a baby. He wasn’t sure he could even walk straight.

Spotting the overalls Mary had taken from him earlier that day, Rodney stood up and hurried over to them. He had to wear something. He wasn’t really a baby! As he pattered over to them he felt the dreaded tingle once more and his balance worsened. As he put them on, he wished sincerely that the overalls would change HIM to fit THEM this time! Unfortunately they simply shrank.

He soon heard footsteps pounding out of his room. Hurrying back to the towel, little Rodney plopped down, somehow believing that Lori wouldn’t notice he was naughty. He stuck a finger in his mouth in trepidation as Lori came into the room.

When Lori saw him she simply laughed and shook her head. "Fine. Should have known you’d disobey me," she commented.

He frowned. "Make me big! I be good! Pweeease?"

"We’ll see. Now lie on your back." This time the garment Lori had in her hand was a full fledged disposable diaper.

He burst into tears. "NOOOO!"

Without comment the elf laid him down and unlatched his overalls. The diapering was over quickly as she deftly lifted him by the ankles and into the garment. Powder was added and within a couple of minutes the overalls were back on. He continued to cry the entire time, intent on letting her know the extent of his displeasure.

She lifted him again, once more bouncing him gently as she returned to the workroom. "Your mattress is soaked. So I had to pull out another of my little purchases." she told him. Turning in her arms he saw a crib. His crying turned to a prolonged scream, like he was being murdered.

Lori groaned and pulled something from her pocket. A moment later a pacifier was stuck in Rod’s mouth. "Oh, don’t be so upset. This is your own doing, you know. Besides, I’m still going to take care of you so don’t worry," she soothed.

Rod turned his head and spit it out, though he had ceased to scream. "No cwib!" he cried. "Seep wiff you?"

She raised an eyebrow. "You’re three y’know. Most mothers would be afraid of crushing you I’d think."

He shook his head emphatically. "Dey know! Wike a big teddy!"

She hesitated. "Well, I suppose I could use my magic to make sure. Alright, but one more wail and you go in the crib. Got it?"

He shut his mouth and pinched his lips between two fingers.

Lori smiled at that. "Okay." His overalls then shimmered and were replaced by a red pair of footed pajamas with Winnie the Pooh on them. From behind her back Lori handed him a clean and dry Tigger.

"Look who I saved from drowning." she joked.

Smiling, he took Tigger under his arm. He felt strange, like most of his brain was gone, leaving plenty of room for pure emotion and sensation.

"Now you’ve got your teddy, and I’ve got mine." she added, snuggling him closer. She carried him along to the master bedroom, her clothing shimmering along the way. When the magic was done she wore a short white silk sleeping gown. Roddy loved how it felt. He only regretted that only his hands and face could feel it. The heat seeping through it was quickly lulling him back to sleep.

She climbed into bed, keeping him on top of her now huge chest. She then laid him down on her stomach, his head between her soft breasts. She rocked a bit side to side as the lights went out. Rod vaguely noticed a night light on in the room.

"Good night, baby." she whispered.

Rod let go of Tigger and fell into a bliss-filled sleep under her ministrations. He couldn’t remember ever feeling so satisfied and... safe.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 7

Rod’s first conscious thought was that of comfort. He was warm and everything around him was soft. Opening his eyes he saw wooden bars. It took a few seconds for him to realize he was in the crib he’d seen last night. It took another moment to notice his thumb was in his mouth. Drool had leaked down the side of his cheek and onto the padded mattress, forming a cold and slimy waterfall.

As he stirred he noticed something else. His nighttime diaper was cold and wet. Strangely, none of this frightened him. He just wanted to be changed.

Taking his thumb from his mouth, he wiped his cheek on his sleeve and pushed himself into a seated position. Rod noticed it was a big crib, though he could tell it was almost outgrown. If this situation were real, he’d be moving into a bed soon he knew.

Gripping the bars, he pulled himself up to his padded feet and experimented with the idea of climbing out. He looked for a catch, hoping the side of the crib could be lowered, but there was none to be found. It looked possible to overcome the bars, with effort. It was a long way down however, and Rod was pretty sure he wasn’t supposed to try. He did want to get out though and considered calling to Lori for help.

It was an embarrassing thought to say the least, but he felt he had little choice. Swallowing his pride, he resigned himself to the action. "Lori?" he called out, wincing at his high voice.

"Coming sweetheart." he heard her call back, her voice like honey. After a few seconds he heard her footsteps near. He drummed his fingers on the bars impatiently.

When she appeared he could see the elf wore a bathrobe and looked rather bight and shiny for someone awake so early. "Good morning Roddy. Did you sleep well?" she chimed. She seemed to be in full sugary sweet mode to Rod. She even reached out and tickled him under the chin.

It annoyed him. "Why am I in here?" he asked, looking up at her accusingly.

She raised an eyebrow. Her voice had its normal, albeit high timber when she spoke again. "I woke up an hour ago. You were still sound asleep. I thought you’d be safer in there than on the bed alone. I didn’t want you falling off and getting hurt."

"I don’t fall out of bed," he scoffed. "What about your ’magic’?"

She shook her head. "I’m not going to enchant every little thing just to ease your ego, y’know. You are a toddler. Most toddlers sleep in cribs. I am giving you the whole experience here." With that she reached into the crib and lifted him into her arms.

"Gee, thanks," he replied, his careful pronunciation adding to his sarcasm. He could feel her hand cradle his bottom, then pat it experimentally.

The baby talk voice returned. "Ohhhh, looks like baby wet his didey. Time for a change." He could see her walk over to a changing table.

"You are enjoying this," he accused as she laid him down.

She smiled. "Maybe. Still, you’d prefer wearing a wet diaper?" She unzipped his footed sleeper and peeled it off, leaving him in only the diaper.

"I don’t need a diaper," he grumped, then reluctantly added, "Not during the day."

To his relief he saw her pull out a pair of pull-ups. It was ironic he found that less troublesome now. "Of course not." she replied. "You’re a big boy. The pull-ups are only if you don’t make it to your potty in time." She opened the diaper and removed it, cleaning him with some baby wipes.

His face reddened with suppressed anger. "Potty is for babies that don’t know HOW to use the toilet!"

She pulled the training pants onto him. "You may know how but it’s huge to you now. Look on the bright side, you won’t need help to use the potty chair." Poking the center of the pull-ups she added, "Besides, if you don’t make it then mushrooms appear ’magically’ on the front. Isn’t that just adorable?"

"Yuck! I hate mushrooms," he grumped crankily, sitting up.

She giggled at that, giving him a peck on the forehead. "Do you have any idea how cute you are now? Anyway, don’t be so *grumpy*" she emphasized the word with a growl and jiggled him playfully. "I think you’re going to like being pampered."

He suddenly looked worried. "What do you mean?"

She pulled out a green shirt with Elmo on it and proceeded to pull it over the child’s head. "You’re a toddler. Kinda requires you to be taken care of doesn’t it? You might like it. Give it a chance."

She then went to the closet and retrieved two pairs of overalls: the yellow and red ones. "Now which do you want to wear?" she asked.

He felt suffocated. "Blue," he replied. "From yesterday."

"I think the red." she decided, ignoring him. "Green and red is more Christmassy." She immediately began to pull them up his legs and he soon found himself latched into them. He squirmed and tugged at the straps uncomfortably.

"Now let’s get breakfast." she said, picking him up and placing him on the ground. She held his hand as she led the way to the kitchen. Rod felt the padding between his legs to be very awkward.

He pulled his hand away. "I can walk on my own," he whined.

"Well, somebody woke up on the wrong side of the crib." Lori commented.

"You should try waking up wet." he snapped back.

She looked like she was holding back a comment but returned with, "Very well."

He folded his arms and waited until she had walked on before following more slowly.

When they got to the kitchen Rod could see a highchair at the table.

"I made you a bowl of oatmeal." Lori said cheerfully. "Milk too. Do you want it in a sippy cup or a bottle?"

"In a small glass," he replied distinctly, arms still folded.

She picked him up once more, placing him in the highchair. "There is a third option of course. Not unheard of with toddlers your age." she remarked.

"Yeah! Hello? A glass!" he repeated.

"Oh, don’t be so rude! Hear me out first." She sat down in front of the highchair, her chest eye level to him. He pulled his eyes from her cleavage and looked up at her eyes.

She smirked at him, looking down. She then opened her robe. Two round bare breasts revealed themselves to him. They were gigantic, the nipples thick as his thumbs. For a moment he was entranced.

"Well?" he heard her ask. "You could drink from these if you like. You are young enough."

The boy swallowed. "No, I’m not," he whispered. He enjoyed looking at the globes before him, but he was afraid of the reason why.

"Sure you are. Right on the borderline." she said gently. "So, your choice. Want to? I know you wanted a look at them last night. Now you can play with them too." She made no move to cover herself and even stood to move closer to him. Rod found he could not take his eyes off the mounds.

Absently, he found himself analyzing the mountains before him. They looked as if they had been perky, but now seemed to be swollen with milk. The nipples were very large. Perfect for breastfeeding. He reached out and ran his fingers gently over the soft smooth flesh. He could hardly believe what was happening.

Unseen to his unwavering gaze Lori smiled, and reached under his arms to lift him up and out of the chair. Before he knew it he was lying on his back in her lap, the globes of flesh filling his vision. He decided to touch a nipple, just to see. When he touched the tip he saw milk drip out.

"Well?" Lori asked once more.

He looked uncomfortable. "I don’t know..."

"Do you still think you’re too old?" she asked, her voice high above the mountains.

He nodded. That must be it.

"That can be fixed, if you want. Listen to me carefully. As your acting mother I am telling you not, under any circumstances, to speak in the next 30 seconds." She let the order sink in for a pause then said, "Now, do you want some milk?"

Rod’s feelings warred within him. He thought for a few seconds, then said, "No."

His skin immediately tingled, his body shifting in her lap. His mouth tingled as well, as four out of eight molars pulled back into his gums.

Lori leaned her face over as his clothes, training pants included, began to grow. "What about now?" she asked.

He put his hand on the breast, pushing at it. "No!" he replied again, his voice even higher. The tingle intensified and he began to fit more comfortably into her lap. He watched as his hand shrank against her breast then could no longer reach it.

"Are you sure? You’re only 2 and a half now after all." she asked, humor in her voice.

Rod’s world grew around him, and Lori’s breasts grew along with it. The temptation was becoming more overwhelming. There was nothing sexual anymore, just a primal need. He wanted them. He wanted the food, the comfort. His thoughts simplified. He had a hard time understanding why he didn’t want to drink from them.

"You can just nod." she said.

"Yeth," he said finally. He felt the tingle once more as Lori grinned at him. He giggled at the sensation. He was forgetting what it meant, but he liked that Lori was smiling at him.

Very quickly his clothes became gigantic and he could feel himself swimming in his training pants. He felt Lori’s arms cradling him as he was lifted ever closer to her. When he reached her breasts she gently directed his mouth to one of the nipples. He almost immediately began to suck.

The sweet warm milk filled his mouth instantly and he loved it, greedily working the nipple for more. Instinct then took over, and his mouth worked like a pump. He closed his eyes, lost in the experience. The only pause he knew was when Lori switched him from one breast to the other.

When his tummy was full he found himself placed over the now giant Lori’s shoulder. His back was patted. He kicked his legs, only keeping his pants on because of the straps.

Eventually, the patting jarred some air bubbles loose, and he burped.

"Good baby." he heard. It made him happy. He noticed his thumb and placed it in his mouth, trying to prolong the nursing experience.

His body was shifted and he could feel his giant overalls pulled off his body. He was glad to lose them. They hadn’t been comfy he felt. After a moment his training pants tightened, becoming snug and fitting him once more. His shirt remained loose however.

He then opened his eyes and looked with wonder at Lori’s giant face, close by.

She was so pretty. Especially up close. He felt his padded bottom get patted by Lori’s hand. "I left the pull-ups on." she commented. "You are still a big boy. But, if you don’t make it, Mary will change you into diapers. Okay?" she asked. Rod nodded, happy to have her trust.

"’Kay," he piped.

She placed him back on the floor as she closed her robe. "Now go play in the living room while mommy gets dressed." she told him.

He frowned. "Wanna play wiff Mommy!"

She grinned once more. "Alright." With a gesture her robe morphed into her work clothes, minus the heels. She really didn’t need the extra height anymore. She then said she’d race him to the living room and took off ahead of him.

He laughed in delight and ran for the living room. He was very awkward, but he seemed to instinctively compensate for his new muscles. When he arrived, he noticed new items in the room. He saw toddler toys spread across the floor and knew they were his. He was happy to have some toys, now. He spotted both his tigers as well. The other new object was a plastic mesh playpen.

"Mommy wins!" he heard Lori exclaim.

He stopped on the spot when he saw the playpen. "No," he said, shaking his head. "No."

"What?" Lori asked. Seeing where his gaze went she said, "Oh. Just for looks really. I’ll put it away." She then folded it up and placed it in a closet. Rod noticed her legs were longer than his entire body.

He smiled again. "Play!" He said, hiding behind the couch.

"Oh, where are you Rod?" she said jokingly. "You disappeared."

His giggling gave him away. He crawled out the other end and tried to run away. She caught him and ticked his tummy. "There you are!" she exclaimed. She then blew a raspberry on his ample tummy.

He squealed with laughter, getting high on the excitement.

She kept her voice high as she spoke to him. "Look at you! You’re a happy little baby! Aren’t you?"

"No baby!" he tried to say, but it came out garbled with giggles.

She smirked and tickled him some more. "Oh, you are. Y’know, it’s amazing how far you’ve fallen. Just last night this would have horrified you. Now, you can’t get enough. What’s a matter? Your cerebral cortex too underdeveloped?" She maintained her high voice throughout but Rod couldn’t understand the big words she was using.

"Pathetic!" she piped. "Humans. You don’t deserve wishes when you have no idea how to use them. No you don’t! You truly deserve whatever you get!"

Deep down Rod knew she was saying bad things, but the voice kept him distracted. He was confused. His thumb found it’s way back to his mouth. He felt that it was a bad thing that she was handling him, because he didn’t really trust her, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Lori grinned widely. "Oh yes! You are a baby. You’re Lori’s little baby! And you did it to yourself. Didn’t your mommy teach you not to talk to strangers? Never mind invite them into your home? Oh well!"

She blew on his tummy once more then tapped his padded behind. "Time to play! You’re it!" She stood, towering over his small form. Rod felt somewhat frightened, but still, he wanted to play. His simplified mind wanted to put other thoughts aside.

He uncertainly stepped toward her, reaching out to tag her.

She took a very long step back. "C’mon baby. You can do it."

His brow furrowed with consternation and effort as he took more steps forward, trying to touch her long legs.

She giggled, constantly staying out of his reach. "Whatsamatter? Can’t catch me? Is Roddy too wittle to play big kid games?"

He let out a whine of frustration and hurried forward, determined to catch her.

She avoided him with ease, stepping aside when he got close. He was finding it hard to keep his balance as well. "C’mon baby. Catch me and I might make you a man again." she teased.

The little boy worked at corralling the elf against the wall. For a moment he actually thought he had her. The corner was at her back and he was sure she couldn’t get by him. When he lunged forward, however, all he saw was a flash of light and his outstretched arms met air. He quickly lost his balance and fell painfully to the floor. Unable to stop himself, he let out a wail of surprise and pain.

He heard the elf’s voice from above. "Awwwww, did widdle Roddy hurt himself? Time out. Baby needs mommy."

He felt himself being gently picked up into the air then cuddled against her chest. Despite himself he welcomed the comfort. He somehow knew how pathetic he’d become. "No moe wish," he sobbed. "Wish end now."

She smirked at him, tickling him under the chin. "Now, how in the world did you ever get it in your feeble little brain that you could just turn things off? Your wish is still running."

He kicked at her with his heels. "Make stop!" he cried.

Ignoring his tantrum, she came closer to his face and whispered. "And when it is done. When you have ’become a kid again’. Well, by then you won’t even care about what’s happened to you."

"Big boy again!" he screamed, angry but chilled with dread.

Lori walked to the closet as she carried him. Her baby talk voice returned. "But you are a big boy! You’ve got a potty and everything! Roddy wears pull-ups!" She pulled something big past the door.

He was becoming confused again. "I big?" he asked, uncertainly. He could hear something being set up below him but his attention stayed with Lori’s eyes.

