Obligatory Content Warning: The following story involves cubs, beatings, nappies (diapers) and wetting.  If this is offensive to you, DO NOT READ ON.

Cub walked awkwardly down the passage, the headmaster's folded green note pinched in one paw, and the other paw resting as casually as he could manage over the dark damp patch on his pants.  He slipped through the door into the un-lit locker-room and headed for the exit at the far corner, relaxing slightly now that he was clear of the places other cubs might be at this time in the evening. Quietly, he opened the door a crack and peered through. The juniors dormitory door was shut, so their lights were out, and the passage down to the sanatorium was clear. He crept into the passage and padded as quietly as he could to the end, and paused by the door.

It had been a good day. The lessons had been in subjects he was interested in, the afternoon games had been fun, and the evening's activities had included an exciting movie. When they'd retired to their dormitory the four cubs in the top seniors dormitory had been in high spirits, and the trouble started. They indulged themselves with a bit of a pillow fight, and the headmaster caught them at exactly the worst moment. His angry bellow had brought the high spirits to an instant end. He'd watched as they tidied the dorm to his satisfaction, and then sent them to wait outside his office. They'd waited in the corridor for nearly ten minutes, and then the headmaster had called them in one at a time. Cub had been the last, and he knew what punishment his friends had received; he'd heard the crack of the stick, and watched each of them as they emerged from the office trying to hide their tears. It wasn't a punishment he'd ever received before, so when his turn came he'd entered, trembling. The headmaster had told him to tuck his tail between his legs, pushed him into position, struck him twice on each thigh with the stick, and then told him to turn around. That was when Cub realised he'd wet himself. The headmaster had also noticed. He'd thrust a handful of paper towels at Cub and told him to mop up the puddle. While Cub was busy, the headmaster had scrawled a note on his green notepad, torn it off, folded it, written "Matron" on the outside, and sent Cub to the sanatorium.

Tentatively, he pressed the button labelled "Matron". The door opened, and he held out the headmaster's note. The old bear took the note and unfolded it. Cub waited, both paws resting over the tell-tale dark patch, his head down, looking at his tail resting disconsolately on his toes. Matron sighed, reached down, and gently lifted Cub's chin until he had to look at her eye to eye.

"Oh dear. You'd better come this way." she said as she guided him through the door, and pointed down a short corridor. "The wash room's on the right down there. Drop your clothes in the laundry basket and get yourself clean and dry. I'll be back shortly."

The wash room was furnished with a couple of chairs, and had an automatic shower-dryer in one corner, a hand basin and a laundry basket in another, and a cubicle the other side of the door.  Cub shut the door, then shed his soggy clothes, dropping them into the basket as he stepped into the shower-drier. It was the best unit he'd seen at the school; far better than the basic ones in the main cubs wash rooms, and almost as good as the ones at home. He chose a long hot wash and dry program, pressed the start button, and tried to wash his feelings of shame away.  Just as the drier's blowers finally switched off, leaving him clean and fluffily dry, the door opened, and Matron looked in.

"That's better." she said, sitting down on one of the chairs, and indicating that he should take the other. A little shyly, he sat down. She handed him a mug of the warm milky drink the cubs were usually only offered on special occasions. He took it gratefully, and started to drink it just slowly enough to enjoy it without letting it get cold.

"Did the headmaster tell you why he sent you to me?" she asked as he licked the last traces of the drink from around his muzzle. He shook his head. He could have unfolded the headmaster's note and read it, but he'd been far too frightened to do so. He thought for a moment, and replied, hopefully, "To get clean clothes before I go back up to bed?"

"To clean you up, yes, but you're to spend the night down here."

She paused, taking the empty mug from him, and he hugged himself anxiously.

"He says you're to sleep in the nursery tonight."

He hugged himself tighter, and blinked uncertainly.

"Nursery?" he asked, knowing that cubs didn't come to the school until they were old enough to have left nursery school behind.

"Yes, and he says that I'm to put you in nappies."

Tears welled into Cub's eyes, and he looked pleadingly at her, feeling so humiliated that he was unable to voice his objection.

