“Wakey, wakey.”

You dimly register the words before snuggling more deeply into your bedcovers. You can feel some hair tickling your nose, so without any thought brush it behind your ear and try to go back to sleep. But, even after rushing it away, it’s still tickling your nose. You can hear a light laugh as you groggily open your eyes to find your vision obscured by Bow Kid’s hair, and the source of whose hair was ticking your nose.

“Sorry, but you’re going to have to get up.”

You register the voice as mum’s.

“Mum — mummy ,” you say tiredly, shuffling up your pillow to look over Bow Kid.

As Bow Kid Stirs, you spot mum sitting at the edge of your bed in her PJs.

“Sorry, sweetie, but we’ve got to get up early today,” she says apologetically. “We’ve got to get to the shops to get some supplies before your friend gets here.”

Bow Kid pushes herself up, rubbing the tiredness out of her eyes.

“Oooh,” says Bow Kid in comprehension. “We’ve seeing Moustache Girl today!”

Mum laughs at the name.

“Come on, lets get you two some brekkie.”

Following mum to the kitchen, you both waddle behind her in your wet nappies. Mum gets some cereal from the cupboard and milk from the fridge, before setting out some bowls, letting you and Bow Kid pick your favourites.

“What do you think we could do today?” Bow Kid asks over breakfast as mum has a quick shower.

“There’s lots of stuff,” you reply. You don’t know exactly what you will do, but there are lots of things to do. “We could keep playing the spaceship game with the chef gangsters. We could also go an adventure. We could make costumes for an adventure too. There’s loads of stuff.”

Bow Kid seems to light up with each suggestion. She seems excited but also clearly thinking of other things you can do.

Soon, mum is back and changed into her clothes for the day. She’s still drying her hair with a towel when she smiles at the two of you.

“Lets get you two changed and dressed,” she says.

Going to your room, your mum gets Bow Kid in a clean nappy before moving onto you. She helps you get your PJ bottoms off and then makes quick work of your wet nappy.

“Have you got enough clean clothes, sweetie?” mum asks of Bow Kid.

“Umm —” she replies, before looking in her bag and pulling out a dress. “I’ve only got this,” she says, holding it up.

“Alright — when we get back, I’ll wash all your clothes.”

Mum then goes to your wardrobe and pulls some things out. After selecting a white t-shirt and a dark-purple romper, she helps you get into it.

“Got enough socks?” she asks Bow Kid again.

Bow Kid looks thoughtful before looking through her bag again. She eventually turns it upside down and shakes her head, looking slightly worried.

“It’s okay, there are plenty of clean socks around here,” your mum reassures her, patting the spot on the bed next to you.

As Bow Kid sits, mum goes to your drawers and grabs two pairs of socks. She helps Bow Kid get her shoes on, then helps you as well.

T_T_T

“So, I was thinking that you two might like to pick a nappy design.”

You’re waiting at the traffic lights, not far from the shops when mum asks you.

The question makes you give mum a surprised look before glancing at Bow Kid. She squirms slightly in a happy but slightly embarrassed way.

“What kind of designs?” you ask.

“All sorts,” Bow Kid explains. “But it’s been ages since I looked.”

Mum smiles at you from the rear-view mirror.

“I’m sure that you two will want to pick something cute out, right?”

It sounded nice, but at the same time, it was slightly embarrassing to think someone might see you with a big box of nappies. It seems to show on your face.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. No one is going to care about the nappies.”

The words reassure you slightly, and you are further assured when you find Bow Kid smiling at you. You suddenly remember that Bow Kid’s mummy had bought her nappies loads of times.

“Okay, mummy,” you quietly agree, to Bow Kid’s wider smile.

Parking and then grabbing a trolley, you and Bow Kid ride on the front again as mum pushes you into the store. As she goes past, she grabs some things like bread and milk, before detouring past the snacks aisle. There she grabs some sweet things and some chips.

“For later,” she tells you.

Soon, she wheels you past the toothbrushes and shampoo, and into the nappy section. Getting off the trolley, you nervously look around, before Bow Kid surprises you and takes your hand.