"Oh yes! Little Roddy hardly has any accidents anymore. You even change the TV channels all by yourself!" He flexed his toes and sucked a finger, trying to think.

"You’re my big boy! So smart! But you still need the pull-ups honey. Okay?" she exclaimed. A loud click could be heard from below. "And you can walk all by yourself now! You’re so good at it! But mommy needs you to be in one place sometimes. Okay?"

"Wori wuv me?" he asked, looking at her with hope-filled eyes.

Her grin was blinding. "Yes baby. Lori loves you very much." He felt himself lowered. Plastic mesh walls surrounded him. "Now play with your toys like a good little boy." He started crying right away, refusing to accept the pen.

The pacifier from last night was stuck in his mouth. This time he immediately began to suck on it. Rod could see plastic baby toys on the padded surface of the playpen as well as his stuffed animals. He continued to whine loudly, determined to fuss.

Lori’s giant hand picked up his smaller tiger, which now seemed a good size, and shook it in front of him. After a few moments he became distracted by it. He was quickly forgetting why he was crying. He petted the tiger. The fur was so soft! The tiger came closer to him as Lori gave it to him.

He noticed a small mirror on the inside of the pen and stared at himself in it. The baby in the mirror had curly blonde hair atop his head, and his face was positively dimpling with baby fat. He hugged his tiger closer, the blue pacifier pumping away in his mouth. The sight was very cute and somehow Roddy accepted it. He was a big boy after all. Not just a little baby. He crawled to look around the rest of the pen.

The elf stood, giggling at the pathetic sight. She whispered, too low for the toddler to hear. "Oh, where are you Rod? You’ve disappeared." Laughter followed but the adorable child only looked up briefly at her. He was more interested in his new toys.

To be continued.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 8

Almost an hour passed by with Roddy oblivious to his surroundings. The toys were just too much fun. He barely even heard the knock at the door as Lori answered it. It wasn’t until he heard a high pitched gasp near his pen that he looked up.

Jenny stood there in a pink play dress and socks and her mouth was hanging wide open. "Rod? What happened?" she asked.

Smiling, Rod stood up, took the pacifier from his mouth and held his arms out to her.

He noticed Chris walking up next to her. Giggling and pointing the boy stated, "He’s a baby for real now."

The girl ignored her companion and reached over the mesh wall, helping Rod out. "Rod? Do you remember me?" she asked worriedly.

"Jen-ny!" he exclaimed happily.

The girl smiled warmly. "Yeah. Are you okay?"

Roddy could see Lori talking to Mary. The sitter seemed much bigger than the day before, but then, everything did. Including Jenny and Chris. He didn’t pay attention to the adults, keeping his eyes and ears on his friend.

"Me... I..." What did he want to say? He was a big boy? But was he? The confusion came back into his face.

Chris began poking the padding of Rod’s pull-ups, giggling the whole time. Roddy felt embarrassed by them and huddled closer to Jenny. "Weeve me awone." he whined.

Jenny put an arm around him and placed herself between him and Chris. "Quit buggin him Chris. If you don’t I’ll, I’ll stop being your friend." Plopping to the floor, Rod hugged Jenny’s leg.

The older boy pouted for a moment. "Alwight." he finally agreed. "I’ll be nice to the baby."

Lori approached and bent down to kiss Roddy on the forehead. "Goodbye big boy. By the end of today, everything will be over." she commented.

Relief flooded his face. He was going to get back to normal! Lori scooped him up under his arms and lifted him into her embrace. After a moment she lifted him high above her head, letting his feet dangle helplessly. He quickly became uncomfortable with the height. He whined, but dared no more than twitch his hands and feet, not wanting to be dropped.

Lori noticed his discomfort and jiggled him gently. "Ohhhhh, is my ’big boy’ afraid of heights? Mommy doesn’t think so." She swung him around, keeping him at arm’s length. "Isn’t that fun?" she asked.

He didn’t agree, and began crying again. He wanted to ask her to stop, but all he could say was a whining, "Nooo!"

She pursed her lips. "Awwww, you don’t like that either? Mommy’s sorry." She returned him a bit too swiftly to the floor. "Don’t worry. Little Roddy can stay close to the nice safe floor from now on." Her voice was somewhat mocking.

Dizzy, Rodney sat down on his padded behind with a plop and a frown on his face. She patted him on the head. "See you later alligator."

The baby folded his arms protectively over his chest and watched her walk away with mixed feelings. Jenny watched as well. She finally commented, "Your mommy is kinda weird."

"No mommy. Ewf." The toddler piped.

Jenny looked confused and seemed ready to ask another question but Mary interrupted them." Alright brats, things got a little haywire yesterday but I’m not going to tolerate that again. Do what I say or I start spanking. No warnings." she ordered. Rod could swear she looked older. Her voice was definitely different.

"Oh, and be careful with the baby. Got it?" she asked. Her voice was definitely a lower timber and Roddy didn’t think his smaller ears would change sounds.

Jenny and Chris each nodded in agreement.

Rod continued to stare at the sitter. She wore a blouse that fit her more snugly than the T-shirt she’d had on the day before and her chest seemed lumpier. The jeans she wore were tighter as well and showed off her curves quite well.

Mary finished giving her orders to the older kids. "Good. Now play nice. I’ve got a book to read for school." She then turned the TV on to cartoons. Within a minute she was seated at the dining room table, a novel in her hands.

Jenny stared at the babysitter as well, finally asking aloud, "It’s weird, but Mary looks bigger."

"Yeah." Chris agreed.

Rod stood up. "Bigguh," he confirmed, but the other two children did not turn around to look at him.

"Maybe she got bigger so she could take care of Roddy." Jenny suggested to Chris.

"Maybe." Chris stated, looking only at the girl.

Roddy huffed, annoyed that they too were now ignoring him. He toddled to the couch and struggled to climb onto it.

Jenny followed him, helping him up. "Careful Roddy. Don’t fall." she said in a caring, but to Rod, condescending voice.

He tried to think of something important to tell her. "Mommy isa ewf," he told Jenny twice more to get her attention.

"She’s a what?" Jenny asked.

"A Eww-l-f," Rod said again, struggling to work his tongue.

"An elf?" Chris finally said. "But they ain’t real."

"Santa Ewf," Rod insisted. "Bwought wish."

"You wished to be a baby?" Jenny asked. "Ohhhhh, that’s so cute." Chris made a face.

"No. Toad you yes-tuhday. Wantedda be bigguh. Dis much." He held out all his dimpled fingers and thumbs. Talking straight was hard work for him. His mind wanted to slip into babble mode.

Jenny looked confused. "Then why are you so little?"

Rod shrugged and sighed, the action almost comically exaggerated on his baby frame.

Jenny giggled again. "You are a cute little thing. Can I take care of you? Like yesterday?" She began to play with his toes. "Awww, your toes are so little!" she exclaimed. She tickled his chin. "Coochie-coo." she playfully remarked, giggling.

Chris seemed annoyed at the attention Roddy was getting. "No! He’s a baby. You can play with me." he complained.

Jenny barely glanced over her shoulder. "I like babies. I even brought my dolls today, but now I don’t need ’em. Do I Roddy?"

Rod smiled. "Ohkay. But no dypuhs."

She hopped in excitement. "Okay. Your pull-ups are close enough anyway." She commented as she climbed onto the sofa with him.

Roddy was amazed at how much larger the little girl was. Her feet actually dangled off the floor while his didn’t even reach the end of the couch. He laid back, his head resting against the back of the couch while the rest of him stretched out on the cushion. He felt tiny.

"If you wanna play with me Chris, get my toys. Okay?" Jenny asked. After a moment Chris reluctantly agreed, mumbling how things would be different if he were bigger.

Rod placed his bare feet against Jenny’s leg to warm them up. "Oh! Baby’s feet are cold!" she giggled. She then reached over and pulled him onto her lap, cuddling him. "You’re such a cute little baby." she stated. Roddy sighed.

Chris returned with some doll clothing as well as the plastic bottle from the day before. He had a pink bonnet and bib which he handed to Jenny. Roddy could then feel his shirt being pulled off.

He fussed. "Cohd!" he complained, keeping his arms down, pinning the shirt.

"Okay Roddy. Now let mommy get you ready for your meal." she said. The bonnet and bib were then tied around his head and neck. Chris could be heard giggling. Frowning, Rod looked up to read Jenny’s face. He needed to know that she was just being nice, and not trying to make him look stupid.

The little girl smiled warmly at him. "Ready for the bottle Roddy?" Rod somehow felt he could trust her.

"Kay," he replied reluctantly.

He closed his eyes and soon felt a rubber nipple placed between his lips, not the plastic one he’d had the day before. He naturally sucked, tasting water.

"I brought a real on this time too." he heard Jenny state proudly.

He opened his eyes to examine the new container, surprised that she would have such a thing. He continued to drink, remembering his experience with Lori earlier. A part of him didn’t want to stop.

"Mommy had it in the kitchen. She let me play with it." the little girl continued. Roddy’s imagination was playing tricks on him again, causing her to seem gigantic to him. Motherly as well. He squirmed in her lap, trying to lie down and get comfy. His legs dangled almost completely off her thigh.

"That’s it baby. Drink your milk." Jenny said, acting her role out. Chris reached out and took one of the toddler’s feet in his hand, marveling at it. He then shrugged and sat on the floor to watch TV. Roddy was glad to be alone with Jenny again. While he drank, Rod gripped Jenny’s hand with his little ones and played with her fingers.

Jenny giggled, letting him. "Baby likes mommy." she commented. More than halfway through the bottle Jenny began to playfully rub his tummy. "Baby’s tummy is almost full. Mommy will burp soon." she stated.

As she rubbed his tummy Roddy began to feel a tingle down below. For an instant he was worried, but quickly realized he had to pee. He hesitated, not sure what to do. Jenny was having fun, and babies did wet themselves. He wasn’t sure if he should interrupt her.

But, he realized that if he did wet himself, Mary would be changing him. Not liking this idea, he pushed the bottle from his mouth and struggled to sit up.

Jenny pushed it back in. "No baby, you aren’t finished." she said, not understanding what was going on. Roddy became worried and more forcefully pushed the bottle away.

"Pee-pee!" He squealed and rolled off her lap, onto his tummy, then slid off the couch.

The force on his stomach and the motion of getting down caused a couple of squirts to enter his pull-ups. He didn’t have much time. Pattering across the floor, he scurried for the bathroom.

Each forceful step seemed to loosen his control even more. By the time he reached the bathroom door and pushed it open he was ready to pee. Stepping onto the tile floor he felt his bladder loosen and he began to wet his big boy pull-ups.

Standing before the potty, he pulled his training pants down and aimed his penis into the pot. Since it was already peeing however, he splashed all over the floor before he could correct his aim.

"Oh geez, pull them back up!" he heard Mary exclaim from the door.

By now, he was already peeing into the potty, so he ignored her. "Ima big boy!" he stated worriedly, hoping she would be happy he was going into the potty. Mary looked around at the mess on the floor and sighed. She stepped over and pulled his training pants back up, even though he was still going.

"Not quite kid. But nice try. Oh, well, serves that woman right for trying to potty train a baby." the teen commented.

"No!" He pushed her hands away and tried to pull them down again, having instantly forgotten what that had done last time. Mary held the pants in place however and Roddy could feel them quickly becoming soaked.

"Oh no! You’re not spraying the floor again." The sitter exclaimed

He started whining angrily and stomped his foot. It was no use, though; he had finished. He noticed the bottom of his shirt was wet and smiling and laughing mushrooms had appeared on the front of the training pants, seeming to mock him.

Letting out a scream, he yanked the pull-ups down and ran from the room.

"Hey! Get back here!" Mary yelled, chasing after him. "I know you can understand me!"

Roddy felt another tingle as he toddled away, his cute little tushie fully exposed. Running into the computer room, he dove under the desk to hide. Mary was inhibited in her pursuit by the computer chair.

She moved it aside, reaching for him. The desk grew around him as he continued to crawl out the other side. "No musswooms!" he pleaded, all in a panic. His wet shirt slid down his rump, covering it. The bonnet he was wearing fell over his eyes.

Taking advantage of his momentary lack of sight, Mary got a hand around his foot and began to pull. "Stop fighting me. Geez." She said.

He let out a piercing scream as Mary grabbed his foot, kicking and clawing as he was dragged. Another tingle overtook his body. Crying in earnest, he curled up into fetal position and trembled.

Mary had pulled him back to her but the baby still kicked and squirmed. The sitter was starting to get angry but her thoughts were interrupted. "I’ll get him." Jenny’s voice stated from behind the giant.

Roddy immediately wanted to go to Jenny. He stopped struggling but continued to cry loudly. He held his arms out to his friend.

"See. He likes me. Lemme get him." the little girl pleaded, now standing near.

"Fine." Mary stated, backing away. "Keep him here in the nursery while I clean up the bathroom. When he’s calmed I’m going to have to diaper him again. I can’t believe he took the other one off." She grumbled as she left the room.

Jenny went to Roddy, hugging him. She began to sniffle. "I’m sorry Roddy. I din’ mean to hold you down. I’m so sorry. Please stop crying." Jenny could see that all four of Roddy’s canine teeth were missing. He tried to speak, but hiccupped and cried some more.

She pulled the bonnet off, stroking his blonde hair. She was even bigger now. It made him feel even more comfortable with her. "Shhhhh." she soothed. "It’s alright. I’m here baby." She sat cross-legged, pulled him onto her lap and began to rock him.

He quieted down enough to try a word. "Mussoom." He wiped his eyes and tried again. "Mussoom bad."

Jenny seemed confused. "Mushrooms? Okay. I’ll protect you from them." she told him. He sniffled and wiped his nose on his shirt.

Mary walked over to them. "Alright. Good job Jenny. Let me diaper him now." The sitter picked the baby up and laid him on the changing table. He immediately became upset again.

"Puh-up! Puh-up!" he pleaded. "Biuhg boy!" He kicked his chubby legs for all they were worth, making it very difficult for Mary to get a good grip on them.

Mary sighed again, finally grasping his two ankles in one of her hands. "No Roddy. You’re not even two yet. Yeesh. Now stop it.”

Roddy felt the lower half of his little body completely lifted from the changing pad by his ankles. He screamed and tried to kick his feet loose but couldn’t. It felt like he’d been caught in a lasso and a tree limb was picking him up. What was mortifying was it was only a teenage girl who was doing this to him. As he cried he once again heard Jenny’s voice. "Can I diaper him Mary? He might not fight me."

Glancing once more at the agitated baby Mary quickly agreed. "Fine. I’ll lay a pad on the floor." Within a few seconds Mary had done so and Roddy felt himself lifted from the pad and laid before little Jenny. Mary handed the girl the diaper.

Roddy sucked on his fingers, three could fit into his mouth now, as he looked up at his large friend. He wasn’t sure what to think. He didn’t want the diaper, but if Jenny was doing it, he thought he could handle it. As long as there weren’t any evil smiling mushrooms.

"Mffoo," he said around his fingers.

Jenny showed him the diapers, which were blank. "No mushrooms," she whispered to him. That made him happy and he kicked his legs restlessly in the air.

Mary helped Jenny through the entire procedure, especially helping to lift Roddy off the floor, but allowed the girl to do most of the work. Jenny was very good at it and Roddy could imagine that the whole thing was one of her games, which didn’t make things so bad.

His wet shirt of course was removed in the process and in the end he found himself on his back, knees bent toward his chest and wearing only a disposable diaper.

Jenny, proud of herself, tickled his tummy joyfully, causing the baby to kick his legs some more. They had lost a lot of muscle in the last few minutes.

Mary then brought over a red ?Winnie the Pooh’ open footed jumper and helped the girl put it on him. Roddy didn’t fight it, and liked the fact his feet weren’t confined. His skin seemed especially sensitive now and he liked brushing his soles against Jenny’s soft dress.

"Can I play with him in here till lunch?" Jenny asked.

"Alright." Mary responded, happy to keep two of her charges occupied. "But he’ll need a nap in about an hour."

Roddy rolled over and crawled to the bed. Once there, he gripped the edge and used it to get to his feet. His legs straightened, but he could feel them strain from supporting his weight. He held onto the bed, feeling less sure on his feet, less sure about everything.

