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

Cub slept well for the first time since the end of the exeat. When he woke up in the morning he was disappointed but not surprised to find that his nappies were wet. At least it was only his nappies, and not his bedding. Waking up wet from nose to toes was much more unpleasant. He lay quietly for a while, wondering whether the headmaster would come by to wake him up, but his first visitor was Matron, who brought him his breakfast.

When he'd eaten she returned to change him out of his nappies.

"I think you can manage classes today, so I've put your day clothes in the bathroom. When you're clean, go off to assembly." she said as she dropped the wet things in the pail, then picked him off the bed and set him on his feet.

He made his way to the door, and peered into the passage, checking to see whether it was clear.

"Oh, and don't forget to take your work books." she added as she tidied things up, and left him to get on with the day.

Cub showered, dressed, and returned to the nursery. His bed was already neatly made, and there seemed to be nothing else he needed to do there, so he gathered his books, and headed off to his classroom. He left his books in his desk, and went to the hall for morning assembly.

The morning's classes weren't too difficult. Most of the work he'd done the previous day was deemed satisfactory by the teachers concerned. His classmates mostly left him alone, and only one of his dorm mates teased him at all. The early afternoon lessons also went well enough, except for the last one. It covered the last load of work he'd been given the previous day. He could only answer a few of the test questions, and he dreaded the response he'd get the following day.

When class was over, and before the afternoon's organised outdoor activities, there was, as usual, a short break for refreshments. The cubs all lined up to get their afternoon drinks. Cubs from one class were talking in quiet but excited voices about something that they'd been able to see from their class during the afternoon. Soon versions of the story were being discussed with varying degrees of excitement, agitation, anxiety, and apprehension.

"Three police cars!"

"An ambulance!"

"No, a doctor!"

"A detective!"

The speculation quickly went from prosaic to alarming, and the noise level rose until one of the supervising staff members rapped on the table, making all the drinks glasses tinkle, and bellowed "Silence!" so loudly that they did all stop chattering at once.

"Enough chatter. There'll be silence until after you've all had your drinks."

The cubs mostly managed to refrain from talking for that time, and then dispersed to their various outdoor activities. Speculation in the various groups went in different ways, and by the time of the evening meal Cub was even less certain what had been happening. During the meal a few cubs who were better than most at spinning stories kept their immediate neighbours enthralled with their speculation, but by the end of the meal the excitement had faded almost completely.

By bedtime the cubs conversations were mostly back to more usual topics. Cub, having taken a sneak look into his dormitory to check that there really was nothing of his left in there at all, wandered along to the sanatorium nursery.  Matron was still busy elsewhere, so he did what he could to get ready for bed, and then settled down to read until she came to put him to bed. He didn't have to wait long. She asked him whether he wanted to try a night without nappies, but he noticed she'd brought some with her, and he knew he'd wet in his sleep the previous night, so he shook his head, and let her put them on him. She tucked him into bed and ruffled his headfur gently.

"Best have an early lights-out tonight." she said as she flicked the switch. "It might be a busy day tomorrow."

Cub was a little puzzled by her parting remark, and tried to remember what might be happening the next day to make it especially busy, but couldn't think of anything unusual. He made himself comfortable, and was soon asleep.

Cub was disturbed in the middle of the night. The light was on, dimly. He could hear activity in the room. He opened his eyes slightly. He could just see Matron standing by another bed, and there was a small cub on the bed, but Cub couldn't see him well enough to recognise him.

"But I don't need nappies." the other cub complained. The voice wasn't one Cub recognised.

"I'm sorry, but after that accident you just had all your bedding and sleep clothes are in the laundry. You can't go back to your dorm tonight, so you're sleeping in here, and I'm putting nappies on you because that way only they will need washing in the morning." Matron replied, firmly.

"I can get to the bathroom in time."

"You didn't, just now. This way you don't have to worry."

Cub heard her pulling waterproof pants onto the other cub, and then, very soon after, her zipping up a one-piece nursery sleep-suit. The other cub was soon tucked up in bed. Matron left, turning the light out as she went, and closing the door behind her. Cub closed his eyes and tried to go back to sleep. The other cub took a while to settle, but eventually he seemed to fall asleep, and then Cub was able to relax enough to go back to sleep himself.

Cub didn't wake up until Matron started drawing the curtains in the morning. His nappies were wet. The other cub was sniffing in a way that suggested he'd either just stopped sobbing, or was just about to start.

"It doesn't matter. It's just your nappies, and that's what they're for." Matron said. "I'll change you after breakfast. Now, out of bed and help me get that set."