She shook her head. "He'll be down here soon to check, and if you're not wearing them, he'll probably give you another beating. The nappies won't hurt nearly as much."

Cub slumped dejectedly on his chair, defeated. Again, she lifted his chin and looked at him, eye to eye. Looking into her eyes, he wondered whether she was afraid of the headmaster, too.

"Don't worry. You're not the first cub to wear them. Not the biggest, either. Now, come this way." she said, and ushered him quickly across the passage into the sanatorium's nursery bedroom.

It didn't take Matron long to put his nappies on. She had already spread a thick cloth nappy and a thin soft liner nappy on one of the beds. She picked him up and placed him on the nappies, then spread his legs, lifted his tail, and fastened the nappies snugly in place. Next, she pulled a pair of waterproof pants up over the nappies, threading his tail through an elasticated hole, and then slipped a body-hugging sleeper suit on to him, zipping it up from his tail to the back of his neck.

"There, that's not so bad, is it." she said, and pulled the bedclothes over him. "I'll turn the light out now, and perhaps the headmaster won't check on you 'til morning." She ruffled his head fur gently. "Sleep well."

The door closed with a firm click, and the lights went out. Cub waited for a few minutes, listening while his eyes became accustomed to the gloom, then tried to roll over in bed. The nappies kept his legs apart and held his tail out so he couldn't lie comfortably on his back. He found a position which wasn't too uncomfortable and allowed him to look around the rest of the room.  There were three other beds in it. Two were flat, so were obviously not occupied, but the third, which had been hidden by the open door, was not flat. He watched it for a while, breathing as quietly as he could, and listening for any sign that the other bed was occupied. He heard approaching footsteps, unmistakably those of the headmaster, and then a cub whispered urgently "If he comes in here, pretend to be asleep!"

That answered at least two questions he'd been pondering. The bed was occupied, and the occupant was awake. Other questions would have to wait.  The headmaster was just outside the door.  Quickly, Cub rolled to face away from the door, and tried to quell his raising panic by closing his eyes and breathing long slow breaths, but his heart was pounding when the light came on, the door opened, and the headmaster entered. He felt the bedclothes being lifted and his nappies being prodded, and then a sharp slap right on the spot the headmaster's stick had struck him earlier.

"Sleep well, baby-cub. I'll check you again in the morning." the headmaster growled as he dropped the bedclothes back over Cub's prone form. Then the door clicked shut again, the lights went out, and the headmaster's footsteps receded down the passage.

Cub buried his muzzle into the pillow and let his tears flow. For a few minutes he lay there, sobbing quietly, until a small voice broke the silence.

"Nasty old goat. Did he hurt you lots?"

Cub though he recognised the other voice as that of the smallest cub in the school, and he didn't know how to answer. The places where the headmaster had beaten him ached, and the final slap was still stinging. He heard the smallest cub slip out of bed and pad across to his bedside. A small paw touched his shoulder.

"He did hurt you lots, didn't he." It was a statement, not a question. Cub rolled over, and found himself almost nose to nose with Smallest.

"You've been crying. Shall I cuddle you? I like to be cuddled when I've been crying." Smallest said, and reached out to skritch the fur behind his ear. He reached out in return, and skritched the back of Smallest's head.  Taking this as assent, Smallest lifted the bedclothes just enough to climb in beside him, then wriggled a bit until he could lie with one arm over Cub's neck to skritch the back of Cub's head. Cub put an arm round Smallest's chest, with his paw between Smallest's shoulders, and pulled him a little closer. He noticed Smallest was wearing also the same sort of body-hugging sleeper, with a zip up the back. He stroked down Smallest's back to the base of his tail, and felt a tell-tale bump on Smallest's rump. Smallest responded by pulling Cub's head towards him until the cubs were resting forehead to forehead. Cub began to relax, drawing comfort from Smallest's skritches, and pondered the un-answered questions foremost in his mind.

"Why're you sleeping here, not in your dorm?" Cub asked.

"I wet my dorm bed last night." Smallest replied in a matter-of-fact manner. "What did you do?"

Cub thought back to his year in the junior dormitory, with its specially covered beds, and remembered the teasing often directed at cubs who wet their beds.