You mum immediately grabs baby powder before looking over the other items. You’re not sure what the other packet of things she grabs is before she puts both in the trolley. After several seconds of scanning the shelves, mum crouches down to your level.

“I know you guys said you didn’t want pullups, but how about I get a small packet just for today? Then you won’t have to worry so much about getting changed while your friend is here.”

You glance at Bow Kid who is chewing her lip.

“They leak,” she says.

You mum gives her a kind smile.

“When you sleep on them?” mum asks her. “I think they’ll be okay if you’re standing up. This way you can slip into the bedroom and put on a dry nappy when you need to.”

It does sound like a good idea to you. This way you won’t need to go find mum to change you and then have to explain it to Moustache Girl.

“I’ll still get you tape-ups, so if it doesn’t work out, I’ll get you changed into them. Okay?”

“Okay,” Bow Kid agrees and you nod too.

Standing up, mum grabs a small packet of pull up nappies and puts them in the trolley.

“So, what nappies do you want?” Mum grabs some packs from the shelves and lets you get a look. “We’ve got Minnie Mouse, Disney Princess, and Sesame Street.”

Mum sets the packets down in front of you to take a look before turning back to the shelves.

“Ooh, I want this one,” says Bow Kid, holding up the princesses.

You smile alongside Bow Kid as she looks at the artwork.

“Now that’s cute,” says you mum, reaching for another packet.

She crouches down in front of you again and holds it up. The designs are of animals.

“These ones have got animal faces on your bum,” she explains humorously.

You giggle at that, quickly followed by Bow Kid. Bow Kid reaches out for the packet and mum hands it to her. Looking over Bow Kid’s shoulder, you can see what mum means.

“Can we get these?” Bow Kid asks.

You nod as well. They seem really cool.

“Sure can.”

Mum then picks up the other packets and sets them back on the shelve, as Bow Kid puts the packet in the trolley. Mum laughs lightly.

“I think we’ll need a bigger packet.”

You and Bow Kid look up at mum curiously.

“Twenty four is a lot, isn’t it?” you ask.

Mum smiles knowingly.

“You two easily need four nappies each per day,” she explains, holing up a hand. “That’s eight total per day. Eight plus eight is sixteen, and sixteen plus eight is twenty-four.” As she counts each lot of eight, she raises a finger for each day. She pauses a moment as you think about the maths. “So, that’s only three days.” She wiggles three fingers for emphasis.

Mum then pulls the packet out of the trolley and places it on the shelve, before grabbing a bigger box and putting it in the trolley.

“This box has got one-hundred and eight nappies in it.” That sounds like a really big number to you. “That’s enough nappies to keep you two dry for two weeks.”

T_T_T

At the checkout, you discover mum was right. The nice lady there gave you and Bow Kid a kind smile as she scans everything, and then mum wheels everything out to the car. Mum soon buckles you into your car seat, the straps squishing against your wet nappy and soon you are back off home.

Getting inside, mum sets the nappies down on the couch, then you and Bow Kid help her clean up the kitchens from breakfast.

“How long until Moustache Girl is here?” Bow Kid asks.

Mum hums, pulling out her phone.

“About twenty minutes,” mum tells you. “How about the two of you watch TV until she gets here?”

You both agree and head to the lounge. Not long afterwards, mum comes by with the nappies. Spotting your worry, she says, “I’ll put these in my room for the day, okay?” on the way past.

Not long afterwards, mum comes back with several nappies in hand.

“Lets get you two changed before you friend gets here.”

Following mum to your room, you realise she has the pullup nappies with her.

“Now, I’ll put two in your undies drawer, so you two can discreetly grab a change later.”

Nodding, you otherwise don’t know what you are supposed to do next.

“First, you’ve got to get your tape up nappies off, then you just have to step into the pullup. They’re just like putting on unties,” mum explains.