When Mary had finally left Jenny giggled with joy. "Wow, Roddy. You got so tiny! I was worried for a sec, but now I like it. Now I can really take care of you." She tied the doll’s bonnet on his head once more. It fit almost perfectly now.

The new baby felt a chill. "Jen-ny?" he asked, wishing his friend wasn’t under any influence. "Tink. Pease? Wittle... bad."

She frowned for a moment, seeming to fight herself. "Yeah, I know. You don’t wanna be a baby. I’m sorry. You are really cute though." she said, trying to brighten him. "I also figured you’d want me taking care of you instead of Mary. I was right wasn’t I?"

He nodded and tugged the bonnet off his head. "Uh-huh..."

She seemed disappointed at his action, but didn’t comment. Instead she asked, "So, do you wanna play?" Roddy noticed many wonderful baby toys around the nursery. A part of him very much wanted to play and an excited look spread across his chubby face as he tried to decide what toy to go after first. His happy thoughts were halted however as he heard Chris laughing behind him.

He whirled around -- and dropped onto his butt. The thick padding of the diaper cushioned the blow but he was still annoyed at falling and frowned. Jenny rushed to his side. "Are you okay Roddy?" she asked.

"R yu okay baby?" Chris mocked in a high voice.

Their attention prompted him to start crying for comfort, despite himself. Chris walked over and stuck his pacifier in his mouth, silencing him. "Here baby. I brought this for you."

"Chris, go away." Jenny ordered him. "We don’t want to play with you."

The baby took the pacifier from his mouth and threw it at the boy. It bounced off the carpet just past his own chubby foot.

Chris laughed at the feeble attempt. "What a baby. Can’t throw at all. Who cares about you two anyway? I’m gonna play video games." With that the boy left.

Roddy sniffled and held onto Jenny’s leg. She stuck her tongue out at the boy as he left. Putting an arm around Roddy she said, "Who cares about him anyway. He’s such a meanie. So, wanna play with your toys?"

Roddy eagerly grabbed a red block from the floor and showed it to his friend. Jenny took it and stacked another on it. Roddy clapped his hands, thinking she was very clever. He liked playing baby now, very much. It seemed very natural to him.

Jenny played with him for nearly an hour, until he became sleepy. Getting cranky, he knocked a toy from her hand and whined at her about it. She soothed him, but it didn’t

seem to work. Finally she said, "I think it’s time for your nap. I’ll go get Mary."

He watched her go, then stared at his toes, which were sticking out in front of him. They were tiny and chubby, just like his fingers. He began to wonder what they’d be like to suck on as well. Lying on his back he brought one of his feet up to his mouth. He found his body to be extremely flexible and easily stuck half his toes between his lips to suck on.

After a few seconds he rolled onto his side, slobbering over his tootsies. Spotting a pen on the floor, he crawled over to it and put that in his mouth.

Mary entered the room immediately after. "Oh no you don’t!" she exclaimed, rushing to him. The pen was quickly pulled from his lips. He complained at her loudly in his crankiness, scrunching up his face and wailing.

"Jenny, next time just call for me. He could have choked." Mary told the younger girl over his cries.

"Sorry Mary." Jenny responded as the babysitter picked the baby up and placed him on her hip.

“No prob.” Mary responded, popping another pacifier into Roddy’s mouth to silence him. She raised her voice and bounced the baby as she left the room. “Now let’s get some food into him before his nap, okay?”

“Kay.” Jennifer responded, tagging along.

Rod enjoyed the rhythmic feel of the bouncing and his mood improved. He stared at the giant Mary in fascination as she talked, enraptured by her high voice. Quickly he was distracted however and began to swing his feet against the sitter, pumping the rubber nipple the entire while.

Soon he found himself lowered into his highchair. He hadn’t even noticed entering the kitchen. Kicking his legs in boredom he slapped the tray that had been snapped into place in front of him. He giggled at the sound it made and slapped it again, bouncing in his joy.

The two girls in the room were talking to each other but Roddy didn’t care, be didn’t even understand all the words anymore. Finally Mary walked over and sat down in front of him. Under Mary’s instruction, Jenny tied a big bib to his neck. It had Tigger on it.

Again Mary used a high sweet voice as she said, “Alright Roddy woddy, let’s get some nummy nums into yours tummy tums. Okay?”

He clapped in amusement at her words as the pacifier was taken from his mouth. A moment later Roddy found a spoonful of baby food stuck in its place. It was strained peas.

He spit it up immediately and started crying, letting it drip down his chin.

"C’mon Roddy, time for some food before sleepy." Mary baby talked to him, sending another pile of baby food his way. He turned his face away and grabbed the spoon with one of his hands, trying to wrest it away from her. It was useless however and another spoonful entered his mouth, the teen holding it closed this time.

He spit it up again, then said, "Uck! Uck!!"

Mary fumed. Once again she gave him a spoonful and held his mouth closed. This time she waited until she was sure he had swallowed it. He took in the vile slime, but then covered his mouth with his hands. "No pea! Ca-ot!"

Jenny understood and pulled a jar of strained carrots from the pantry. "I think he wants this." She explained. He nodded emphatically.

"Well I opened this one. It was marked and I’m not wasting it. He’s just a baby anyway so what does he care?" With that Mary held his nose closed. He kept his hands over his mouth and breathed through them.

"Ca-ot!" he yelled over and over. "Ca-ot!"

Mary grumbled and moved the hands aside, holding his mouth open. The next spoonful was shoved in. He kicked his bare feet uselessly against the plastic footrest as he fought her. Getting angry, this time he shook his head loose and spit the pea goop in the sitter’s face.

Mary turned red with anger, but she simply wiped her face clean. "Okay, you are eating the next spoonful. Do that again, and Mary will spank." she warned.

Rod ducked his face to his chest and warded off the spoon with his little arms, making him nearly impossible to feed. A very determined Mary grabbed his chin and lifted his head up. Prying his mouth open once more she shoved the spoonful in.

Her ministrations were beginning to hurt. He started to cry again, and this time, the gob of pea mush went down the wrong way, making him choke and cough.

Mary sighed. "Geez, what is with you?" she asked, pulling him from the chair and patting his back. He coughed it up and dribbled it down the towel on her shoulder, then proceeded to cry.

The teen bounced and soothed him, trying to settle him down. He found the motion pleasing. Calming down, he wiped his mouth on her toweled shoulder and closed his eyes, the soothing motion making him sleepy.

His body and mind relaxed, and within a moment he noticed the front of his diaper suddenly become very warm. It actually took him a few seconds to realize he was peeing. He actually enjoyed the warmth. It wasn’t until it started cooling off that the wetness became uncomfortable, and he then squirmed and whined his discomfiture.

Mary gently bounced the baby and stood. She was thankful that he’d calmed down. It was all very strange. She’d never seen a baby give so much trouble. She walked with him to the nursery when she noticed his whining.

"What is it Roddy?" she asked, feeling his bottom. She sighed when she noticed the damp wetness. "Alright then, a clean diaper then off to nappy land for you." she said.

Roddy felt nothing but relief that someone else would take care of the messy business for him. He sucked on his thumb for comfort as he was laid down on the changing table. Mary stripped his jumper off to get at the offending diaper and he aimlessly kicked as she removed it. He still didn’t like this, but it somehow seemed natural.

He felt warm skin surround his free hand and turned to see Jenny had taken it. He was happy to see her and gurgled at the girl. He didn’t understand why she seemed sad.

He giggled as Mary powdered him. He enjoyed how it tickled. Soon he was redressed and laid stomach down in the now perfectly sized crib.

As he dozed he saw Jenny looking at him through the bars. He was happy to see her. There wasn’t much else in his mind.

The little girl reached out and tickled his foot. "You okay Rod?" she asked.

He smiled at her, happy for the attention. Some drool escaped his lips. He sat up and played with Jenny’s big fingers.

A confused look took the girl. "Um, oh. You, you don’t know what I’m saying do you?" she inquired, as the baby stuck her finger in his mouth.

"Jenny! Let him sleep. He needs his nap." Mary called from the other room.

The little girl pulled her hand away at the voice and called back, "Kay." Giving the baby one last concerned glance she left the room. After a minute, the baby boy sank to the mattress and fell asleep.

To be continued.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 9

Little Roddy’s dreams were warm and fluffy, but something was not right. A feeling more than anything else. A part of him was mad. Screaming in the fuzziness of his mind. He was confused. Scared. But after some time he began to understand again. To know. He was not supposed to be here. This was wrong.

His adult mind broke through the haze, frustrated at his lack of control. He needed to think. It was then he felt the shaking. The dream world was retreating. He was being woken up.

Rod awoke, face down on the mattress, his thumb planted in his mouth. The crib before him was huge. He then noticed the gentle shaking of his back. He let out a tiny gasp as he realized he had a baby’s body. He looked up fearfully.

A large, but somehow smaller Lori stood over the crib. The business suit was gone and instead she wore the green elf outfit he’d first seen her in. Her pointed ears were quite prominent and she seemed to be confused.

"What now?" he whimpered in an incredibly high pitch, rubbing his eyes with his pudgy fists. He cringed at his piping voice. Even helium wouldn’t have done this to him when he was an adult.

She whispered to him, "Rod? What in the world? I had no idea you wanted to be this young! I could have done it no problem. Why didn’t you let me know? Oh well, looks like you figured out how to do it on your own. You’re pretty smart y’know. Still, you could have just told me."

"I don’t want it," he whined. "You’re mean!"

She glanced around the room. "Geez, you bought a crib and everything. I could have just made them."

"Stop it!" he pleaded. "Make me older! Pleeease?"

Lori blinked. "What in the world are you talking about? What do you mean I’m mean?"

He crossed his arms in a huff. "I don’t wanna be a baby! You made me a baby!"

She picked him up out of the crib and into her arms. "Look, just because you wanted to subconsciously become a baby and pushed the spell in that direction doesn’t make me mean." She sounded hurt. Suddenly her face cringed and her nose twitched. "Ugh. What is that smell?"

Rod felt a great warmth enter his diaper, from the rear. He covered his face and cried as he felt a soft sticky mass enter his diaper. Why was she tormenting him so?

The elf took his hand and gently pulled it away from his face. "Rod? Do you want to be older?" she asked. "What age do you want to be?"

He could feel a squishing in his diaper as he moved. He tried to think. How old was he supposed to be? A big kid, anyway. "Ten?"

She smiled. "You sure? You definitely didn’t stay that way the last time, and the spell was set to follow your true wishes. Just double checking is all."

His agitation increased the longer he stayed in his filthy diaper. "Yes!" he squeaked.

Lori jerked her head back in surprise at his outburst. "Well, aren’t you a cranky baby. Alright. Second time now. I’ll even clean you up. Magically, of course. Not a chance I’d do it otherwise. Ewwww. Just thinking about it." She then placed him back in the crib, the shit on his behind spreading uncomfortably. She then gestured and he could feel the air vibrate around him as she cast her spell. She then added, "Amazing, I leave you on your own for a couple of days and this happens to you. I’d better stick around this time."

"But... but..." He was confused. She wasn’t making any sense, even if she was torturing him.

Rod felt his diaper empty then thin as the crib around him got smaller. His clothing didn’t get tight but instead grew with him. He was happy to leave babyhood behind but soon after it had begun the elf cried out in pain, her hands shooting to her head.

"Ahhhhhhhhh. Owwwwwww!" she cried, tumbling backwards. Rod’s growth stopped. Lori fell to the ground and writhed in pain. Rod walked to the edge of the now smaller crib and looked down at her.

Waves of energy seemed to be coursing around the elf. At first he was unsure what was happening, other than she was in pain, but it soon became obvious. Lori was getting smaller.

Her clothes seemed to be morphing as well, but he couldn’t tell into what. After a few more seconds it was all over and a very shaken elf sat up, holding her knees to her diminished chest. She looked like a teen.

The door to the nursery opened, two curious heads peeking in. It was Jenny and Chris. Their eyes widened when they saw the visitor and they each entered the room, mouths wide open.

Lori was oblivious to the world, rocking as if to calm herself and regain control. Rod took the time to look her clothing over. The teenage elf now wore what any completely abnormal teenage girl probably would. She had on a neon green tube top that showed off the outline of two very pert breasts. Her midriff was bare and Rod could see a belly button ring. Just below, she wore a pair of faded blue jeans with tears all over, the bottoms which ended well above her ankles. They were accompanied by a mismatched pair of socks, one green, one red, and her red hair had divided into pigtails.

"Look at her ears," Jenny whispered, noticing the only thing stranger on the new teen.

"She’s gotta be an elf," Chris returned.

Rod couldn’t believe what he saw. He looked down at his body, wondering at what age it had become stranded.

Finally regaining her composure Lori stood. She was shorter, much thinner, and very confused. "Wha... what in the heck was that?! Ouch!" she commented in a now thinner voice, once again holding her head. She looked around at the gaping children. "Um, friends of yours Rod?" she asked, then returned her gaze to him.

Her brow furrowed at that. "Hey, you aren’t ten," she said accusingly. "Why aren’t you ten?! That was, like, such an easy spell. Did you screw it up?"

"I didn’t do anything!" he protested, half worried that she would spank him. But his other half was convinced that she wasn’t in control anymore.

She huffed. "Hmph. Well, of course you didn’t. Not like you know any magic. Even if you weren’t a kid." She turned back to the kids. "And what are you two staring at?"

"Are you an elf?" Jenny asked.

Rod was about to comment when Lori said, "Yup. Cool isn’t it? I can cast spells and everything. Wanna see?"

The two children nodded enthusiastically.

Rod suddenly became very worried. "Lori? Didn’t you just get zapped when you tried to use magic?" Maybe she deserved whatever happened, but she was his only ticket back to his normal life.

Lori held her arms up then paused at his voice. "Oh, yeah. I did, didn’t I? And it hurt!" She walked over to Rod, his eyes almost level with hers given his present boost. "What in the heck is going on?" she asked.

The door to the nursery then opened, Mary looking in. "Oh good, Lori. Thanks for looking in on him. Did you check to see if he was dry?" she asked.

Rod was thrown for another loop.

Lori glanced at the babysitter in apparent confusion. "Uhhhhhhh, yeah. He’s dry."

Mary looked to be a year or so older than Lori. She nodded. "Good. If you want to stay in here and play with the kids it’s okay by me." She then narrowed her eyes, "Y’know, that top looks pretty trampy on you. Your mom left some other stuff to wear. You should probably put it on," Mary commented snidely.

"I can’t believe it," Rod thought. "Mary’s actually bossing around THE boss!" Something just wasn’t right here. Lori was nowhere near as on top of things as he’d come to expect.

Lori suddenly became angry at the other teen’s comments. "What the...? Listen to me, child. I will wear what I want when I want. Got it? Who the hell are you anyway?"

Mary walked into the room and slapped Lori across the cheek, staggering the elf. "Don’t you ever swear at me! You may be older than the other kids, Lori, but I am still in charge. Remember that." Mary finished, emphasizing her point by grabbing Lori’s front and pulling it out, before snapping it back onto the elf’s chest. The stunned elf yelped and hugged her arms to her chest in pain. Rod could swear he saw her clothes loosen a tiny bit.

Mary snorted as she left. "Yeesh, not as though you have anything up there to show off kid."

Lori merely stood where she was, stunned. In a moment the color seemed to be washing from her face. Finally she whispered, "Uh, Rod?"

When she turned back around, Rod could see that her figure had indeed lost definition. She was a skinny adolescent, barely of high school age -- by human standards.

"She got younger!" Chris exclaimed gleefully.

"What did you do to yourself?" Rod asked her nervously.

Lori looked into his eyes. What Rod saw was a very unsure girl. He also saw fear. "I - I didn’t do anything!" she whined, beginning to sniffle. "I just tried to make you bigger. And then, ?pow’, I got younger. I - I felt a tingle, Rod. I think..." she paused, lost in thought for a moment.

"And you just got hit for talking back, and you got younger again. Just like you made happen to me." He told her.

She stood, clenching her fists in anger. "It’s a curse. I know it. I freaking walked right into it. Ugh, I am sooooo stupid! That is, like, the first thing you should check for. Arggggh!" The young teen absently pulled her top up as it had been falling on her skinny form. In fact her entire outfit now looked like it belonged to an older sister. He glimpsed her chest for a moment. The small bumps there pale copies of the ones he’d seen earlier in the day.

She seemed to be ignoring him again. "What curse?" he interjected, waving a hand in front of her face.