"We were pillow-fighting, and the headmaster caught us, and we had to go into his study one at a time, and he beat us, and I was last, and..."

Cub hesitated, considering how much of his story he wanted Smallest to know, but Smallest seemed to have guessed the rest.

"You wet yourself when he beat you, so he sent you to Matron with a note telling her to put you to bed in nappies."

Cub stiffened, surprised at the accuracy of Smallest's statement, but Smallest cuddled closer, comforting him, and again he relaxed.

"How did you know all that?" Cub asked.

"I saw Matron putting your nappies on, and then the Goat came to check on you, and he called you 'baby-cub'." Smallest replied. "I guessed the rest.  One time a cub wouldn't let Matron put him in nappies. When the Goat found out he sat on the chair there, pulled the cub over his knee, and smacked him so many times that he could only lie on his tummy. He cried for hours." Smallest shuddered at the memory, and Cub cuddled him closer.

"Wow! That's scary. Do many cubs spend nights in here?"

"Not many, but you're the third beaten cub I've seen in here this term, and I'm not the only cub who sometimes sleeps here because he's wet his dorm bed, either."

Remembering occasions when other cubs had been in the sanatorium overnight, Cub wondered how many of them had spent the night in this room.

"Cubs who spend nights here don't tell other cubs about it, do they." he observed.

"Not unless they want to be called 'baby-cub', or 'wet-a-bed', or 'soggy-pants'." said Smallest, yawning, and Cub agreed, closing his eyes and hugging Smallest closer.

"If you need to go in the night, what do you do?"

Smallest sighed, apparently reluctant to give an answer, so Cub thought some more, and came to a conclusion. He didn't particularly like it, but it seemed the only option.

"I guess you can't take your nappies off, so you have to go in them."

"Yeah," Smallest replied, "but it usually happens while I'm asleep, anyway."

Cub cuddled him sympathetically, and sighed, resigning himself to the inevitable.

"I guess I'll have to go in mine, too."

"It's not that bad. Not like a wet bed, anyway. You won't feel that wet."

Cub figured wet nappies might be better than a wet bed, but that he'd rather stay dry. Smallest's breathing had settled into a slow sleepy rhythm, and Cub settled his, too. Soon both cubs were asleep.

The cubs slept soundly together, and Cub woke slowly in the early dawn. The muddle of scents reminded him he wasn't in his usual bed, and he sniffed carefully, trying to make sense of the mix. Smallest's and his own scents mixed with ones from the bedding and pillows, and the sleepers and waterproof pants they were both wearing. As he was picking the scents apart he felt Smallest tense slightly, and realised his companion was also now awake. He scritched the small cub gently, and was skritched in return.  They lay together, warm and companionable, for a few minutes. Then Smallest yawned and stretched, prompting Cub to do likewise.

"Better get back to my bed in case Goat comes to check." said Smallest, and moved to get out of the bed they'd shared. Cub shivered.

"Will he? What will he do if he does?" Cub asked anxiously.

Smallest was quiet for a short while, as he settled himself back into his own bed.

"I hope he doesn't." Smallest answered, but that hope died a moment later when they heard the door at the end of the passage open, and then the unmistakable sound of the headmaster's footsteps as he approached. Both cubs quickly covered themselves and pretended to be asleep. The door was opened, the headmaster strode in and across the room to the window, and drew back the curtains with a flourish.

"Wakey-wakey baby-cub!" he exclaimed heartily. Then he noticed Smallest's bed, strode to it, pulled back the covers and roughly rolled the cub onto his back. "Ah. Tiny soggy-bottom. Back in here again? Time to wake up, baby."

Then it was Cub's turn to have his covers pulled away.

"Wake up, widdler!" the headmaster all but chanted, delivering a sharp slap with each word, and again striking the places he'd beaten Cub the previous evening. Then he rolled Cub over, and stood back so that he could see both cubs, and they could see him frowning sternly.

"Make sure you get to assembly in time, clean and dry."

He strode out, leaving the door open. Cub looked at Smallest, who was sitting on his bed hugging his legs. He noticed that Smallest still had the pinkish nose, blueish eyes, and indistinct markings of a very young cub. Cub went over to sit beside him, and, putting one arm round Smallest's shoulders, he pulled the little cub closer.