Glancing at Bow Kid, you realise that will be easy for her in a dress, but you have to get your rompers off all the way. It’s strangely frustrating to think how hard it is. Sensing your feelings, Bow Kid takes your hand as you sit on your bed and shimmy your romper off. Thankfully, it’s loose enough to slip over your shoes without taking them off.

Next, mum untapes your nappy before pulling you up.

“Grab onto my shoulders and step into it,” mum tells you.

It’s not hard to do, and soon mum pulls your nappy up between your legs. Fidgeting slightly, it’s not as secure around the waist, but it doesn’t feel like it will slip down, either. As you inspect your nappy, your mum turns your rompers right-side-out again and repeated the process.

Next, mum changes Bow Kid. After getting her wet nappy off, she far more easily steps into the dry pullup. It makes you wonder if you should change into a dress, but at the same time your romper feels more secure knowing your nappy won’t slip down your legs.

“Are you worried about it slipping off?” you ask Bow Kid when mum leaves you alone.

Bow Kid shrugs unsurely.

“I dunno,” she replies with an uncertain shrug. “It’s been ages since I wore one.”

You head back to the lounge to watch TV, waiting for Moustache Girl to get here. Eventually, you can hear mum’s phone ring. It feels like it has been way more than twenty minutes by this point.

“Their car won’t start,” says mum, coming into the lounge. For a moment, you worry Moustache Girl won’t visit today. “So, we’re going to pick your friend up,” mum continues to your relief.

You and Bow Kid follow your mum to the car and hop in. She quickly buckles the two of you up and your drive the short distance to Moustache Girl’s house. As mum brings the car to a stop, you can see a car with it’s bonnet up and a pair of legs sticking out from under the car. Nearby, Moustache Girl is sitting at the doorstep.

As soon as the car stops, you undo your buckles and open the door. Moustache Girl seems to brighten when she realises you are here. Glancing back, Bow Kid gets out of the car more slowly and your mum gives Moustache Girl a wave before heating over to the broken-down car.

“Take a look at this!” Moustache Girl says loudly, jumping to her feet.

Before you can close the distance and give your friend a hug, she picks up… a sword and shield. You do a double take, before realising they seem to be made from tape and cardboard.

“Oh — wow!” you exclaim.

Bow Kid is wide-eyed, staring at Moustache Girl as she slips her arm through the loops on her shield, before posing like a knight, sword drawn. Well, sort off. The polka-dot white-on-red dress she is wearing makes it slightly funny.

You feel giddy. It’s so cool.

“Where did you get that?” Bow Kid asks.

“ I made it,” Moustache states proudly.

“Wow,” Bow Kid says in awe.

Looking back, you can see Moustache Girl’s dad had gotten out from under his car and was chatting to mum.

“How’d you make it?” you ask.

“Ah — well, I took lots of cardboard and cut it all up, then I layered it in different directions.” She tucked her sword under her shoulder and held her hands out on top of each other, her fingers on each hand at right angles. “The I used lots of tape.” Moustache Girl paused in thought. “Oh — and for the sword dad got me a bit of wood to go in the middle so it didn’t bend, then I put cardboard on the outside and taped that too.”

For emphasis she tried bending her sword a bit before shrugging awkwardly.

“I used a lot of tape.”

You giggle at that. It did seem to have loads of tape on it.

It got you thinking too.

“Could you make — like — a helmet and stuff?”

Moustache Girl blinked, before looking at you, wide eyed.

“ Yeah! That’s a really good idea.”

Mum seemed to be finished talking to Moustache Girl’s dad when she called out to you.

“Kids? Are you ready to go?” she asked.

“Coming!” you reply.

As you head over to mum she turns back to Moustache Girl’s dad.

“Car seat,” she remembers.

Moustache Girl’s dad seemed like he wanted to move the seat from his car to your mums, so as he did, you took the opportunity to show Moustache Girl’s sword and shield to her.

“Wow, that’s really good,” she said to Moustache Girl turning the word over.

“ Mummy , do you know where we can get lots of cardboard?” you ask her.

Mum chuckles.

“Let me guess, you want to make one too?”

You smile expectantly, bouncing on your toes.