Jenny thought for a moment. "Hey, so who’s gonna be Rod’s mommy now?"

Lori looked between the two of them, her face expressing confusion. "Wait. Mommy? What the...?", her eyes widened. She knelt before the crib, actually lowering her head below Rod’s. She had to cross her arms in front of her chest to keep her top from dropping again. Speaking very carefully, and nervously, she asked, "Um, Rod. Why do they think I’m your mommy?" She looked very worried, and rather pathetic, holding her clothing up as she was.

He studied her face carefully. "You’ve been playing at being my mother since... um... well, for days." It was hard to keep track of time when his body was so unstuck.

Her breathing became more rapid and she said, "No, Rod. I haven’t. I haven’t been here since I left you as a ten year old. Which means ......" She closed her eyes. "Uh oh. This is bad."

A massive chill shot through Rod’s body. "What is it?" he whispered, hardly managing to breathe. "Who... was she?"

Lori looked once more at him. She bit her lower lip as she tried to think of what to say. It was obvious she felt ashamed of something and didn’t want to tell him. She was acting just like a teen he thought. "Uh, don’t get mad at me okay?" she asked worriedly.

Rod felt strange, wanting to comfort her. He gripped her index finger in his tiny hand and held his breath, waiting for her to continue.

"Well, first, I’m not an elf." she said, cringing. "I’m, well, an Oni. Kinda a trickster spirit. But, but I don’t want to do anything bad. I hate tricking people. I like doing nice things. It’s more fun." Her voice moved quickly making her discomfort obvious.

"I was just trying to do something nice for you. I didn’t mean for anything bad to happen. Honest! I am sooo sorry." She babbled, wandering away from the original question.

"Uh-huh?" he prompted, swaying a bit. How bad was this going to get?

She looked at him, noticing his prodding. "What?"

"So what happened?" he breathed.

"Oh! That. Well, I can’t be completely sure, but... y’see, the rest of my family isn’t too thrilled with what I do. Especially my sister. She really hates it. I shoulda known she’d try something like this eventually. Ooooo, she makes me so mad sometimes."

"So, what happened?" he prodded again.

Lori calmed suddenly, huffing at him as if he was a moron. "I just told you! It’s a curse! She messed with the spell I put on you. It was supposed to make you whatever age you wanted at any time. Kinda a surprise I left for you. But she must have twisted it. She’s good at that. She must have left one for me, too."

He felt a little numb. "What do we do?" he asked in a small voice.

The features on Lori’s face set as a determined look came to her. "Only way to beat it is to slide it onto someone else then nullify it. Since sis isn’t here, that snot nosed brat of a babysitter will have to do. Don’t worry, I’ve been able to beat Lari’s spells since, well, forever."

"But you’re younger now," he reminded her, his forehead creasing with worry.

She dismissed him with a wave of her hand. "So what? I am like, so much better at this stuff than she is. I just gotta get it off me then I’ll be free to fix everything. Watch me." With that she closed her eyes in concentration and gestured once more.

Almost immediately her expression creased in consternation, as if she was struggling with something. A moment later she smiled however, seemingly satisfied. "Got it! Nasty little spell too. Now I’ll just....." Lori’s sentence was interrupted as she giggled. "Oooooo, that tickles!" Rod noticed her voice rise, just before her form started to shrink once more. Her eye level quickly sank lower than his own.

"Lori?" he asked fearfully as he watched her shrink.

The top on the Oni quickly became too big, falling down to her waist. Rod could see her chest completely flatten out, pink dots replacing her young breasts. The girl continued to laugh as her jean cuffs reached the floor and began to puddle. "Hee hee. It feels funny, Rod," she piped in an ever changing voice. "I got it, though."

The two children looked at her in awe, amazed at what they saw. She was youthening very quickly. Jenny managed to say, "Um, Lori? You’re getting smaller!"

Lori opened her eyes and looked at the not so much smaller kids. "No I’m not, silly! I’d know. I’m magic."

Rod could see she was easily below ten and continuing to fall. "Lori!" he exclaimed. "Stop! Just stop!"

A second later her jeans released their hold on her now skinny hips, dropping to the carpet in a heap, her tube top slipping down her waist to cover her shrinking behind. The eight year old put a finger to her mouth as if she was pondering something. "Um, ’kay. How’d you get so big?" she asked the kids in front of her. Her pointed ears had become more prominent, not shrinking at the same rate as the rest of her. Her rounding cheeks made the combination simply adorable. Still she sank.

There was a shimmer around her clothes and they began to morph again. The belly button ring vanished and the top changed into a short green dress with frills at the shoulders.

Feeling completely useless from his position in the crib, Rod hastily climbed out and let himself down to the floor.

The jeans at her feet seemed to rise as well, becoming a darker green and wrapping tightly around her legs. The little elf jumped and let out a happy squeal as they changed into tights sliding up her legs. Green and red ribbons snaked into her hair around her pigtails as her once bright red hair shimmered into a golden blonde. The shrinking stopped, leaving the young blonde elf a little shorter than Jenny.

Coming closer, Rod could see white and red flowers decorating the front of the dress, which came halfway down the girl’s thighs. The little Oni was just as skinny-limbed as any seven-year-old.

She quickly spun around to face Rod with a cheerful look. She babbled happily to him. "I did it, Roddy! I gots the spell. Um, but what was I ’posed to do with it again? I kinda forgot." She looked at the floor for a moment, thinking.

She brightened again swiftly. "Oh yeah! I gots to give it to that mean ole babysitter. Gimmie one sec. Kay?" she checked, seemingly waiting for his approval.

Rod stopped short before the elf, who was still twice his size, looking uncertain as he studied her adorable, innocent, oblivious face. "No, don’t do anymore magic, okay?" he said slowly.

She pouted, sticking her lower lip out. "But why not. I wike doing magic!"

"How old are you?" he asked specifically, trying to give her a clue. "Look at yourself!"

She looked herself over, becoming confused. "I’m, um. I ’m ’posed to be bigger. Ain’t I?" She thought for a moment, becoming scared. Her eyes became teary as her lower lip began to vibrate. Very low, she whispered, "I, I messed up din I?" She then sniffled.

Resisting the urge to stare at her and shake his head in bafflement, the toddler grabbed her hand and comforted her. "It’s not you, it’s the curse," he assured her. "I think it’s meant to keep you from doing magic."

Lori nodded, but was interrupted when Jenny reached out and curiously touched the tip of one of her pointed ears. The little Oni flinched but let out a laugh despite herself. "Donnnn’t! It tickles!" she half whined, half giggled.

"Wanna play?" Jenny asked, not seeming to care about the newest child. She was actually getting used to these sudden changes.

Almost instantly little Lori smiled and nodded. "Yeah! Okay!" She let go of Rod’s hand, forgetting herself.

"You’re it!" Jenny said, tagging the other girl and running off. Lori giggled then gleefully ran after her new playmate.

Rod reached out after her "Uh, Lori? Wait!" He didn’t know what to say. At least she wasn’t jeopardizing herself with more attempts at magic. The toddler then noticed he’d been left in the room with Chris.

Chris grinned wickedly at Rod. "Looks like you’ll have a playmate soon, baby." he said. Without another word he pushed Rod on his padded behind and left the room.

"Yeah, well, maybe it’ll be you!" the toddler retorted. He then hurried after the girls, as quickly as his short legs could take him. Rod noted with disdain that he was simply wearing a larger version of his red sleeper and what felt like training pants. His still bare feet padded against the wooden floor. In truth though, he was just glad he was old enough to talk and run again.

He saw that Lori had caught Jenny and the two were now playfully tickling each other, Lori’s ears being a prime target.

After a few seconds he heard a squeal. "Oww." the little Oni protested. "Careful. You scratched me," she whined.

Jenny stopped. "Sorry." She then attacked Lori’s tummy with full force.

Rod sat on the floor and watched them, his hopes for ever returning to normal sinking ever lower.

The two girls finally stopped, almost exhausted. Jenny then crawled over to her toys and handed Lori a Barbie doll. The little Oni looked at it in wonder, as if she’d never seen one before, then hugged it. Thanking Jenny she began to play with it. He then heard the older girl once again suggest playing house, and look to him.

"C’mon Rod. Doncha wanna play with us?" Jenny asked.

"Yeah Rod. It’ll be fun. Don’t make me put a spell on you," Lori added, laughing.

Rod definitely didn’t want her using magic. He gave Jenny a pained look, and moved to the Oni. "Lori? Tell me about your sister. What will she do with us?"

The little Oni looked frightened and glanced away. "I - I don’t wanna talk about her. She’s mean." She said weakly.

"Try to think," he whispered. "Part of the magic is making you not care." With that, he sat down in front of Jenny and let her start her game, as though awaiting a penance.

Jenny again babied him, using the bonnet and bib once more.

His adult mind still intact this time he reasoned that the curse had to be augmenting Jenny’s desire to play like this. "Jenny, remember the spell," he whispered warningly in her ear at one point.

It also had to be augmenting Lori’s childishness. The little Oni played along, giggling and seeming to enjoy every minute of his humiliation as she acted big sister to Jenny’s mommy.

As the game went on Rod noticed Mary once again on the couch. The babysitter still seemed to be 16 or 17 and was extremely imposing. He wondered if her nastiness was being pushed as well.

"Lori," he said after a while. "Why don’t you be the grown-up now?"

Lori laughed at his remark. "I don’t wanna be the mommy, silly. I wike pwaying big sister."

"Hey, Lori," he tried again to get her to think. "What is an Oni, anyway?"

She smiled. "It’s a trickster spirit! We like pwaying games! I know ?cause I’m one!" she said proudly. "My sister tole me all about doin it. How we twick people. It sounds like fun!"

Rod whimpered. "Wouldn’t you like to beat your sister?"

She nodded quickly. "That’d be fun! But she’s a lot more powerful and stuff. It’d be hard."

"You didn’t think so a few minutes ago..." he commented.

"Yeah, you said her spells were easy to break." Jenny added, getting into the conversation.

Lori looked very confused. "Um, I did?"

"Except that her curse messes up your magic," he reminded her. "When you were big... you said something about transferring the curse?"

"I .... I was big?" she asked, sticking a finger into her mouth.

Rod gently took the finger from her mouth and touched her cheek. "You were all grown up!" he whispered. "Remember? Remember how you looked when you came to see me?"

She thought for a moment, creasing her forehead. "I - I was! She - she tricked me!"

"Okay, now think. You can’t use your magic, or you’ll get smaller. So, what else can we do?"

"I dunno. I can’t wemember enough about how." She sniffled. A moment later she glared ahead, clenching her fists. "Oooooo, I am so mad at her! If she were here now I’d, I’d...!"

"You’d what, you pathetic little wimp?" a voice spoke from above. The three children shot their heads upward.

To be continued.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 10

Roddy, Jenny and little Lori saw what looked to be a twelve-year old girl, dressed in jeans with her arms crossed over a pink t-shirt. Despite the blockage of those limbs the size of the mounds under her shirt was easily visible and much larger than normal. Her curly red hair, also in much too elaborate a style for a normal girl her age, and pointed ears clearly gave her identity away. It was the Oni Rod had called Lori for two days, the mean older sister the real Lori was so afraid of and even in her white-stocking feet she towered over the rest of them imposingly.

Rod feigned boredom and sarcastically remarked, “Now which one are you then?”

Little Lori, despite a sudden gasp, stood up to confront her sister, her head only coming up to the other Oni’s chest and her mass obviously much less. "You change us back! Now!" she demanded.

Without a word the bigger girl ignored her sister and looked to Rod, smiling a familiar grin. "Why hello, Roddy. My, you’ve grown. Anyway, you can call me Lari, sweetie," she said in a sickingly sweet voice.

Lori became incensed. "Stop ignoring me Lari! You tricked me! That’s no fair! I’m gonna tell!"

Lari laughed. "Ohhhh, you are so cute when you have a curse on you sis. Who’re ya gonna tell sweetums? Huh? Your mommy? She’s on my side remember?"

Rod wanted to do something, but the toddler was the least equipped to do anything. Lori became upset then exclaimed, "Stop bein so mean! Change us back!" She then pushed her sister in anger, barley budging her.

Jumping up, the toddler grabbed Lori’s dress and tried to pull her back. "Lori, no!"

An evil grin came to Lari’s face. "Oh, this is great. I should have done this decades ago." Without another word the larger Oni reached behind her sister’s back and grabbed under her dress, pulling sharply upward. Lori yelped in pain and hopped slightly on her feet as she was given a massive wedgie. Lari then pushed her sister hard in the chest, knocking her to the floor with a thump. The smaller girl immediately began to cry.

Rod stepped between the two Oni’s and faced Lari. "You coward!" he accused.

Lari easily knocked him away and onto his own behind. "Stay out of this Roddy. Family squabble going on." Rod could see tears streaming down Lori’s cheeks and from her nose as her big sister grabbed her by the pigtails and pulled her back up, eliciting a squeal of pain. "Oh don’t cry so soon baby sister. You can beat me. Just use your magic," Lari enticed.

Jenny jumped up to try and help Lori as well. "Stop it! You’re hurting her!" she pleaded. "Mary!" she called.

The babysitter, seemingly oblivious up to this point walked over and asked sternly, "Hey! What the heck is going on here?"

Lari smiled. "Nothing, Mary. The two brats got into an argument. I think they need a timeout." As Lari spoke Rod could see Mary shrink, her clothes morphing with her.

When it was done, the 13-year old girl he’d seen down at the Jacuzzi was standing in front of them. A confused look passed over Mary’s face and she shook her head. Finally she said weakly, "Um, yeah Lari. Good idea. You handle it, alright? I’ll get some snacks." With that she walked to the kitchen.

"Mary!" Rod exclaimed. "Lari is hurting her sister!" The babysitter never stopped walking.

Lari’s concentration then returned to her pathetically sniveling sister. "Now, where were we?" Pulling the girl’s hair once more she dropped her sister to the floor with a hard slap to the face.

Desperately trying to help his friend Rod did about the only thing he could do: he latched onto Lari’s leg and bit as hard as he could through the denim. Unfortunately the Oni restrained Rod by merely wrapping an arm around him and lifting him clear off the ground.

The toddler clawed at her arm and aimed kicks at tender-looking places on the twelve-year-old but Lari didn’t seem to feel any of the blows. Giving up, Rod held onto the Oni’s super strong arm in case she chose to drop him suddenly.

Lori continued to cry pathetically as Rod dangled off the ground. Jenny knelt down next to the hysterical Oni, trying to comfort her.

Finally the larger Oni remarked, "Here’s the thing sis: You don’t look like a child, you are a child, for real, and your mind is already accepting it. Soon you will be bright-eyed and pliable again. Ready to learn how to be just like your dear old sis. So, use your magic, or don’t. I really don’t care how young you get. I’m just waiting till you don’t care anymore. Oh, and here’s the best part, in the meantime you gotta do what I say. Now get your little butt in the corner before I smack it red!" Lari ordered. "Both of you!" she snapped at the two girls.

Jenny, already very shaken, shook Lori’s shoulder, trying to get her attention and perhaps calm her. "C’mon, Lori. Let’s go."

The little Oni’s crying slowed and she sniffled as she looked up at her sister. A light came to her eyes as she defiantly said, "No! You can’t bully me around like when I was a really young. I’m not gonna do it!"

Lari’s reaction was quick, and to her sister, chilling. Tilting her head and smiling she said, "Good."

Lori shivered as she felt a tingle pass through her. The child’s eyes widened as her dress grew on her and her green tights wrinkled.

Rod kicked more desperately, hurting his heels on the Oni. "Mary! Co......" he screamed. His cries were interrupted in mid stream as a pacifier materialized in his mouth. He found he was unable to spit it out.

Baby fat began to form on little Lori’s face as she became the equivalent of a human six year old. She looked herself over in shock, vaguely understanding what had happened.

Lari smirked. "See, baby sis, it doesn’t matter to me if you listen. Disobey me all you like, it’ll just make things go quicker. Now, you gonna get in the corner, or you want to stay defiant?"

Terrified, Lori scrambled to her feet, almost tripping in the now loose tights. Within seconds she was standing face first in the corner, her big sister’s laughter echoing behind her.

"Oh, this is so sweet! Self-righteous ?Lori the Good’, rushing to do my every whim. I so wish I’d thought of this before." She then looked down at Rod, and shifted him to her hip. "And I have you to thank, don’t I Roddy woddy?" she mocked sweetly.

