XI. Naylte ven, naylte yen

With the non-disclosure agreement signed, Celester took her leave. Farzana spent the rest of the morning explaining the various kinds of documents that were kept in the archive, and what to do with each kind. The archive itself was as well-lit as it was crammed. A few aisles were blocked off by stacks and stacks of boxes filled with paperwork. The amount of work felt overwhelming to Rowan, but he soon realized it meant that he would not be out of a job anytime soon. After lunch, Farzana showed him how he could scan multiple pages of a document at once, so he could just work through entire boxes at a time. It would save him a lot of walking back and forth, which was still somewhat cumbersome because of his injured paw.

He had had to change his diaper twice, which had felt awkward to him at first, but much less do the second time around. The fans of the air-conditioning made enough white noise to mostly drown out the crinkling sounds his diaper made as he moved around. A part of him was still very much ashamed of wearing diapers, while on the other hand, it began to feel almost casually normal to him.

On the way home, he felt content and satisfied. He was used to hard work and being busy all day, yet he had to make a serious effort to stay awake during the car ride. Celester noticed this and suggested he lay down on the couch to rest, while she prepared dinner. Stella arrived home shortly before Celester was done cooking.

The evening passed quickly. The girls went upstairs to reorganize the rooms on the first floor. At the end of the evening, they had cleared out the smaller of the two unused rooms. Everything that had previously been stored there, was moved to the attic or to the larger spare room.

When they returned to the living room, they found Rowan sleeping on the couch, with a fantasy novel in his lap. Celester carefully lifted him from the couch, using her telekinetic power to levitate him. This made the ordeal less straining for her, and less likely for Rowan to even notice anything. Stella assisted by taking his diaper off, cleaning him up and putting a fresh one in place. She had to resist the childish urge to let her fingers play with his bushy tail as she threaded it through the hole in the back of the diaper.

When they were done changing him, Celester quietly covered Rowan with the duvet and tucked him in. He was so exhausted he did not even open his eyes once. Stella switched the lights off, after which the girls crept out of the living room.

The next morning, Rowan felt a lot more relaxed when he drove to work with Celester. Farzana greeted him as he arrived, and they discussed what they were going to do that morning. The job was not too difficult or exciting, but Rowan was grateful to have a job. This was not just so he could pay his share to Celester, but even more because having a job made him feel useful. Rowan enjoyed doing something constructive with his time, even if the task at hand was as simple as "digitize every piece of paper in this room".

Later that day, shortly after dinner, the furniture was delivered. The girls carefully carried everything up the staircase and assembled the bed, while Rowan organized his closet space. Celester put a waterproof sheet on the mattress, so it would not be a problem if his nighttime diaper ever leaked. Stella put a stack of diapers in the bottom part of his nightstand. They finished the picture by making the bed, with a childish duvet cover.

'Now you have a bedroom of your own, Rowan. This will be your place, and we won't come in if you don't want us to,' Celester said ceremoniously.

'Look what I have here!' Stella said, holding a door hanger that read "do not disturb". 'Cel had this one on her door handle when she still lived with her parents. Just put it on the outside of your bedroom if you need some privacy.'

'Th-thanks. You're so kind, both of you. I never would've dared to dream of having my own room like this. It may not seem like anything special to you girls, but this is already better than I've had for all my childhood, let alone for the past two years.'

'You're welcome, Rowan. By the way, the invitation to wake me up if you have a bad dream still stands. Just come to me if you need comforting. You don't have to deal with your feelings on your own if you don't want to.'

Celester gently hugged him from behind, putting her head between Rowan's ears. The embrace made him feel held, and safer than he had known for years.

'I-I'll try,' he replied, rubbing his big toes together.

It felt good to sleep in a bed again. The couch was not particularly uncomfortable, but the bed made him feel less of a guest in the house. He did have to get used to the sounds the mattress protector made as he turned over. It sometimes crinkled louder than his diaper did. The noise did not bother him, however. It made him feel safe, even though he was fairly sure he would never actually need the protection the waterproof sheet offered.