“Yep!” Bow Kid says off to your side.

“ Well ,” mum says, clearly thinking. “The fruit store has lots of boxes that people can take. It’s certainly better than throwing them in the bin.” Mum glances at Moustache Girl’s shield. “Don’t you need tape as well?”

“Ah huh,” Moustache Girl confirms.

“Packing tape seems to work well for wrapping everything,” Moustache Girl’s dad says, walking up to them. “I’ve got a roll of gaffer tape that seems to have worked for the arm loops.” He considers it a moment. “Let me go get that.”

When he comes back a minute later, his daughter gives him a hug and after a round of goodbyes, everyone gets in mum’s car.

“If we go to the discount store, we can get you girls lots of rolls of packing tape,” explains mum as she drives.

You like the discount store; there’s lots of arts and crafts stuff there, and it’s really cheap. They didn’t have everything , but it was still cool. You sometimes found really weird stuff there too. But the trip to the discount store is really short. You’d liked to have looked around, but you also really wanted to get home and make sword and shield, and a helmet, or maybe even armour .

It’s only another really short drive to the fruit store.

“Seems we’re in luck,” says mum as she brings the car to a stop by the side of the fruit store.

From your seat, you can see the big metal tubs filled with cardboard boxes. They were more like trays for holding fruit than boxes for send stuff in the mail in. There are probably hundreds of boxes there. Apparently, the tubs with the boxes in them are called bins , but it seems odd to you, as they didn’t have rubbish in them.

“How much do we need, sweetie?” mum asks of Moustache Girl as the four of you get out of the car. Being in the middle, Moustache Girl has to climb over your car seat to get out.

“Oh — um —” Moustache Girl stops and thinks. “I used five or six bits for my shield?”

Mum laughs.

“So, lots then.”

The description seemed to satisfy Moustache Girl who gave a big nod.

Mum opened the boot as you started piling boxes in. They weren’t heavy, but they were a bit bulky. Eventually they were stacked up so high in the back that you needed mum’s help to put more in.

Waiting for mum to finish, you barely think about it before going in your nappy. It’s not until you’re almost done when you remember that the nappy might leak, but clenching your thighs together slightly, you don’t feel anything like that. It doesn’t even feel all that different from your tape up nappy.

T_T_T

Moustache Girl lets you look at the shield again as the three of you sit in the loungeroom surrounded by boxes. There were still more in the car, but mum has said it was best to leave them there until you needed them, just in case you didn’t need them so they could be returned more easily.

Looking at the edge, you can make out all the layers through the clear packing tape. It’s easily as thick as your thumb, but that’s clearly a good idea as the shield doesn’t flap about at all — and you would know, because this wasn’t your first-time making things from cardboard for an adventure.

“Don’t some shields sort of —” Bow Kid motioned with her hands, her arms wide going down before curving and meeting in the middle. “Like pointy at the bottom?”

You nod.

“Yeah,” you agree, thinking about it.

Maybe you could look it up on mum’s computer?

“They’ve got round ones too,” Moustache Girl adds.

Bow Kid nodded at that.

“What about a sword?” you ask.

“Ah huh,” Moustache Girl replied, picking up her sword from the carpet. “This is my second one. My first sort’a worked, but then it got bent and it started to flop after that. So, dad gave me a stick to use — like one of those round sticks like you get at the hardware store.”

“Dowel,” interjected Bow Kid. “It’s called a dowel.”

Both you and Moustache Girl turn to Bow Kid in surprise. You didn’t know that.

“I think dad called it that?” Moustache Girl said uncertainly. “Or maybe he said towel? ”

You giggle. It sounded a bit silly.

“So, it goes in the middle?” Bow Kid asked.

“Yep, then you put two bits of cardboard on each side, and then I taped the edges together.”

“Then used loads of tape.” Bow Kid adds.

“Yep, so it doesn’t unstick.”

T_T_T

After asking mum, the three of you were allowed to go on her computer and look up shields.

“So, it’s not a kite shield?” asked Bow Kid, after finding the image.