The toddler tried to spit the pacifier into her face but was unable. She walked with him over to the couch and sat down. Bouncing him uncomfortably she said, "My, my, naughty Lori made you sooooo big! Well, that should fix itself before long." She finally pulled the dummy from his mouth and asked, "So Roddy, like your gift?" She laughed.

"You unbelievable bitch!" growled the three-year-old. He immediately felt a tingle.

"Uh oh! Baby forgot not to say bad words. Too bad." she chuckled, as his sleeper and training pants became loose once again. He sighed and stopped talking.

Looking away from the laughing Oni Rod saw Chris standing in front of them. "Who’re you?" the boy asked innocently.

"My name is Lari." the Oni answered, patting the sofa. "Come child, sit. Would you like to help feed the baby? I think you do." She grinned. Rod felt mortified.

A baby’s bottle of formula materialized in her hand. She wasn’t even hiding the magic now. "Mary!" he screamed again.

"What’s he whining about now?" the call from the kitchen rang, as Chris hopped up next to Lari. "Nothing Mary. He just doesn’t want his bottle." the Oni answered.

"She’s going to make me take it from Chris!" Rod pleaded desperately.

"She can’t really hear you, you know. Only whines and cries." Lari told him. "Waaah, help me. Waaah, save me. A baby is all anyone will hear when this is over." Chris laughed at that.

Lari handed the bottle to the boy asking, "You know how to use this, don’t you dear?"

Chris nodded. "Yeah, I’ve watched Jenny. Bottles are for babies."

Lari nodded. "Yes they are." She replied, shifting Rod to her lap and on his back. "They help them grow big and strong." She added, helping to direct and steady the bottle as Chris held it forward.

"Right," Rod managed dryly, before the nipple reached his lips. "Be nice Chris," he intoned, glowering at the boy.

"Just feed him." Lari countered. "You are in charge of him now." Chris shoved the bottle into the toddler’s mouth, silencing him. Rod found himself automatically sucking in the sickingly sweet formula. The almost-three-year-old held his piece and put up with it.

As he drank Rod could hear Lari’s voice from above. "Do you like having a baby to play with? To do what you want with?" She asked eerily.

"Yeah!" Chris answered happily.

"Would you like a little brother to boss around? For real?" She continued.

Chris’ eyes lit up. "Yup. I would." Rod looked suspicious.

"Hmmmm, well, let’s see what ole Lari can do." She whispered, letting Rod hear. He saw her hand wave over his head. At first he didn’t notice anything, then something happened, a shift almost. Chris looked more, familiar it seemed. It was as if he knew the boy completely. Memories entered his head: Chris playing with him. Pulling his diaper down. Stealing his toys. He began to see an image of Chris’ mother. It almost felt like his own.

Chris was blinking as well, and shook his head. Lari said, "There, just a start, but it should grow. Say hello to your baby brother."

Panic rushed into Rod. He pushed the bottle from his mouth. "Don’t do this!" he pleaded. He never thought that childhood memories could feel so insidious.

Lari smiled. "Do what Roddy? Isn’t it what you wanted? A second childhood? It’s just with a twist of course. From the beginning, with what looks to be a very domineering sibling. Oh well, as some say, be careful what you wish for......" She laughed heartily.

Chris grabbed one of Rod’s big toes and wiggled the toddler’s foot. "Hey squirt." he said.

Rod smiled nervously. "Hey, pal."

Lari tilted an eyebrow at the comment. "Oh, you want him to play nice? Now that’s no fun. Lemme see if I can fix that. Chris, you want to be big right?" The boy nodded.

Rod tried to roll out of Lari’s lap but the Oni held him as firmly as she had in her arms.

"Well, how about every time you make someone cry, you get a year older? Would you be willing to do it?" Lari asked.

"Chris, no," Rod tried to warn him. "Don’t believe her! Look what happened to me!"

The older boy ignored him. "Okay!" he exclaimed excitedly.

Lari waved a hand at him and after a moment said, "Done."

Chris grinned at little Rod. "Yeah, you made a stupid wish and you got too little. But I’m gonna be big!" he said. With that he reached out and pinched Rod on the arm, hard. The excruciating pain shot through the toddler. Rod let out a scream, but he fought back the tears. Chris frowned, and pinched the other arm, harder.

Rod let out a scream again, directing all the pain into his voice. Mary had to hear him. He fought back the first sob. He didn’t have to cry. He didn’t!

Before Chris pinched him again, Lari placed the pacifier back in the toddler’s mouth. Rod then felt the shot of pain in his foot. One then the other, back to back. His resistance was wearing down, and his maturity had taken a hit when he’d shrunk the last time. Tears dripped down his cheeks.

Chris clapped as he felt his body tingle. "Yes!" he exclaimed. The boy grew before Rod’s eyes, his chubby face thinning a bit and his arms lengthening. His clothes still seemed to fit him properly, meaning they must have grown as well.

The boy looked somewhat disappointed and reached out to Roddy once more. "Gotta do it again." He said.

Rod tried to kick his attacker as hard as he could. He was surprised when it was Lari that stopped Chris. "Don’t bother. Little catch to the spell. The same thing won’t work more than once on any given person. You’ll have to come up with something else for Roddy next time."

Chris pouted, looking disappointed. Lari continued, "Of course, you could pinch the girls. Just wait so I can see it." Chris brightened and nodded.

Rod then saw Mary return from her mindless task in the kitchen. "Hey, what was the little one screaming for?" She asked.

Lari shifted Rod to her shoulder and said, "Oh, just an air bubble." With that she patted his back. Rod bawled behind the pacifier, to show Mary that a bubble wasn’t it at all.

Mary seemed to be in a daze but commented, "Um, don’t think that’s it. Maybe he needs a change." Mary took Rod from Lari’s arms, rocking him gently. She then said, "Y’know, it was the strangest thing. I just spent like five minutes in the kitchen and I don’t even remember why I went in. Weird. Um, why are the girls in the corner?"

"They were bad." Lari answered simply, sounding bored. "The baby should be fine. Just put him in his playpen." Lari suggested.

Mary’s eyes glazed over once more and she nodded. "Yeah. Good idea." With that she walked to the plastic prison and placed Rod inside.

Rod sucked harder on the pacifier as he tried to calm down. He knew he couldn’t be any help to his friends as a wailing infant. He was thankful his mind seemed to be staying with him, for now at least.

After depositing him in his baby cage, the enchanted Mary returned to the sofa and turned the TV on, effectively becoming enslaved to that. Rod glanced over to the girls to see how they were doing.

The two stood in separate corners and, obviously trying to behave, had their faces right on the wall. Lori’s tights were loose on her and her dress seemed too big. He was afraid for her. He then noticed Lari walking the larger Chris to the girls.

"All right children, you may each leave the corner now." the older Oni said. From her voice it was obvious Lari was enjoying herself.

Jenny walked over to the now younger Lori and asked how she was doing. The little Oni was getting the first good look at her large clothes and she was visually shaken. She looked up at her tormentor imploringly. "Sis? Please don’t do this."

The scrawny little Oni was looking pretty helpless. The cuffs of her wrinkled sleeves had slipped onto her hands, and the skirt sagged from her waist to dangle in exaggerated folds around her skinny thighs. Her tights were wrinkled as well, the tips already beginning to hang loosely off the toes of her feet. With the exception of little Roddy, the Oni child was the smallest in the room - a fact Chris was obviously enjoying.

Lari was as well and laughed in her sister’s face. "Oh, how precious. You’re begging! My how the righteous have fallen. Whatever happened to all that pride little one? All that nonsense of how wrong the rest of the family is and how you like humans better." Lori looked away but her sister forced her face forward once again by gripping her under the chin.

Tightening her fingers into her sister’s chubby cheeks Lari sneered. "No sweetie. I want Christopher to see this clearly. Y’see, I’ve made him a promise. I think he’s going to enjoy it." She then turned to the boy.

"Now once they beg Christopher, they are already yours. I think she will be much easier than Roddy was. Go ahead." Without waiting for the large Oni to let go Chris smiled and stepped forward. He was now half a head taller than Lori and stood a moment before her, reveling in the difference.

Jenny tried to step between them but was held back by Lari. Still she pleaded, "Chris? Please don’t be mean. Don’t trust her." The boy ignored her however and without warning, he shoved Lori hard on her flat chest. Lori let out a cry as she was hit and landed hard on her bottom. Within seconds her face screwed up and she began to cry again, showing a set of half-grown cutter teeth.

Rod had a good view of Chris’ growth this time as the boy shot upward, his limbs lengthening and filling out as he went from 7 to 8 years old. More baby-fat left his face as he passed Jenny in height and mass. Again his clothes grew with him. Jenny looked at her friend in shock, but instead of retreating, as Rod knew she probably wanted to do, she knelt down and tried to comfort little Lori.

"My my Chris, you’ve gotten so big!" Lari exclaimed. "Care to try for another year?" she asked, glancing at Jenny.

Jenny cowered before him. "Chris. D - don’t. I - I’m your friend." she said shakily.

"I know." he said simply. "Don’t worry, it’ll be over before you know it." Rod noticed the boy sounded more mature in his speech pattern as well as his slightly lower voice.

Reaching down the boy flicked Jenny on each of her ears, hard. The girl squealed and covered them. "Owww! Stop it!" She complained.

"Owww. Stop it!" Chris mocked her, raising his voice. He followed by poking her hard in the chest.

The girl crossed her arms over her chest. "Nooooooo. Quit it!" She tried to get up but stumbled back instead.

"Quit it!" Chris mocked again, going for her ears once more, pulling them this time.

Resolving not to cry out, Rod tried to take the pacifier from his mouth, hoping the magic would let him go. He grasped the ring on the pacifier with his chubby hands and pulled with all his might. The offending piece of rubber and plastic came out with a pop. By the time he looked back over to the kids however, Jenny was on her back crying. Once again Chris grew.

Lari shook her head. "Tsk, tsk. What a pair of crybabies. I thought you’d each last a bit longer. Oh well, looks like Christopher here is the winner."

The now older boy marveled at his nine year old body. He was only half a head shorter than Lari now and probably close to Mary as well. He was obviously older than the two defeated little girls at his feet, and he felt more powerful than he could have imagined.

Rod picked up a stuffed toy, aimed, and threw it at Mary, trying to snap her out of her oblivion. The bunny hit Mary squarely on the back of the head, causing her to scowl over the back of the sofa. When she saw who had tossed it she smiled however and walked over to the playpen. She seemed not to notice the other events in the room as she held the toy up in front of Rod. Shaking it she said sweetly, "Lose sumthin little fella?"

Glaring at her accusingly, Rod pointed over at the action. "Aren’t you going to stop him?"

Mary looked at the toddler in shock. "Wha...? Wow. Complete sentence. Um, stop who sweetie?" Rod could see an annoyed Lari approaching, Christopher tagging along behind her. Rod held his tongue and watched Lari warily as she came up to them.

"Just can’t stop trying can you?" she said to the toddler. To Mary she said, "Go ahead and watch your shows. We can take care of the kids." The babysitter’s eyes began to glaze over once more.

In reaction, Rod slapped Mary’s hand, hard, where it rested on the edge of the playpen. The teen pulled her hand back quickly, rubbing it. "Ow!" she exclaimed. When she looked back at Roddy he could see clear pupils in her eyes. "Roddy, no. No hit." She ordered. The toddler braced for the expected tingle but it didn’t come. Being a toddler had advantages he guessed, but he knew a repeat performance would get him shrunk.

Still, the risk had been worth it. The next person Mary glared at was Lari. The baby sitter stood, a half a head taller then the Oni. She looked over Lari’s head and spotted the two little girls with tears still in their eyes. To Lari she stated, "Listen little miss, I’m in charge here, and something is definitely up. Stop terrorizing the little ones! Got it? I’ll be watching." Rod smiled triumphantly, though he should have known better.

Lari simply grinned wickedly at Mary. "Of course you will. Chris, have you thought of another game for little Roddy?" She asked without turning.

Chris looked worriedly at Mary. "Uhhhh yeah but......"

"Oh Christopher." the Oni shook her head disappointedly and gazed at the boy. "Free life lesson, all good things involve risk. Now go ahead."

Rod held out his arms to Mary, wanting her to pick him up. "Please?" He asked, frightened.

"What in the world are you talking about?" Mary demanded, not even noticing Rod’s plea.

"Just watch." Lari told her. "Like you promised."

Rod took hold of Mary’s hand, unwilling to be left to Christopher. He looked terrified.

Chris reached into the playpen and grabbed a second bottle Rod had ignored. One filled with apple juice. He then proceeded to unscrew the top. Roddy suddenly felt a chill, and noticed his jumper had disappeared. He’d been left wearing only a pair of disposable training pants. Fear welled up inside of him as he realized Lari was helping Chris this time.

Chris reached over and Rod felt the back of his diaper pulled from his behind, just before the cold juice drenched the insides of the padded garment. Embarrassment and a feeling of disgust filled the toddler as the sticky liquid squished around his loins. There was also a great sadness at his own helplessness.

"Hey! Chris! What do you think you’re doing!?" Mary yelled.

The boy ignored her however and pushed the Rod to the floor of his padded cell, causing the juice to ooze out of the still loose leg gathers. Rod felt tears welling up in his eyes and a burning in his throat. Still he fought though. Crossing his arms, he put on his most stubborn face and glared at Lari. You won’t win, he thought.

She simply grinned back, seeming to counter his thought. Immediately after he felt an incredible urge to pee and almost instantly warm urine flooded into the already over saturated training pants, causing a puddle to form around him.

In truth, Rod’s newly recovered adult mentality was his undoing. He thought like a grown man, and to be in such a humiliating situation was far worse than if he’d thought of himself as little. He squirmed in the puddle, hating the feeling, and his inability to respond. The lump moved up his throat.

Meanwhile, Mary had collared Chris, and had already given him a swat on his backside. "Don’t ever hurt the baby like that!? Do you understand?"

Hearing himself referred to as a baby pushed Rod’s despair over the edge. The toddler hid his face and cried.

A squirming, whining Chris began to grow, causing Mary’s hand to rise as it gripped his shoulder. The babysitter gasped, not believing her eyes, and froze in place. The boy in her grip rose as his limbs once again stretched. Chris soon reached ten, ironically the age Rod had wanted to be. He was just less than a head shorter than Mary now.

The teen let go of the boy, trying to grasp what she had seen. Lari was openly laughing at Rod as she stood behind her.

Mary spun around. "What’s going on here? I want to know now!" she ordered, grabbing the Oni by the arm and pulling her slightly off her feet.

Lari’s laughter stopped instantly and she glared at the teen before her. Her voice deepened frighteningly as she practically growled, "Never, touch me."

Rod wiped tears from his eyes and checked on the two girls. Lori and Jenny had stopped crying and sat on the floor staring in fear at what was going on before them.

Noticing something in the corner of his eye Rod looked back at Mary and Lari. The Oni was growing. Aging. The mounds on her chest expanded as she shot up and her face gained some maturity. Over as quickly as it had begun a 14 year old appearing Lari stood before a now shorter and shocked Mary.

"Guess who’s in charge now Mary? So, did you have something to say?" the Oni asked.

Mary quickly regained her courage. "What are you? What’s going on here? Whatever it is I want it to stop now!" she exclaimed, tugging hard on Lari’s arm. Mary immediately shuddered and then shrank, the cuffs of her jeans lowering them selves to the floor as her T - shirt seemed to enlarge.

Rod’s heart sank along with her. Under other circumstances, he would have loved to see this happen. But not now, not when she was his most powerful ally.

"Tsk, tsk. You of all people should know not to grab the arms of your elders." Lari scolded her.

The 12 year old Mary let go of the Oni’s arm as if it were on fire and staggered back. The shock had returned and her voice seemed to have left her. "Wha.... How?" she stuttered. Mary’s budding figure had slimmed down dramatically, leaving her with small points on her chest and boyish hips.

"Magic." Lari said happily. "Now, clean the baby up."

The confused girl looked over at the mess Rod was sitting in and shook her head. "What? No way! Chris did it. He should clean it up. Besides, I’m the baby......" Mary paused, shuddering once more. Her clothes loosened even more this time as puberty retreated. The pointed bumps on her chest flattened and she lost all of her curves. Her once well fitting jeans drooped on her diminished hips, almost falling off, as her cuffs dragged on the floor. The poor girl glanced down the front of her shirt and squealed in fright. "Ohmigod! My boobs! What’s happening to me!?"