Cub knew the routine, and got out of bed to help. The other cub was still hiding his muzzle in his bedclothes and sniffing. Cub got a first good look at Sniffer only when the smaller cub finally obeyed Matron's instructions. Sniffer was, Cub thought, in the class above Smallest's, so he was about a year older than Smallest, which meant he was maybe four years younger than Cub. From the way he'd been complaining when Matron was putting him to bed, Cub expected he'd not be anything like as understanding as Smallest.

The two ate their breakfast in silence. When Matron returned to change them, Sniffer was reluctant enough that Cub ended up having his nappies taken off first, while Sniffer watched. Cub made sure he stayed in the nursery until Matron was taking Sniffer's wet nappies off, then crossed the passage to the bathroom, and waited for Sniffer to appear.

"Quicker if we both shower together." he said, making it clear that if Sniffer refused then Cub was going to have the shower first, and Sniffer would probably be late for assembly.

Sniffer joined him in the shower. Cub washed himself thoroughly, and then made a point of helping Sniffer wash, even though the smaller cub was probably capable of washing himself well enough.

"Quicker that way." he said when Sniffer glared at him. When they were both dry, Cub dressed himself quickly, and headed for assembly, leaving Sniffer behind. He saw Sniffer sneak into the assembly hall just in time.

The headmaster wasn't present at assembly, and the deputy, who was conducting it, didn't offer any explanations. Cub wondered how many of the other cubs were puzzled by it. Perhaps it had something to do with the previous day's excitement.  He didn't have any more time to think about it until morning break, but in the playground he heard one or two of the cubs who'd been speculating wildly about yesterday's excitement spinning elaborate stories about the headmaster's disappearance.

At lunch time the deputy was walking round the dining room. Cub watched as he stooped to talk to Smallest, and saw him give the small cub something that looked like one of the headmaster's green notes. A few other cubs also received notes, and then the deputy came towards his table. Each of the cubs in his dorm received a note, and Cub was not surprised when the deputy stooped to talk to him, too.

"Headmaster's office, three fifteen. Your teacher will remind you." he said quietly in Cub's ear, and handed him the last note. It was just folded, so he peeked at it. It had his name and the time written on it, and nothing else. The writing didn't look like the headmaster's. He looked at the other cubs on his table who'd received notes. They all looked worried.

"I've got to see the headmaster at three fifteen." he volunteered, with a hushed voice.

"Two forty-five for me."

"Three o'clock."

"Two thirty."

"Fifteen minutes each. I don't like the sound of that."

"No."

The cubs fell silent. Lunch was quiet and tense. Cub didn't have much appetite.  Neither did the other victims, but some of the other cubs at the table redressed the balance, so everything got eaten. After lunch Cub tried to find Smallest, but his young friend had left the dining room as soon as he'd been able to.

The early afternoon lessons dragged horribly. Cub had great difficulty paying attention. He even had to ask permission to visit the bathroom part way through a lesson; something he hardly ever needed. Just before two thirty the teacher reminded the first of his dorm mates that it was his time. Other cubs gave the victim signs wishing him good luck as he left. He hadn't returned when the next cub was sent down. None of them had returned when Cub's turn came. He was shivering with fear, so he went to the bathroom first, and then, at his appointed time, knocked on the closed door of the headmaster's office.

A stranger opened the door. She was wearing a police uniform. Cub walked in anxiously, and she closed the door behind him, then ushered him to a chair in front of the headmaster's desk. Behind the desk, another stranger was sitting in the headmaster's chair. He wasn't wearing a police uniform, but he was holding a police badge. Cub looked around the room. Matron was there, and so was one of his teachers.

The officer behind the desk introduced himself, then asked Cub to give his full name, and then introduced the other officer as well.

"Adam, you're not in trouble. We want to ask you some questions." he paused. "Do you need the bathroom?"

Cub looked down, and realised that he'd been holding his sheath through his shorts. He let go of himself, somewhat embarrassed at the action.

"No. I went before I came down." he replied.

"Ok. Then let's begin." He pointed to the large calendar the headmaster had hanging on the wall. The weekends were shaded. The exeat weekend was also coloured. "Do you remember this evening?" he said, pointing to a day just over a week before the exeat. Cub thought for a while.

"Was that the evening we all got beaten?" he asked.

"I don't know." said the officer. "Please tell me what happened."

"We were having a pillow-fight in the dorm, and the headmaster caught us."

"And..."

"So he sent us all down here, and called us in one at a time, and beat us all."

"How do you know he beat you all?"