“Maybe?” you reply uncertainly. There were loads of images and some said different things. “I think the really tall one is a kite shield?”

“That one there says a kite shield,” said Moustache Girl, pointing at the image on the screen.

It was of a really short shield that was sort of like Moustache Girl’s, but pointed at the bottom.

Still, you printed a couple of images out and the three of you went back to the lounge room. The boxes mostly had short sides and holes in the sides for carrying handles, but the bottoms were whole bits of cardboard. You could tell they used to have fruit in them because the one you had in front of you had a little sticky patch on it that smelt like oranges.

Cutting the sides off, you tried to draw the shape of your shield. It took a few goes to get the lines right and it looked a bit messy, but Moustache Girl pointed out that it won’t matter because you can put the pencil marks on the inside.

Looking up, you can see Bow Kid looking quite proud of only needing one try to get it right, but she was also a way better artist than you.

Unfortunately, the three of you learnt pretty quickly that bottom bit of cardboard was really thick and your scissors didn’t really work.

“This is way thicker than the boxes from home,” said Moustache Girl, examining the really rough cut. “It’s two layers.”

The sides were one layer and easy to cut, but the bottom is two layers.

“Maybe your mummy has bigger scissors?” Bow Kid suggested to you.

It seemed like a good idea, so the three of you got up to go look for her. Soon you found her in her study.

“Mummy — um —” you can see she looks a bit busy. “Can you help us with something? Please?”

Mum turns from her work computer and gives the three of you a smile.

“I can for a bit. What do you need?”

“We’re trying to cut some cardboard, but it’s way too thick,” Moustache Girl explained to yours and Bow Kid’s nods.

“Yeah, my scissors aren’t really working.”

“Sure thing,” mum replies, before opening her desk drawer and looking for something.

Soon, she pulls out a fluorescent green object that can fit in her hand and gets up. Not sure what it’s for, you none-the-less lead mum to the lounge room.

“Huh, that is pretty thick,” mum comments, looking at the sheet you tried to cut. “I think the box the refrigerator came in was like this.” Mum catches your curious expression and laughs lightly. You didn’t remember that ever happening. “That was probably before the three of you were born, and I threw that box out ages ago.”

“You could have made a really tall shield with that,” commented Moustache Girl.

You rise that she is correct, and that you could have made one of those really tall shields with it, like the three of you had seen on the internet. Mum smiles at her before turning back to the thing you need cut out.

“On the lines?” she asks you.

“The thicker ones.” You had gone over the right line a few times so mum wouldn’t mistake it. “Not the other lines.”

Grabbing a nearby box and turning it upside down, mum put your sheet on top. Then she held up the device she had grabbed from her drawer. With a ratchetting sound, you realised it was a knife, a blade extending from the end. Mum then began to easily cut the shape out for you.

“Anything else?”

“We need a couple of layers,” Moustache Girl says.

So, mum used the shape she cut out as a guide and cute several more shapes like it, before Bow Kid handed her shield over to be cut too.

“Come and knock on my door if you need some more cute,” mum said as she finished, standing up.

“Oh — um — so we can’t do it?” you ask.

Mum lightly laughs.

“Nope, sorry,” she replies. “Utility knives are really sharp and it’s really easy to cut yourself with one. And , if that happens, we’ll all have to go to the hospital, because you’ll need loads of stiches because of how easy it is to cut yourself deeply with one.”

T_T_T

Sitting on your slightly wet nappy, you start taping all the layers together. Moustache Girl has coated every bit of hers in packing tape and it seems really strong, so you do that too. Bow Kid meanwhile seems to be taking a lot more care than you to make it all crease free.

“For the arm loops, you gotta use the special tape,” explains Moustache Girl, holding the roll of grey coloured tape up.

It has little bits of thread hanging off and looks like it’s got fabric inside it, but the outside is plastic.

“You take a strip of cardboard and bend it a bit so it’s soft, then cover it in the tape, and then tape it down.”

After asking mum, she finds you an old ruler. It’s really long, way longer than the one you use at school, but as mum explains, the pain and the numbers all flaked off.