Lari laughed. "I believe you just predicted, Mary my dear. You are the baby. Or will be soon enough."

"Welcome to my world, Mary," Rod told the girl bitterly. “If you don’t do as she says, it will get worse."

The frantic former sitter dropped her shirt, allowing one of her shoulders to partially peek out the collar. She stared wide-eyed at Rod as blood drained from her face. Her voice was extremely whiney as she asked Rod, "Ohhhhhh, noooooo. That’s why you can talk so well. You aren’t a baby are you?"

"Trying not to be," he replied. He prompted her to follow Lari’s orders by holding his arms out to be picked up.

"He is a baby. And you will be too." Chris happily said. He walked over to Mary and stood before his former guardian. She was mere inches taller than the boy now.

The poor girl was too terrified to notice Rod’s attempts to help her and backed away instead. "This can’t be happening. This can’t be happening!" she said to herself. Not noticing her dragging jeans she tripped over them and fell onto her butt. She began to rock and chant the denial over and over to herself.

Lari glanced at Chris. "Care to do the honors?" she asked.

Chris nodded. Before he reached Mary, Lari ordered, "Mary! Get off your lazy butt right now and clean Roddy."

"Mary, please!" the toddler called.

The girl ignored her and continued her chanting. Her size diminished once more, her shirt growing. Rod could see a bra strap falling from her now bared shoulder. Chris reached the girl and grabbed the loose shirt, pulling it off in one motion. The ten year old squeaked, desperately covering her now flat chest.

"Noooo!" she wailed.

"What’s the problem?" Chris asked. "Not like ya got anything to hide anymore. Do ya? You’re just a little girl." He mocked.

The former teen glanced down at her childish body, noticing how the empty bra cups hung uselessly over flat pink nipples. A low moan escaped from her throat and she began to cry.

"No - ho - ho - ho." she cried, clutching her hanging bra to her chest. Rod could see Chris growing again. The maturity was becoming more obvious and his limbs thickened as well as stretched this time. After a moment, the eleven year old was visibly bigger than Mary.

The boy stood over his newest conquest, laughing. "Wassamatter crybaby?" he asked. "Y’know, I was afraid of you once. But you’re not the big bad babysitter anymore. You’re just a big fat baby. I’m gonna tell you what to do from now on. How do you like that? Now, give me that useless bra. You’re too little for it now." he ordered, tugging on the elastic strap.

Mary began to bawl even harder. “Nooooooo!” She wailed, squealing when Chris released his hold and snapped the strap on her bare skin.

Rod looked over at Jenny desperately. "Help her up!" Rod could see Mary’s jeans loosening even more. Her stocking feet were completely covered by the cuffs and much of the rest of the material was flattening against the ground. Her torso and arms thinned as well as she visibly shrunk lower.

Jenny and Lori looked at one another and, coming to an agreement stood to intervene.

"Sit down. Both of you!" Lari ordered. At the sound of Lari’s voice Jenny paused, but Lori kept on walking. Her clothes immediately grew as well, the stockings on her feet flopping as she walked. Her limbs swelled with baby fat as they shrank, and a slight curl came to her hair, leaving her a darling five-year-old. Her pointed ears had shrunk a bit too, but still looked adorably big on her head.

Watching the courage of her new friend, Jenny quickly joined her. The two little girls walked behind the now much larger Chris and Lori shoved him in the back. "Stop bein’ so mean!" Lori said. "She’s jush using you! Don’t you know that?"

Jenny scooted around the confrontation and tried to calm her former babysitter.

Lari answered her sister. "Perhaps. But he is getting exactly what he wants. You see sis, one of the mortals gets his desires at the expense of his friends. It’s delicious, isn’t it? Now that is how a real Oni grants wishes."

Lori glared back at her sister. "I don care what you think! It’s mean! An it’s wrong!" Lori lectured her big sister. Tired of the arguing Chris pushed the little Oni once more to the floor.

A slightly shaken Lori stood back up defiantly. "It don work the same way twice stupid!" She shot at him. "Din’t you even listen?"

An angry look came to Chris’ face and he pushed the little girl to the floor again. Lori remained on the wood this time, her thumb finding it’s way to her mouth for the comfort, but she did not cry. "Stu - pid." she repeated.

Meanwhile, Rod’s diaper was getting quite cold and sticky. Rod unfastened it and stood up. He was naked and cold, but at least the soaked contraption wasn’t squishing against his skin anymore.

Mary’s crying had also stopped and the nine-year old was being helped to her feet by Jenny. When she stood her jeans immediately dropped to the floor, her panties reaching her knees. She began to sniffle once more as she pulled them up.

"It’s okay Mary." the younger girl soothed.

Lari glanced over at Rod and began to giggle. "Oh my, little Roddy is flashing us. How naughty. HA! Oh well, seems like a few people are in need of new coverings." With that she gestured.

Mary’s jeans shrank and changed form as they moved up her now skinny legs. The new cuffs stopped above the girl’s knees as the rest of the material formed into blue shorts. Her now useless pink bra grew as well, reforming into a t - shirt with a bunny rabbit on the front. Her formerly white socks shrank also, becoming much thinner, and shorter pink ones with lace on top. Her raven black hair shortened into a manageable cut, just above the ears. In all, the new look was rather tomboyish, especially compared to the other girls.

Next was Lori. Her tights vanished, leaving the child barefoot as her dress morphed around her legs. Soon a light green pair of overalls formed on her, a red shirt underneath. The ribbons remained on her head as she worked on her thumb but her bright red hair lightened and curled, growing shorter until the pigtails stood out from her head, bobbing and swaying as she looked about.

Rod expected himself to be next, but instead nothing else happened. It seemed Lari liked his current predicament. The toddler stood at the bars, hands over his tiny privates, watching the evil Oni expectantly.

To be continued.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 11

Lari grinned at the naked little toddler Rod had been reduced to then addressed Mary once more. "Now, for the last time, I want the baby cleaned and changed. Understood?"

"Y - yes ma’am." Mary said fearfully and walked briskly over to the playpen, lifting the wet toddler into her arms without concern to her own clothing.

"I’m sorry, Mary," the toddler whispered. "But you’ll be okay. Just do whatever she tells you." He blushed as her warm hand cradled his bottom for lift and support.

Mary nodded to him, her eyes showing her fear. "Yeah. I hope." she commented, taking him into the bathroom. She seemed very unsure of herself. Her weak arms had a much tougher time with him, but she coped.

"Chris, would you mind watching the girls? I’m going to make sure Mary does a decent job." She said. “Oh, and make sure they ?behave’.”

"Sure." Chris said happily.

With Lari following behind, Mary placed the toddler in the tub and began to run the water.

"Make sure it’s not too hot first!" the Oni ordered, causing the already nervous Mary to jump and quickly try to lift Rod out of the tub. She found it impossible from her kneeling position however due to her loss of strength and Rod could see her beginning to panic.

He climbed out of the tub himself and tried to smile encouragingly to the girl. “Was she mentally younger?” He wondered.

When she thought the water was right Mary helped him back into the tub. She fumbled with the soap and washcloth, obviously nervous with Lari watching her every move. The warm water seemed almost scalding on his sensitive skin, but he said nothing.

"Mary," Rod murmured. "You’ve babysat before. Just do it like you have before."

"Yeah. Right." she answered, beginning to wash him, getting into the motions.

The harried girl did a good job, and picked the clean toddler out of the tub before wrapping him into a towel. "Thanks," he said with a smile.

He saw assorted baby clothes and items laid out on the counter. One of the items was a toddler’s pink dress. "Put him in the dress." Lari ordered the girl. She also handed Mary a pair of training pants to put him into.

Rod’s forehead began to crease with anger, but then he simply closed his eyes and shook his head. This was the longest day of this life and it wasn’t over yet.

Unwrapping the towel Mary got him into the training pants, sprinkling a little power into them beforehand. He then felt the dress pulled over his body and finally a bonnet tied to his head. He heard Lari huff and when he opened his eyes he could tell the Oni was annoyed with how smoothly things had gone.

He folded his arms across his chest and said, with a bored tone, "This is getting old."

Lari nodded. "True. Let’s make it more interesting, shall we? Mary. Rod was very bad for taking off his diapee. Spank him."

The girl spun around, shocked. "What? But he’s too little."

"Now!" Lari ordered.

"Somebody had to take it off!" the toddler retorted defensively, hands flying to his bottom.

Mary paused, understanding the implications. Finally she said to him, "I’m sorry. I - I just can’t get any younger." Rod was twirled over the girl’s lap and he immediately felt the training pants pulled down. Three sharp swats followed.

"Still bored Roddy?" Lari asked.

He bit his lip through it. "With you around? You must be kidding."

"Again!" Lari ordered. Three more blows followed. They were unbearable. Tears came to his eyes. He didn’t care about them.

"More!" Lari commanded, but Mary paused this time.

"No. I think that’s enough." the former sitter said, clearly making a stand. Rod tilted his head upward at her, just in time to see the girl shudder and diminish before his teary eyes.

Lari laughed. "Was it worth it?"

Rod felt himself lifted back onto his bare feet, the cold tile chilling them. A teary eyed, eight year old Mary pulled the training pants back onto his now sore behind. "No." she sniffled in response.

Lari reached around the crouched girl and lifted Rod into her arms. "My, isn’t little Roddy cute." she stated. "Come Mary." she ordered as she left the room. The former sitter followed sullenly, her clothing sagging a little again, her jean shorts a bit roomy. She had a hard time taking her eyes off the floor.

When the trio re-entered the living room he could see Lori and Jenny once again crying. Lori was definitely younger, her small overalls and shirt were extremely baggy while her tiny appendages, sticking out of the oversized clothing, had become pudgy with baby fat. Her face had increased in chubbiness as well and Rod guessed she was three now, barley older than him. She seemed to be ignoring everything but her thumb as she sat on the floor, her tiny tootsies sprawled in front of her.

In contrast, Chris now looked to be 14 years old. He was now as tall as Lari and his body was starting to fill out. "Hey!" he complained. "I got them to cry a bunch of times but I only got two years older.”

Lari shrugged. "Well, I said you’d get bigger. I didn’t say how big. Bullying can only do so much. Still, I saved you something I thought you’d like."

Chris looked at the pink clad Rod and chuckled. "Awwww, isn’t he cute. He looks like a little girl. What a weenie."

Rod’s cheeks were red, but they’d been that way since the spanking. He pointedly ignored the brute.

Lari jostled the toddler uncomfortably. "Yes. But that’s not it. I believe your ultimate wish was to be ’bigger than Mary’. Well, you are, and now’s she’s done something naughty. Give her a sound spanking, will you?"

Mary stopped dead in her tracks and let out a short scream. "No! I didn’t mean to! I - I was gonna do it! Honest!" she pleaded, much to Chris’ delight.

He reached over and grabbed the much smaller girl under the armpit, half dragging, half lifting her over to a chair. The little girl squealed out in pain. "Quit whining. Didn’t work for me yesterday. Now you know how it feels, huh?" The teenage boy crowed.

Chris sat down and pulled the girl’s shorts and panties off, baring her little tushie. Mary began to bawl like a baby as she was pulled over his knee. Rod turned his head away, but could still hear the smack of flesh on flesh and the cries of the former babysitter.

Little Roddy found himself sat down in front of Jenny and Lori as Lari left them to enjoy the show. The first thing he did was to pull the bonnet from his head.

"I’m sowwy. I’m sowwy. I’ll be good!" he heard Mary whine. She seemed to have lost all that was left of her former composure.

Looking once more at the former sitter’s torture Rod felt a small tap on the shoulder. He looked back at his young friends.

The tap had come from Lori and he could see the tiny Oni was now only slightly bigger than he was. Pulling her saliva coated thumb from her lips Lori composed herself and whispered, "I gots an idea, but we gotta be fast.”

His eyes brightened. "Yeah?" he whispered back.

Her voice was barely more than a squeak and he doubted his was much better. "I gonna give u a pwesent. My magic. I tink it work. Bah u gotta ........" she paused, seeming to lose her train of thought for a moment before concentrating. After a few seconds she continued. “U gotta move my curse to Wari. But she can no."

"But... won’t she read our minds?" Rod asked, deciphering what the other toddler was saying.

Lori shook her head swiftly, causing her perky pigtails to bounce adorably. "Nuh-uh. She no can cause she’s bad. Bad Oni’s no can read young minds cause they, um, in, inno .... cause they too pure."

"But I’m not a kid. She has read mine a lot." He complained.

The pigtails bounced once more. "No, she din’t. Twust me. Pwease." she pleaded, her eyes beginning to tear. Rod noticed the smacking had stopped and Lari seemed to be mocking Mary.

He wasn’t sure if he could trust the little Oni’s reasoning and in truth didn’t think the plan would work, but he also knew his options were nearly done. "Okay, what the hey..." He shrugged.

The little Oni smiled thankfully and stood. She reached out to touch his forehead with both of her hands. "Good. Ya hadda wan it." Her hands began to glow and Rod could feel his head vibrating.

"Jush ’magine wha u wan an it work. Weally. Ba yu gotta tink it will work." she said to him.

Rod wasn’t sure if he felt anything happening to him at all, but within seconds he could see Lori’s figure becoming smaller before him. The little girl had her eyes closed as her brow wrinkled in concentration.

"Imagine what I want," he thought feverishly to himself. He sure hoped this worked. If not, Lori’s sacrifice would be for naught.

The baby fat grew on her face and her limbs plumped as well. The glow stopped, but her descent did not. The thirty three month old smiled at Rod as she became his size, then smaller. Her overalls engulfed her and the straps dropped from her shoulders. She giggled, her adult mind gone, and popped out of the pile in only the red shirt, which came down to her ankles and barely held onto her shoulders. She plopped down on her bottom and stuck her thumb back in her mouth, sucking on it loudly. Her red hair thinned and curled upward, leaving a short, but thick mop of red hair.

He concentrated, and wished himself older. Nothing. He imagined himself back in blue jeans. Nothing. The truth was, even though he should have be able to believe anything by this point, his self-confidence was shot -- he just didn’t believe in himself anymore.

Lori’s shirt then morphed, shrinking on the baby and rising above her navel. An adorable picture of a cartoon reindeer formed on the shirt. Her overalls then glowed, shrinking and pouring onto her waist. They wrapped around and thickened into a cloth diaper with a light green diaper cover. Tendrils of the green energy shot up to her head and a green bonnet formed there as well. When it was done, a very cute, pointed eared baby sat before Rod, happily sucking her thumb.

She reached out to him with her free hand. He reached out and touched her reaching fingers. Rod held onto the chubby digits in his hand. For the first time in a while, someone’s were smaller than his. As he looked into Lori’s eyes he saw nothing resembling the intelligence of before. She seemed to be a baby in mind as well as appearance, and she appeared to be no older than 18 months.

Taking it all in Rod took a deep breath and whispered, "I’m sorry, Lori." He then glanced over his shoulder to look at what the older Oni was doing.

The first thing he noticed was little Mary. The girl was standing on the floor crying, one hand rubbing her sore behind while the other rubbed her teary eyes. She had shrunk again, probably from not following some impossible commands from her tormentors. She couldn’t have been older than four at that point.

She had on a yellow jumper with a picture of a lamb adorning the front. Her now skinny bare legs stuck out of the skirt-like bottom ending in a pair of yellow socks on her now tiny feet. Rod assumed the clothing morph must have happened while he was distracted.

Teenage Chris was still seated in the chair and was laughing at his former babysitter, poking her in the chest a few times. Lari stood to the side with very pleased smile on her face, seeming to approve of everything her new charge was doing.

Finally she gave the new toddler a swat on the rear and sent her towards the other children. "Now go play with your new little friends Mary dear. I’m sure they’ll have fun with you." She said.

Immediately after, a surprised but joyous look came to Lari’s face as the tearful Mary scampered over to where Rod and Lori were seated. She had spotted her sister.

The four-year old Mary skidded as she plopped down and huddled against Jenny in fear, crying her eyes out. Seven-year old Jenny was now the oldest of the children and much larger than her former sitter. Still, it was strange to see her comforting the dark haired child huddled in her lap.