"Want a cuddle?" Cub asked, and in no time found himself with two arms full of small cub. Smallest hugged him tightly, legs around his waist, and muzzle resting on one shoulder. They held each other tightly for a while, neither saying anything. Then Smallest relaxed, and Cub shifted so that they were face to face.

"That better?" Cub asked.

"Mmmm. Thanks." Smallest replied. "You're good at cuddles."

"So are you." said Cub, remembering the previous evening's events.

Just then they heard a knock on the open door, and a gruff voice asked "Are you two awake?"

"Yes, Matron." they both replied.

"Good. Then come out here and help me bring in your breakfast."

There was a trolley in the passage, and Matron took two trays off it, giving one to each cub.

"Sit yourselves at the table by the window and get started. I'll bring you the rest in a few minutes."

The cubs sat down and started eating, and by the time Matron re-appeared they were ready for the extras she brought. She returned a few minutes later to collect the trays, and a few minutes after that bearing two small piles of clothes, a waterproof sheet, and a large lidded pail. She spread the sheet on Cub's bed.

"Ok. Time to get you two changed. Come here. Turn around." she said, pointing at the floor directly in front of her. She un-zipped their sleepers and pulled them to the floor. As Cub watched, she picked Smallest up and laid him on the sheet. Then she pulled Smallest's waterproof pants off, and put them in the pail. Next she un-fastened Smallest's nappies, un-covered the cub's nether regions, lifted him off the bed, and set him on his feet, leaving the nappies on the sheet. Next the nappies went into the pail, and then she wiped the sheet, and repeated the process with Cub while Smallest watched. As Matron was un-fastening Cub's nappies, Smallest turned and scooted out of the room.

"Right. To the shower with you." Matron said as she set Cub back on his feet, and shooed him off to the shower room across the passage. Cub looked both ways before crossing the passage, and closed the shower room door behind him just as Smallest emerged from a cubicle accompanied by a flushing sound.  Cub availed himself of the same facility, and emerged to find Smallest waiting by the shower-dryer.

"Quicker if we shower together." said Smallest, and stepped into the shower. Cub followed, and they started the wash and blow-dry program. On a whim, Cub rubbed Smallest's wet head-fur, and Smallest responded by rubbing Cub's tummy. There was a brief moment of eye contact, a silent mutual agreement, and then they washed each other from head to toe and tail, though Cub had to crouch to let Smallest reach his head, and they both found ticklish spots on each other. No conversation was possible until the blow-dry was done, but as they emerged from the shower Smallest put an arm round Cub's waist, his head against Cub's chest, and spoke quietly.

"You're good at washes, too."

"So are you." Cub replied, grinning and nuzzling the top of Smallest's head, then drawing him into an embrace.

"It's nice to be clean and dry, isn't it." Smallest added, as they hugged one another. "Wet nappies aren't as bad as a wet bed, but they're still a bit... you know... aren't they."

"Yeah, clean and dry is nice." Cub replied, thinking back over the morning's events. Smallest's nappies had certainly been pretty damp, but he'd noticed as soon as Matron removed his waterproof pants that his nappies had been distinctly soggy, which concerned him because he couldn't remember wetting them.

"Best get dressed." said Smallest, relaxing his hugging grip. Cub released his hold on Smallest, carefully opened the door, looked both ways, and darted across the passage back into the nursery bedroom. Smallest followed at his tail. The room had been tidied, the beds made, and clothes laid out. The cubs dressed themselves quickly, and Matron returned just as the bell for morning assembly sounded.

"Off you go. You don't want to be late." she said, and they remembered the headmaster's parting remark earlier that morning. Anxiously they left the nursery, and headed for their respective places in the assembly hall. As he took his place beside his dorm-mates, Cub hoped that the headmaster wouldn't say anything during assembly that might make them ask him prying questions later, and he wondered whether the previous evening's events might have changed them as much as his over-night experience had changed him. He caught Smallest's eye across the hall, and grinned.

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© Tiggles 2012