“So, you can cut this in half. One for each of you,” she explains to you and Bow Kid. “But there’s got to be lots of cardboard around it, and I want to make sure it’s safe before you guys use them. Okay? These swords could hurt you if you’re not careful.”

So, as you and Bow Kid made yours, Moustache Girl started making something else.

It started off as a sort of cylinder shape. Soon, Moustache Girl added a flat bit to the top and taped that down, before drawing something on one side. You weren’t sure what.

“Ooh — is that a helmet?” Bow Kid asked, figuring it out.

“Yep!” Moustache Girl said, holding it up. “Just gotta cut the hole.”

As you finished your sword, you start wondering if you could make armour. You could use a sheet of cardboard for the front and another for the back, then put straps that go over your shoulders on it. While Bow Kid is finishing her sword (which is taking longer but looks better than yours), you quickly sketch out the panels. Again, you need mum’s help to cut them out, and at the same time she cleans up Moustache Girl’s helmet.

Soon, the three of you are looking ready for your adventure, so after a brief break for lunch, you began!

T_T_T

“We fight for the princess’ hand!” Moustache Knight Girl declared with a flourish of her sword.

“I will defeat you!” you call back, with what is surely just as impressive a flourish.

“What does that even mean?” asked Princess Bow Knight.

You falter, lowering your sword. That is a good question.

“It’s a thing… they do in the movies,” Moustache Knight explains. She seems to move her helmet a bit, like she is trying to scratch her head. “It’s like what knights do when they meet a princess.”

“But what if there’s only one knight?”

You can see Moustache Knight’s thoughtful look behind her helmet.

“Maybe they fight the princess?” Princess Bow Knight replied. “There’s supposed to be a fight, isn’t there?”

Though that was probably fair here, because Princess Bow Knight was a knight, you knew in a lot of stories that princesses didn’t fight for some reason.

“Ah! You are trying to trick me with your riddles, dastardly foe!” Moustache Knight suddenly cried out, before charging at you with her sword.

What ensued was an incredible battle. Of clashing cardboard and virtuous, knightly fighting. For one moment, it seemed like Moustache Knight had the upper hand as she backed you up against the castle walls, you almost walking backwards into a plant pot. But at the last moment you went sideways, and with a jump, climbed up the retaining wall into the royal garden!

Rather than make the knightly jump like you had, the dastardly fiend Moustache Knight ran along the paved path that ran along the castle wall and past your bedroom window, and then up the stairs to the level of the garden. Soon, with the sounds of a war cry, you resumed your fight!

Blades clashed and armour rattled. And after much further battle, it seemed that you had the upper hand. But, for a moment, Moustache Knight got the upper hand. You step back, a strategic retreat, when you walk into something again: a small, grassy shrub.

You suddenly lose your footing and fall backwards, landing on your wet nappy. You can feel your eyes wet as you blink up at Moustache Girl, clearly victorious. Only, after a few moments you realise it doesn’t hurt, it just surprised you. There’s lots of leaf litter and your nappy to cushion the fall.

Looking to your side, you can see Bow Kid standing there. She’s chewing her lip and looking thoughtful.

“I win!” says Moustache Knight, pointing at Bow Kid.

Bow Kid shakes her head.

“Nuh ah,” she replies, sounding slightly satisfied with herself. A wide smile crosses her face, letting you see her teeth. “If you want my hand, you have to beat me as well!”

Moustache Knight jumps to the ready, and then Princess Bow Knight paused.

“But… I need to go to the loo first,” she said slightly sheepishly.

You wonder for a moment why she needed to do that, slowly getting to your feet. Brushing your bum off, you share a glance with Moustache Girl.

“This is soo cool!” she suddenly exclaims, seeming to bounce on her feet in excitement.

Feeling giddy, you nod.

“It sure is!”

It gets you wondering if you could do a really big adventure like this at your next sleepover.

Taking a moment, you inspect your sword, spotting several dings along its length from where you had hit Moustache Girl’s own sword. You wonder if it needs more tape.