"Lori?" Rod tried to communicate with the baby. Maybe she could coach him. "Can you help me?" Unfortunately the pointed eared baby merely stared at him blankly as she pumped the thumb in her mouth.

He quieted when Lari arrived. The adult Oni immediately bent over and lifted her infant sister under the arms and into the air. Lori actually giggled happily as she dangled far above her big sister’s head. Rod felt near tears again. Almost all seemed lost.

"Yes widdo Lori! You like being a little baby, don’t you? No more nasty coherent thoughts! No more arguing with dear ole sis!" Lari baby talked to her diminished sister.

Little Lori reached out to her big sis, rambling back in a constant stream of infantile sound. The babble seemed the only thing left of her adult self.

Cradling the baby in her arms Lari added, as her little sister’s thumb reentered her mouth, "Now what big nasty spell did you try to make you this tiny? Huh? Did you really think you could remove a curse designed only for our kind? Silly baby!"

She tickled Lori on her bared tummy, causing another round of giggles and squealing from the infant. Rob noticed the baby kicking her chubby little feet in joy. Ever trying for the brighter side, he thanked goodness that at least Lori wasn’t likely to get any younger.

Returning her attention to the other occupants of the room Lari’s expression changed to a sly grin. "Now, what to do with you rug rats." The comment caused little Mary to cower ever further into Jenny’s arms. Rod got to his feet and moved over to huddle with the two girls.

"Can I be the babysitter now?" teenage Chris asked from behind.

Lari rolled her eyes, "Um, no. Sorry Christopher, but the spell on you is temporary. Otherwise, where will little Roddy get a big brother?"

Chris looked shocked and began to protest, "But, you said....."

"I said you’d get big, I didn’t say you’d stay that way. Not a part of the master plan. If it’ll make you feel any better, I can leave Mary the way she is. You’d still be older than her." Lari suggested. Mary, whose tears had stopped, began to cry again.

Chris seemed undecided so Lari said, "Oh please. Fine. You can baby-sit them for the rest of the day. Besides, I like how you handle them. It’s very ..... entertaining." Chris brightened at that and looked evilly at the kids once more.

"Hey squirts." Chris said to them. "Let’s play a game."

Lari ignored him and once again began to play with her baby sister. She then walked over and placed little Lori in the playpen.

"What game?" Jenny demanded. She was still somewhat calm.

With that, Chris reached down and swatted the girl on the back of the head. "Tag! You’re it!"

"Owwwwww!" she complained, rubbing her head as tears came to her eyes. "No way! I’m not playing with you!"

Chris became angry. "Lari! Make them play." he whined, a strange sound coming from a teenage boy.

The Oni sighed and returned to where the group was. She then gestured with her hand. "Fine. Whoever is ’it’ will lose a year every minute he or she doesn’t tag another. That should do it."

Rod’s eyes widened. "Noooo!"

Jenny’s eyes went wide with fear and she immediately stood up to try and tag Chris, who easily dodged her. Rod, not wanting to get tagged at all scurried over to the playpen. It was a weird feeling for him to run in a dress but he kept his balance. When he reached the pen he quickly took off the offensive clothing, preferring to wear only the trainers.

Seeing a visitor baby Lori smiled and crawled over to meet him at the edge.

Rod despaired. This was so unfair! The magic should be as simple as thinking about it, but oh no, it HAD to be complicated! He closed his eyes. If only he could make Lori four again, like he saw her in his mind... The image was so clear. He concentrated on it, then thought, "Be real!" He opened his eyes.

The baby before him simply looked up at him, pumping on her thumb. Drool dripped from her lips and onto her chubby chin.

He almost swore his frustration out loud. After a moment he calmed and began to wonder if he had to deal with the curse first. He believed she’d mentioned something about sliding it, but he couldn’t even sense the magic. But then, he wondered if he’d even tried to look. His thoughts were interrupted by a cry behind him and he glanced over his shoulder fearfully.

He turned to see a very frightened Jenny staring down in shock at her suddenly baggy pink dress. The hem was covering her knees and her socks looked too large for her feet.

Little Mary walked over to her and shook her. "Yu gotta tag me. B’fore yu get too wittle." she pleaded.

He whispered urgently to them, "Tag each other every few seconds!"

Jenny shook her head. "But, then you’ll get even littler. I - I can’t."

Mary shook her head. "Nu-uh. I just tag u bak. Then we be okay." She smiled proudly at her cleverness. Rod was happy for it.

Jenny smiled back at the other girl and nodded, but when she reached out to tag Mary, she found her self lifted into the air by an unseen force.

Rod heard Lari speak. "Oh no. Bad little girls. Not in the spirit of the game. I’m afraid Jenny will need a timeout before we can continue. Then, a change in the rules. Now, the individual tagged cannot tag the one who just tagged them."

Jenny kicked furiously but could not break the levitation spell. She only managed to loosen her socks, which flopped wildly on her feet. "Noooooooooooo!" she whined. "No fair!"

Lari chuckled. "Now what does any of this have to do with fair child?"

Rod sighed, accepting there was nothing he could do to help his friends, at least not yet. Turning to the baby and closing his eyes again, he tried to picture what the curse might look like. Rod managed to see waves of energy surrounding the baby, red in color. They seemed to fluctuate, not bonded tightly to the form. Absently, he seemed to know what that meant. Lori had managed to loosen the curse in her try to get it off.

Imagining it like taffy, Rod reached out and pulled at the energy, wrapping it slowly around his fist. The magic obliged him, soon leaving the baby completely. He began to wonder what his own curse looked like but his train of thought was broken as he heard Jenny scream.

His friend was losing another year and was becoming five now. The loose socks grew on her feet and slid to the floor and the dress gained in size as well.

"Well little girl, learned our lesson did we?" Lari mocked her.

Tears rolling down her cheeks Jenny nodded, "Y-yes, ma’am."

"Good." Lari commented. With a gesture, Jenny dropped to the floor with a thump.

The evil Oni then looked over to where Rod was standing. She glared at him, seemed to look right into his soul. For a moment he was sure she knew everything he had just done. Lori had to have been wrong about the mind reading. He was sure of it. Quickly, in an effort to deceive her, he thought about how happy he was that his new friends were becoming closer to his age.

The evil Oni raised an eyebrow. Fearing the worse Rod was surprised when she simply said "Looks like somebody doesn’t want to play." She gestured towards him and he found himself lifted into the air to float quickly to the other children. Perhaps Lori had actually been right about something he thought.

Little Jenny still seemed undecided as she sat on the floor but Mary was still prodding her. "C’mon Jenny. Do it!" the four year old peeped.

As he watched the scene before him Rod began to ponder the situation. If his mind really couldn’t be read by his adversary, then there was a chance. A plan began to form in little Roddy’s mind.

"Quick, Jen-ny! Tag off!" he said.

Jenny reluctantly reached out and tagged the other girl. Mary smiled once again, having figured something out else clever. She immediately went for Rod. Just before she reached him Rod found himself lifted into the air once more.

"Wow Roddy, you are quick." Lari joked sarcastically.

"I didn’t do it!" he answered reflexively.

Looking at the worried Mary she added, "Well sweetie, there’s still me or Chris to tag. Go ahead, take a shot."

A determined look came to the little girl’s face and Mary scampered forward, trying to tag Lari. The large Oni easily skipped out of her way however. It was almost inhuman how elusive she was.

Time running out Lari laughed and dropped Rod to the ground. "Look honey, Roddy’s decided to land."

Rod immediately ran away from Mary then stopped, eyeing her.

A now desperate Mary whirled around, spotted Rod. She ran at him but stumbled, her socks slipping on the polished floor.

Rod smiled and ran in an arc around the little girl, his bare soles giving him perfect traction. He quickly brought himself closer to where Lari was laughing.

Getting to her feet Mary gave him a terrified look. Time was running out. The little girl ran at him for all she was worth and was about to tag her target. An instant before she could however she began to shrink. She halted immediately, squealing in fright.

"Berrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Time’s up!" Lari mocked.

The chubbiness on Mary’s face and limbs increased as the jumper became larger on her, the socks wrinkling as well. She looked ready to cry but instead lunged forward, trying to complete the tag anyway. Unfortunately, her now shorter legs and loose socks didn’t cooperate. She tripped, falling into Rod and knocking him over with her tag. Rod landed with his hand on Lari’s foot.

"Tag-You’re-It!" he exclaimed, and slid the curse onto the Oni as well.

The Oni laughed and clapped her hands. "Bravo Roddy. Wonderful move. But, you still don’t understand. I always win."

Rod stared up at his tormentor, terrified at her words. He was convinced she knew everything.

Lari continued, "That’s the advantage of magic." She then gestured at Jenny, and the girl began to rise again into the air. A second later however, Lari screamed in pain.

To be continued.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The Spirit of Christmas”

by Dark Oni

Chapter 12

Shock ran through almost every face in the room as the adult Oni shrieked in agony, all except Rod’s, who smugly smiled instead. In truth, he was thrilled. Still, he realized he needed to get bigger if he was going to finish things. He scrambled backward, away from her.

The large Oni dropped to her knees, her head in her hands.

Rod tried in vain to grow himself up. The magic simply wouldn’t respond. He then got an idea. Remembering certain milk commercials, he hurried to the playpen and the bottle of milk left there.

Lari began to shrink rapidly, just as her sister had before. The jeans and blouse both became baggy very quickly as her limbs and body thinned. For a moment her small butt was visible, before the blouse covered it up.

Rod tried to reach over the top of the mesh pen but found the bottle to be just out of his reach. Hopping up onto the rail he tumbled into the playpen next to a now crying baby Lori. He figured the screaming hadn’t agreed with her.

Plopping onto her now diminished bottom Lari propped herself up with her arms behind her as her short heels fell from her feet. There was a dazed and confused look to the child’s face as her clothes began to morph.

Popping the rubber nipple into his mouth, Rod sucked hard while thinking, like a child might, "Help me grow big and strong! Help me grow big and strong!" He closed his eyes to concentrate, tasting the creamy milk in his mouth.

He didn’t feel any different however and began to despair. Hearing Lori’s cries stop he looked again at the infant and noticed something startling. She looked smaller. Much smaller!

He looked down at himself and still saw the training pants, but they were huge, at least compared to where they had been. Looking at his feet he figured he was a big kid again. At least seven, maybe even eight. He was embarrassed at the clothing but figured Lari had spelled them to fit him as well.

He then glanced at Lari. Chris was now standing over her with a look of concern. The morph was done and the new seven year old was wearing a dark blue sailor play dress with white tights. Her legs and arms were as thin as her sister’s had been but her hair was a puffy ball of curls. She wiggled her little toes before shaking her head to regain her senses.

Rod stood up, taking Lori into his arms, and tried to feed the milk to her. The baby was fussy though, and gave him a difficult time, turning her head this way and that.

Lari looked around the room frantically. "Ouch!" she exclaimed, touching her head. "Hey! That’s my curse! Where’d you get that?! How’d you get that?" she shouted in a much higher voice. She looked angrily to Rod, her eyes widening when she saw him. "Chris! Stop him! Now! Get that bottle!"

Chris took a few seconds to realize what he was being told but quickly walked over to the playpen, smiling at the still smaller Rod. Rod started to back away, but the teen’s long arms easily snatched the bottle from his grasp.

"What’s with the bottle baby?" Chris said disdainfully, not really understanding what was going on.

"Chris, give me the bottle!" Lari demanded, getting to her feet and walking briskly towards them.

"Yeah, man, give it to her. Let her tell you what to do." Rod encouraged, expecting Chris to do the opposite.

"Why?" Chris asked the now smaller Oni in a thoughtful tone. He was quickly noticing he was the biggest in the room.

"Just gimmie!" Lari shouted, hopping up and down as she tried to take the bottle from him. The teen kept it above her reach however. He thought the sight was rather funny.

Rod thought quickly. "She wants it to grow big again, Chris. Like I’ve been doing."

Chris’ eyes lit up. "So that’s how you did it!" he exclaimed. "Cool. So if I drink it, I’ll get even bigger."

"Chris! Just give it to me! I ...... " Lari’s tirade halted as a strange look came to her face. She then shrank into her dress as her tights wrinkled on her legs.

"Need someone to tag?" Rod mocked.

"Ahhhhhhh!" the little Oni exclaimed, before reaching out and tagging Chris.

"Hey!" the teen complained. "Fine. Doesn’t matter anyway." he said, raising the bottle to his lips.

The image of Chris sucking on a baby bottle was perfect for Rod’s next spell. Concentrating on the bottle, he sing-songed, "Christopher, Big fat jerk! Sucked a bot-tle for a spurt. When he suck, He got stuck, Soon Baby will... Want his truck!"

"Noooooooo." Lari shouted, first at Chris, then at Rod’s spell.

When Chris placed the bottle in his mouth his cheeks immediately began pumping. At first this made him happy, as he thought of how big and adult he was going to be. He didn’t notice as his jeans and t - shirt began to become baggy on him.

When he did notice, his eyes widened in surprise and he tried to tug on the bottle, but it would not budge. Down he went, soon reaching eye level with Rod. The other boy shrugged, commented, "Well Chris, you were the one who said bottles were for babies after all."

Chris’ jeans plopped to the floor as his shirt became huge, covering him to his knees. Lari backed away in fear.

The diminishing boy began to cry and whine behind the bottle, but still he sucked on it. The years ticked off as the shirt he wore became a gown. Baby fat grew on his face as he passed below his previous age, then Jenny’s new age, then Mary’s new age. The toddler fell back on his bottom as he finished the bottle and the nipple popped from his mouth. Looking around he exclaimed, "Twuck!" Crawling out the collar of his shirt the naked toddler padded around on unsteady legs looking for his toy.

A few seconds later however he shrank again, losing his balance and falling on his naked behind. His legs and arms shrank back into his body as he became a year old and started to cry. After a moment, Rod could see urine spurting from his front.

Not waiting to see how the devious Oni might respond, Rod hopped out of the playpen to confront her. Ironically, dressed in nothing but an oversized diaper, Rod was now the oldest in the apartment.

Despite the comedic image he projected, Lari backed away from him in fear. "H - How did you do that?" she asked.

Rod grinned as he answered, "Magic." He paused his advance to kneel by Chris. Taking the baby’s tiny hand between his fingertips, Rod tagged himself. "I’m it," he declared, and approached Lari with an evil look.

A terrified look came to the diminished Oni’s eyes. She looked around, trying to find the other girls. Perhaps she wanted hostages, but before she could react, she found herself being lifted into the air.

She tried to run but her feet met only air and quickly flailed uselessly. Her body spun around, a foot off the ground and she found herself right in front of Rod.

The little girl tried to kick free from the invisible force but only managed to dangle her too large tights. Realizing struggle was useless the trickster attempted another tactic. Putting on an almost spellbindingly sweet face she pouted, "Rod? C’mon. You had fun, didn’t you? Ya gotta give me credit for that, right?"

He shrugged, smirking. "Sure.”

The adorable Oni smiled back sweetly, feeling some control return. “See, I know how to have fun. Admit it, you liked it when I gave you my titties. C’mon, let’s just be friends and let things be. I could give you anything you’d ever possibly want."

Rod grinned. “Know what I want? I’ve had so much fun the past few days, I want to return the favor, in full." Lari’s face took on a confused expression as she rose higher into the air. After a moment, Rod grabbed her loose tights by the toes and yanked them from her legs. "I see England, I see France, I see Lari’s underpants!" he mocked.

The boy then grabbed her right bare foot, tickling it. "You’re it!" he declared cheerfully.

The little girl screamed, kicking her bare legs in the air in a futile attempt to attack him. Her composure was gone. "Noooo! I’ll get you! I will! You - you fucking bastard!"

The sailor dress immediately grew on her as she youthened, her panties, white with little hearts all over them, became baggier and slid down to her knees thanks to her motion.

Rod tsked, waving a finger at her. "Naughty girl. Now, now sweetie, you are just making it worse for yourself." Lari flipped in the air, her vision filling with the floor. Rod lifted the short skirt off her bare behind, delivering a few choice swats to her rump. The five year old squealed as her bottom reddened. He could see tears rolling down her cheeks. She continued to kick at him uselessly as her frustration grew.

She then straightened and was flown over to the corner, where she found herself facing into it, panties hanging around her ankles, which were a foot off the floor.