"I was last, and I heard the slaps as he beat the others, and they told me, too..."

"How did he beat you?"

"He made me stand there, and he beat me with a stick."

"Please show me how he made you stand."

Reluctantly, Cub went to stand in the same position.

"Ok. Could you tell me which stick he used?"

Cub nodded.

"If it's one of those," the officer said, pointing to the stand in which the headmaster stood his sticks "please could you pick it out."

Cub went over to the stand. There were five sticks in it, but none of them looked like the one the headmaster had used.

"I can't see it here, sir." he said.

"Ok." the officer reached down, and picked up a stick that was hidden behind the desk. "What about this one?"

Cub looked at it.

"That's the one he used when he beat me the second time, not the one he used the first time."

"Oh. So maybe it was this one?" the officer said, picking another stick out from hiding.

"No. Not that one." said Cub.

"Hmmm..." The officer seemed to have more sticks hidden. "This one, perhaps?"

Cub looked, a chill on his spine. "Yes. That was it." he said, with certainty.

"Ok. So you were standing there with your tail tucked between your legs, and he used this stick. What then?"

"He smacked me here on my thighs, left, right, left, right. And I wet myself."

"And then what?"

"He made me wipe up the puddle, and then he sent me to Matron with a note."

The interrogation continued for quite a while. By the time it was over the officer had heard about the slaps delivered during the headmaster's visits to the nursery, the other beating, and the fight that had led to it. The wet beds and nappies also got mentioned. Cub felt not just drained, but almost sucked dry.

"Go with Matron now." the officer concluded. Cub was glad to leave.

"Do you want to go and play now?" Matron asked, as she led him away.

Cub shook his head.

"Where did all the others go?" he asked.

"Oh, they all waited quietly at the sanatorium until your questioning started. I expect they're all in the playground now. You sure you don't want to join them?"

"Ok." Cub changed his mind.

In the playground he found some of the other cubs who'd been questioned. Most of them hadn't needed to answer many questions. All those who'd been beaten were asked to stand as the headmaster required, and whether they could identify the stick he'd used to beat them.

Eventually he tracked down Smallest.

"You OK?" he asked, sitting down beside the little cub.

"That was not fun." Smallest replied.

Cub wasn't at all surprised that the questioning hadn't been fun, but he was fairly sure the headmaster had never beaten Smallest with one of his sticks, so the police officers must have wanted answers about other things from Smallest.

"No. What did they ask you about?"

"My nights in the nursery."

"Oh? What about them?"

"What other cubs told me."

"You mean like me telling you about my beatings and wet pants and nappies?"

"Yes. Sorry."

Cub looked at Smallest, who had pulled his legs up and curled almost into a ball. He moved up close to the small cub and put an arm round him.

"I don't mind. I told them, too."

"I need a cuddle."

Cub looked around. The playground wasn't going to quieten down any time soon. If other cubs saw them cuddling they'd both get teased for the rest of term.

"I'll take you to Matron. She'll let us cuddle in the nursery."

Cub coaxed Smallest out of his huddle, and led him to the sanatorium. She saw them coming; had perhaps even been expecting them.

"Down to the nursery. I'll bring you something." she said as they came through the door.

When Matron came into the nursery a few minutes later, she found the two cubs on Cub's bed, hugging each other so tightly they could barely breathe. She set the milk and cookies on the table, then sat on the edge of the bed where she could tousle their headfur.

"Tough questioning, wasn't it." she said, not expecting an answer. "You both did well." Then she left them to comfort one another.

After a while they relaxed, and then let one another go. Smallest noticed the milk and cookies first, but soon after that there were two empty glasses and an empty plate.

A little later Matron returned to remind them it was time for organised games.

"Want to sleep in the nursery tonight?" she asked Smallest as they left.

"Not by myself." he answered.

"I'll be there, too." said Cub.

"Then yes, please."

"Off you go, then. I'll see you both later."

At bed-time they both reported to the nursery. For Smallest it meant a slightly later lights-out, as Matron didn't come round until after she'd supervised bed-time in the junior dormitory.

"So, nappies again?" she asked. Both cubs nodded. "Ok. Who's first?"

Within a few minutes both cubs were ready for bed.

"Is the headmaster around?" Smallest asked.

"No, he's not." answered Matron.

"What about tomorrow morning."

"No, he won't be here then either."

"Good. Then we can sleep in one bed."

Matron smiled. These two were good for one another. "Yes, yes, you can, if you both want to." She looked from Smallest to Cub and back. They both nodded. "In you get." She tucked them both into the same bed, turned out the light, and closed the door behind her as she left.