“Has yours got dents in it?” you ask her.

She looks up and down her sword.

“A bit.”

Stepping closer, you compare yours and hers. It seems yours is more dinged. Maybe you did need more tape?

Your thoughts are cut short, however.

“You face the Witch Knight!” came Bow Kid’s exclamation. “Princess Bow Witch-Knight!”

Turning, you spot her standing in the back doorway of the royal castle. Atop her head is your mostly finished witches’ hat, and instead of her sword, she holds a wizard staff in her hand, her blue bow tied around the end. It’s very cool.

Suddenly, Princess Bow Witch-Knight waves her staff to cast a deadly spell of magic.

“I call upon the power of lightning!” she cries, and the battle resumes.

T_T_T

Moustache Girl is very reluctant to end it as her mum comes to pick her up. The three of your delay as long as possible, and your mum and hers even spend fifteen minutes having coffee and tea, but eventually it’s time for Moustache Girl to go.

“Come on, we’ve got to get your ready for dinner at your grandparents,” say Moustache Girl’s mum sympathetically.

Still in her helmet, you and Bow Kid give her a hug at the door.

“It’s no fair,” Moustache Girl complains. “You two get to spend all the time together.”

It didn’t seem fair to you. It would be cool if the three of you could play together all the time.

“Bye, girls,” says Moustache Girl’s mum as the door closes.

You and Bow Kid take a moment to relax on the couch before mum comes by.

“Now, we’ve got to tidy everything up,” she tells you, looking around the lounge.

There’s cardboard everywhere, along with bits of tape, and a few pencils, so that makes sense.

“If you two get the big bits, I can vacuum up all the little bits when you are done.”

It takes you about fifteen minutes to get everything, with mum providing a bag for all of the scraps. Soon mum is uncoiling the power cord for the vacuum cleaner.

“Now, you don’t want to leave anything outside. It looks like it might rain tomorrow and I’m sure you would hate for anything to get wrecked.”

“Oh — yeah,” you say, remembering that there were lots of things outside.

You and Bow Kid proceed out the back door. Your witches’ hat was atop a small shrub, like the shrub was wearing it, and your shield was up against a tree after you replaced it with Bow Kid’s sword, seeing as she did not need it, now she had reclaimed her magical powers.

Giggling, Bow Kid puts the witches’ hat on your head.

“That’s really good,” she tells you, an amazed smile on her face.

Blushing slightly at the compliment, you smile back. Bow Kid was a really important friend to you. So important to you, she was your best friend alongside Moustache Girl. Your squirm happily in your nappy as you watch her look around for any items. You’re wondering if both you and her being in nappies together make your best friendship with her different, when she squats down.

She is slightly red faced, and you’re sure she is messing her nappy. You’re not sure if you should go over to her and give her a hug, or if you should keep looking for things. As she stands up, she spots you looking at her. She gives you a shy smile and you smile back at her.

Slowly, she wanders over.

“Thank you for being my friend,” she says, hugging you.

All you can do is hug her back.

T_T_T

Feeling exhausted, you and Bow Kid cuddle on the couch watching TV. You are about to fall asleep when mum calls out.

“Oh — someone needs a change.”

Looking over your shoulder, mum frowns at you.

“Oh, honey. Why didn’t you get a fresh pullup on?”

You blink at her, not sure when she means. Coming over, she pats you on the bottom.

“Your nappy is soaked, sweetie. It’s gone all over your rompers.”

She pulls you to your feel and turns you around. Bow Kid yawns, before sitting upright on her messy nappy.

“It seems you’re not in the messy nappy, however.”

Mum’s knowing smile turns to Bow Kid who blushes faintly.

“Yep,” Bw Kid confirms quietly.

“How come you didn’t get into a new pullup?” mum asks you.

“I — um — forgot,” you say. “Sorry, mummy.”

You meant to, but just never got around to it. You were way too busy.

“What about you?” mum asked Bow Kid.

“Yep, I changed!”

Quietly, mum laughs.

“Well, at least I can trust one of you to know when you need a change.”