"Somebody needs a time-out." Rod commented dismissively. He noticed an appreciative audience had formed near him as Jenny and Mary had come out of hiding. The two girls were smiling widely.

He invited them to the kitchen. "Let’s make you guys better, shall we?"

“Noooooooooo!" Lari screamed as she lost another year to the game. "Pwease. Pwease stop it! I - I don’t wanna be a baby!" the four year old whined and pleaded. Her panties fell to the floor as her dress began to cover her entire body.

Rod paused in the doorway, thinking. "Okay; time-out until I say resume!" he called. Lari lowered to the ground. To the girls, he whispered smugly, "Let’s see how long she can be good!"

Jenny giggled and nodded in agreement but the three-year old former babysitter by her side wasn’t happy. “No! That’s no fair!” Mary complained. “She’s still biggah than me. I wanna see her get smallah! I wanna!” she yelled, appearing on the verge of a tantrum.

Rod marveled at the girl’s loss of composure but was even more surprised at Jenny’s reaction. The now older girl reached over and wrapped an arm around Mary’s shoulders, patting her gently.

“It’s okay Mary. I don’t think she’ll last anyway. Besides, I’ll protect you.” Jenny said.

The dark haired toddler calmed down and sniffled as she asked, “You pwomise?”

As Jenny nodded Mary, the former teen terror of babysitting, hugged her ex-charge tightly.

Rod smiled happily at the scene. His concentration was broken as he heard Lari’s piping voice say, “Ugh. Tuwn the sweetie mushy stuff off. It’s so annowing.” She stopped in front of them, crossing her arms over her flat chest. Her dress was comically huge on her, reaching down to her ankles.

Mary stuck her tongue out at the girl. Rod’s response was better. Bending over in front of the Oni he pinched Lari hard on the cheek and said in his best high, patronizing voice, “Awwwww, is cute widdle Lari upset by all the mushy wushy stuff?”

The young Oni scowled at him, sticking out her lower lip in a pout, but held her temper. Very calmly she said, “Weal funny comment coming from a kid in a giant diapuh.”

Rod felt the heat rush to his face. He’d forgotten about that in all the excitement. It was amazing, even as a little kid that darn brat had been able to embarrass him.

Lari put her hands behind her back and smiled up at him adorably. “Y’know, you could fix dat with your new powers. Just wish you were wearing something that fits.”

Rod crossed his arms across his chest, smirking slightly. “Nice try, but I’m not falling for it. I’ve been a baby long enough.” He gave her a pat on the head.

Lari pouted. “Rats. Aw heck, it’s not wike you can change that diapuh into weal clothes anyway.”

Rod felt annoyed at her comment and felt he should show her what he could do. “I bet I can.” He closed his eyes, imagining the plastic garment morphing into a T-shirt and jean shorts that would fit him perfectly.

Lari kept talking. “No way. You’re just a BABY at this. You know so LITTLE about magic. It’ll be no SMALL surprise of you screw this up.”

As Rod felt his clothing move over his body he listened to the little Oni’s comments. She was such a baby, he thought, trying to bother him with small-minded remarks. He also had to block out comments and gasps from Mary and Jenny. He figured they’d be used to the magic by now.

“Rod? What are you doing?” Jenny asked worriedly, but he didn’t answer her, his attention was focused on the spell.

When he opened his eyes the first thing he looked at was his clothes. They were perfect. Exactly what he’d imagined. But something was wrong. He couldn’t see his feet, his belly had become much too round. With a start Rod realized he was looking not at the flat stomach of a ten year old anymore.

His head shot up in fear, and looked directly into Lari’s chest. When he glanced upward he saw a very smug looking redhead. “Tole ya.” She mocked, then pushed him onto his rump.

Pain shot through him as he hit the hardwood floor. His eyes immediately began to tear up. Lari laughed as he began to bawl. He’d screwed up, big time. Underestimating the Oni had not been wise, and now they would all pay for it. He felt like a total failure.

“So close Roddy.” Lari mocked, dropping her fake lisp. “Beat by a little trick of the subconscious. Guess you’re not the oldest now. I don’t have to listen to you. So, it may take some time and help but I’ll get out of this just fine.”

The little girl bent over and tickled the bottom of Rod’s puffy baby foot. From what he could tell, he was younger than ever, a year old at the most as his mouth was almost devoid of teeth. Unable to get up, his emotions were overwhelming him already. He couldn’t concentrate enough to speak, never mind cast another spell.

“Awwww, don’t cwry Roddy woddy.” She squeaked. “I told ya I always win. Nobody beats meeeeeeeeeeeekkkk!” The last comment ended in a shriek of pain.

Rubbing his eyes clear Rod could see Jenny, a very angry Jenny, pulling Lari across the floor by one of her pointed ears. The Oni struggled, but couldn’t pull free due to the pressure on her delicate digit.

“That’s it!” Jenny exclaimed. “You are just a plain old meanie. Rod should have let you get younger. Now that I’m the oldest you will.”

“Let go!” Lari whined and complained, flailing her arms at the larger girl. “I said let go!”

Jenny dragged her over to the couch. “No. You’re a bad girl. And bad girls get a spanking.”

Lari gasped as she shuddered and shrank to age three, losing a great deal of mass. “Nooooooooo!” she squealed all the louder, her dress sliding down to her ankles. Rod’s crying slowed then stopped. He was beginning to enjoy the scene before him.

The five year-old hopped up onto the couch, tugging the now crying toddler to her. “In fact, you are the baddest girl I have ever met!” Jenny exclaimed.

Lari shrank again, her protests becoming ever squeakier and more pathetic. "Stop it! ’Top it now!" she ordered uselessly as she deflated.

Her sailor dress dropped from her little frame, the collar falling over her shoulders as Jenny took her by the arm and literally lifted her out of the garment and over her knees. The naked toddler lost all coherency, screaming unintelligibly in what Rod thought might be another language.

The plump two-year old kicked and fought on Jenny’s lap, even trying to bite the girl in her desperate attempt to get free. Jenny held her in place but it was a tough fight. Rod, his emotions simplified by the spell, wished the girl was bigger so she could handle the brat better.

So, as the toddler struggled Jenny found it easier and easier to handle the little wildcat. She almost seemed to be shrinking in her lap.

Rod smiled and clapped his little hands as he watched his friend age until she was eight. He liked the idea of Jenny being older. She was really smart. In fact, Rod wished his friend was the babysitter, not Mary.

Wedging the frantic child on her lap with one hand Jenny felt a strange feeling come over her. Blinking she felt as if everything was getting smaller. Her feet planted themselves firmly on the ground and the toddler on her lap became a mere annoyance. What was more, she felt as if she was awakening from a dream. Knowledge and wisdom filled her head. As if it had been there all along. She still knew she was supposed to be seven, but thirteen felt like the right age for her now.

Rod clapped faster as he watched Jenny grow. Her green dress grew with her as her legs lengthened and her feet touched the floor. When it was done, the skinny teen was a giant compared to the others.

The new baby sitter smirked down at the still struggling Lari. “Like I said, bad girl’s get spanked.” With that she planted the loudest smack on Lari’s bare rump that Rod had ever heard. The scream that followed was a close second.

A half dozen strikes later and Lari’s chubby bottom was a bright red, matching her eyes. She didn’t protest anymore, just cried. It was almost as if being overpowered, beaten and humiliated by a child had finally broken the once proud spirit.

It was possible Jenny planned more blows but she stopped in mid swing as she made a face. Lifting the toddler under the arms she stood the bare child on her knees. Lari squirmed, not even able to cover her modesty, which Rod noticed was quite wet.

“You peed on me!” Jenny said angrily. “Bad girl.”

Lari’s screams ascended in pitch till they turned into a babies’ cry, her body fattening even more as she regressed to a year in age. If not for the massive curliness still in her hair, she would be a perfect match for her sister.

Jenny’s actions were swift and decisive. Within seconds the tearful Oni was laid down in the playpen and diapered, her little feet easily fitting in Jenny’s large hand. The discarded sailor dress was placed over her head. On contact it shrank to fit, becoming puffier and more adorable, befitting the owner’s new age.

When done Jenny stood and looked down sternly at the baby. “No more whining or Jenny will spank again. Got it?”

Tears rolled down Lari’s face as she planted her thumb into her mouth to silence her cries. Laying down on her side, the evil Oni, who had tortured them all, curled into a fetal position and cried into the colorful plastic mat of the playpen.

Her sister Lori crawled over, an open mouthed toothless smile on her precious little face. Plopping down in front of her big sister, Lori began to playfully bop the other Oni on the head with Rod’s stuffed tiger.

Nodding in satisfaction Jenny smacked her hands together as if wiping some annoying dust from them. “There. I’d had just about enough out of her.” She said, then returned to the still happy Rod. Mary rushed over and gave the teen a hug on her leg.

“Ohhhh sweetie, don’t bowl me over.” Jenny said playfully, picking her former sitter up and into her arms. The little girl gave her a kiss on the cheek and hugged the teen around the neck.

Rod held his little arms out as well, and soon found himself flying up into the air, joining little Mary on the opposite side of Jenny’s embrace.

“You two are just the cutest.” Jenny said, kissing each of the children on the forehead. “Now Rod, can you get yourself back to normal?” she asked.

Roddy put a finger into his mouth and thought about it. “Dunno.” He squeaked.

“Well, stay calm and imagine yourself as a big boy.” Jenny suggested.

Roddy smiled at the thought. Closing his eyes he concentrated, imagining himself as big as he could. He felt Jenny’s arm shift around his body, the tension increasing as his weight did. When he opened his eyes he could see the teen leaning in his direction, straining to hold onto him.

She laughed, a very pleasant sound to him. “My Roddy, you’ve grown. Good boy. I think you’re too big to be held now.” She told him, letting the boy slide down to the floor.

Rod found himself a bit disappointed at that. He liked being held by Jenny, it was warm and comforting. He almost used the magic on himself again but it was Jenny who stopped him.

“Why don’t you grow Lori back up?” she suggested. “The nice one.”

Roddy liked the idea. “Kay.” He said, his voice as low as it had been in days. He scurried over to the pen and leaned over the top, grinning down at the two baby Oni. Lori was easy to recognize given her outfit, and the fact she was the one smiling back at him.

Leaning over Rod picked the baby up and placed her on the wooden floor. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Jenny picking up baby Chris. The newly appointed sitter left the room with him and Mary, probably to the nursery Rod assumed. He smirked to himself, liking the image of Chris spending some time in diapers.

His attention was brought back to Lori as the infant cooed, planting her thumb once again between her lips. Again he concentrated, this time watching out of curiosity, trying to make sure the baby’s clothes continued to fit her.

The Oni grew. Her legs shot out as her torso rose, every part of her body shedding baby fat as she thinned. Soon she was as big as Rod, looking about nine, but he pushed her farther up the ladder.

Her limbs continued to stretch, her body filling out. Buds formed beneath her babyish reindeer shirt, soon rising into small breasts. The adorable round tummy that had been sticking out under the shirt, showing off her belly button, flattened, becoming more like a teen’s.

Passing twelve her breasts erupted, pushing the now tight shirt outward. Rod giggled, as it now looked as if Rudolph’s eyes were popping out of his skull. He lost a bit of concentration and the expansion of the Oni’s clothes lagged behind her body for a moment, the shirt and large cloth diaper stretching attractively to fit the now well endowed teen.

Lori’s legs lengthened even more, filling out with muscle and definition. Her feet and toes remained pointed forward, just as they had been when she was a baby. In fact, even though Lori was now around twenty, she was still sucking her thumb and gave Rod a blank stare.

Roddy laughed fully now at the image before him. Lori was an adult again, but otherwise nothing had changed. Well, something had. Though he no longer had the feelings of adulthood, he knew that the gorgeous elf he’d had a crush on was more comely than ever, an adult baby in an undersized green shirt and diaper with great big green bonnet on her head. But to the child he now was, she just looked silly.

He approached her, and began to tickle her bared stomach. “Wake up Lori. Play time’s over.”

Lori giggled at that, the enchanting sound of her laugher once again meeting his ears. He shook his head annoyed at himself for not recognizing it’s absence when her sister had taken her place.

The Oni kicked her feet and twisted away from Rod’s fingers, but he continued his assault. Eventually she pulled her thumb from her mouth and said, “’Top it. Ha-ha. Woddy, pwease ?top.”

Rod brightened greatly. “Lori? You’re alright!” he exclaimed happily.

She nodded, smiling at him. “Yeth. Ahem, I mean yes. So, did everything work out?” she asked innocently.

The boy beamed and hugged her tightly. “Yes, it did.”

“Good!” she said brightly. When he released her, she finally got a chance to see what she was wearing. The color of her face quickly gave the green of her outfit the perfect Christmassy effect.

“Oh boy. I got young, didn’t I? Serves me right I guess. I should have known Lari ..... uh, where’s Lari?” she asked.

Rod simply pointed and seconds later Lori was having her best family reunion ever.

“Oooooooo, Lari’s so pwecious. Yes she is!” Lori exclaimed, cradling her now whining sister in her arms. The sailor dress wearing infant struggled to free herself from Lori’s arms, kicking and squirming, but she had no hope. Her flabby little arms and legs flapped with all her infantile strength but they couldn’t release her from the now gigantic arms of her baby sister. She quickly started crying, just like any other frustrated, pointed eared baby. Rod wondered what was going through the once powerful Oni’s mind. He was sure he’d enjoy it.

He also found it funny that both the adult and infant were wearing baby clothes. Still, something nagged at him.

Rod tugged at the larger Oni’s diaper. “Uhhhhh, as much as she deserves it, could that wait? There’s a lot to fix.” He said.

Lori smiled and nodded, automatically rocking her now baby sister beneath her large bosom. “Yes. There is.” With that she reached down and touched Roddy on the shoulder. He felt something leave his body.

A moment later Lori’s diapers and shirt glowed, then morphed into a pair of shorts and a blank top with a bra underneath. “Thank you for keeping my powers safe. I hope you enjoyed the gift.” She told him. “Now, let’s give you the best Christmas you’ve ever had.” Her smile turned to confusion as Rod broke into laughter.

“What?” she asked, not understanding what she’d said that had been so funny.

Rod stifled his laugh. “Nothing.” he answered. “Y’know, with the gifts you’ve given me, I really wish I could give you something back."

Lori smiled warmly at him, then ruffled his hair. "That is very sweet. The thanks is enough, really." Smirking, an evil glint came to her eyes as she shifted her sniffling baby sister higher. "Not to mention making this bundle of joy, which I couldn’t have done without you."

"Uhhhh, what are you going to do with her anyway?" Rod asked, curious.

The elder Oni jiggled the baby, distracting Lari from her crying. "I plan on giving her a second chance. I think my dear sister would benefit greatly from being raised properly this time. She truly is a product of her environment. With a little love and understanding and discipline, I think she’ll grow up just fine. Just you watch, twenty years from now she’ll be the sweetest little girl you’ve ever seen." The baby began to whine again.

Rod blinked, a blank expression on his face. "Twenty ....... YEARS?"

Lori laughed, her voice chiming beautifully, as if made by bells. "Of course. We Oni don’t age at the same pace you humans do. Two decades from now she should look just as Jenny truly does. The spells you saw earlier automatically adjusted for that fact, going by appearance, and not actual years.

"But, she’s really older, isn’t she? I mean, another Oni could just age her with magic, right?" Rod asked, worried.

"Yes, they could physically age her. However, this spell......" she said, tickling the baby’s tummy as she reverted her voice to baby talk. "......crafted by my dear widdo sister with artistic mawiciousness to detail, will youthen her mind until she’s just a real baby waby. Yes it will! And her magic will become that of a wittle itty bitty baby Oni!" she finished excitedly. Rod noticed the baby kicking her legs in joy and giggling despite herself. He couldn’t help chuckling at Lari’s fate, caught by her own trap for her sister.

Pulling a pacifier out of thin air, Lori stuck in into her sister’s mouth. The baby suckled rapidly on it as Lori looked at Rod once more. "In about a week, it will be complete. A very effective spell she crafted, I must admit."

Rod grinned widely at her. "Well, I think you’ll be a great ’mommy’. Anyway, the others are in the nursery. Let’s show little Lari a sample of her new life.” He grabbed Lori’s hand and led her down the hall, happy that everything had worked out just fine.

Another two hours passed before Lori would notice the bonnet still on her head.

The End.

 

---