T_T_T

With Bow Kid in a messy nappy and you having soaked your clothes, mum decides that the two of you might as well have a bath now. When Bow Kid pulls off her dress, you can see a little bit of mess has squeezed out where her nappy goes around her legs. Your own nappy isn’t any better, having swelled up so much that the edges were lifting up.

“It seems you got some on your dress,” Mum comments, holding it up.

Bow Kid blushes, squirming in her messy nappy. The sight is a bit funny and you can’t help but giggle. But slightly worried it might seem mean, you give her a wide smile and Bow Kid smiles shyly back at you.

After letting your nappy slip down your legs, you got in the bath, while mum helped Bow Kid with her nappy.

“Hmm,” mum hummed, after helping Bow Kid clean up. “I think we should get you in the shower first. It’s a bit hard to clean you up while you’re standing.”

“O-okay,” Bow Kid agreed.

As she rinsed off, mum left the two of you alone and soon Bow Kid joined you in the bath.

“How did you forget about your wet nappy?” Bow Kid asked, giggling.

You squirm slightly.

“I just forgot,” you say. “We were doing lots of stuff.”

Bow Kid chewed her lip.

“I only remembered because I was getting the hat.” You giggle at the admission. “Then I remembered I needed a new nappy.”

In the warm water, you could feel tiredness trying to overtake you. Leaning against you, Bow Kid seems to be in the same boat.

“It’s nicer when your mummy looks out for us.”

You could only agree.

Soon your mum came by and got you out of the bath tub and dried off…

“I bet you two had lots of fun today,” she comments as she gets you and Bow Kid in your nappies. “It was really amazing what you three made.”

“It was super cool,” says Bow Kid.

You mum glances up from taping up for nappy to smile at Bow Kid.

“I’m glad you three had lots of fun.” Finishing, mum looks thoughtful for a second before looking at Bow Kid. “All your clothes are in the was, sweetheart, so you will have to borrow some.” Bow Kid seemed to perk up, clearly curious. “Lets see what fits you.”

Bow Kid was slightly smaller than you, but you had heaps of clothes, some of which you hadn’t worn in ages.

“Wow, you look very cute in that,” mum compliments Bow Kid, helping her with the buttons. She turns to you. “Don’t you think?”

It was a white sundress you hadn’t worn in ages, but Bow Kid did look really pretty in it, you thought. Well… she was always really cute, but the dress was really cute too.

“Yeah,” you tell Bow Kid with a smile.

She seems to light up at the word.

“Is it really okay to have this?” she asks.

Mum quietly laughs.

“My daughter hasn’t worn it in quite a while,” mum explained, before dropping into a false whisper. “Unfortunately, she couldn’t seem to go more than an hour without getting some mud or dirt on it.”

Mum gave Bow Kid a knowing look, causing Bow Kid to start laughing. She wasn’t exactly wrong, but there was always so many things to do. Mum eventually started buying you clothes in dark colours, unless there were clothes it was okay to get dirty in. But you liked purple, so that was okay.

With Bow Kid doing twirls that gave you the occasional glimpse of her nappy, mum found something for you to wear. Bow Kid stopped to watch your mum pull the dress over your head, lighting up as your mum stepped behind you to pull your hair out of the collar.

“Wow — that’s really pretty!” she exclaimed.

“Really?” you asked.

All the adventure and playing was fun, but fact you kept ripping dresses or getting them dirty seemed to ruin any feelings of being pretty.

But, at the clear doubt in your voice, Bow Kid frowned in concern. You felt ashamed for making her sad like that and tried to come up with something to say when she hugged you.

“Really pretty.”

T_T_T

Mum had prepared dinner while you and Bow Kid had been in the bath, and after all that activity you were really hungry. But after eating, the tiredness intensified. So not long after cuddling together on the couch, you fell asleep.

At some point in the night, you vaguely remember mummy carrying you to your room, changing you into a dry nappy, and putting you to bed. Not long after, she repeated the same with Bow Kid, and the two of you drifted off to sleep.