On Friday, at two in the morning, Celester woke up by the sound of her phone vibrating on the nightstand. She quickly switched the alarm off, then shook Stella awake. As the pony groggily opened her eyes, Celester let her horn produce a weak glow.

'It's time,' she whispered. 'Wait here, I'll be right back.'

Stella hummed affirmingly, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Careful not to make any noise, Celester slowly walked to the door and twisted the handle. She opened the door and crept through the hallway. The sound of her hooves was dampened by the carpeting as she approached Rowan's room. She halted in front of his room, grabbed the door handle and cut off the magic light. With a few whispered words, the door handle was wrapped in an iridescent glow. The unicorn returned to her bedroom, moving much quicker than before.

She turned her horn glow back on and signed for Stella to follow her. The pony noticed her hooves did not make any sound as they descended the stairs together. When Celester was at the last few steps, she suddenly slowed down. Once downstairs, Stella noticed her hooves made sound again.

'What just happened?' she whispered after Celester had shut the living room door behind them.

'I turned the handle of his door into a Beacon of Silence.'

'What's that?'

'Every sound within about ten feet from the beacon is nullified. Rowan's ears are highly sensitive, so I figured it'd be best to use some noise canceling. The bubble of silence reaches far enough to fully cover his bed, so he won't be able to hear us.'

'I didn't even know you could do that,' Stella said in amazement.

'I learned that spell at UniCon last summer. It can't make it last much longer than half an hour yet, but we should have enough time to carry out our plan.'

Stella smiled.

'Will you get everything from the car? I'll dig up some scotch tape and a pair of scissors.'

Celester nodded and grabbed her car keys. She soon returned, carrying a blank cardboard box that appeared somewhat heavy, with a roll of gift wrapping paper on top. Triumphantly, she put the box down on the coffee table. Stella cut the packing tape with the opened scissors and quickly took out all the contents.

'Will you cut the paper, so I can wrap the presents?'

'If we don't want this to look like the wrapping was done by an actual filly, uh, yeah.'

Celester chuckled.

'We can skip that one,' she said, pointing at the biggest item. 'Just put it at the bottom. I'm not sure I bought enough wrapping paper, and I think the original packaging is cuter anyway.'

Stella nodded with enthusiasm. The mares started working on wrapping all the various items in the box in colorful presents. When they were done, Stella took a thick black marker and scribbled three words on the side of the box, using her off hand.

'Let's put these in first, so he'll take them out last,' Celester suggested, holding two white envelopes.

'What're those?'

'You'll see,' the unicorn said with a grin. 'Can I borrow that marker for a second? The order in which he opens them is important.'

Stella shrugged, knowing prying would not work. She was too tired for it anyways. Together, they put all the presents in, starting with the biggest one. They finished the picture by wrapping a ribbon around the box, so it would stay shut.

'There, done. Do you need a change before we head back to bed?'

Stella took Celester's hand and put it on the front of her diaper. She exhaled with a big smile on her face, as a warm wetness began to spread around her princess parts.

'No,' she said innocently, once she was done.

'Couldn't hold it until you slept?'

Stella shook her head.

'I love you, filly. Come, let's hurry back before my beacon gives out.'

She gave the pony a quick kiss, then held open the living room door for her.

Rowan woke up from the sound of someone knocking on his bedroom door. It was still dark outside, so he had no idea about the current time. He felt like he had woken up in the middle of the night. The rabbit mumbled a response to whomever had knocked, and tried to make himself sit up. The door opened and Celester popped her head around the corner.

'Good morning, Rowan,' she said softly, almost whispering.

'What time is it? Feels like it's the middle of the night,' he replied groggily.

The unicorn chuckled. 'It's half past six. I know it's early, but I'd appreciate it if you could join us for breakfast.'

'Why this early? Do I have to?' he whined.

'It'll be worth the effort. Unicorn promise.'

He firmly shook his head, then combed through the fur on his ears a few times.

'Alright then. It's not like there'll be time to sleep in anyway.'

He joined Celester in the hallway, who led him down the stairs. Before they entered the living room, she halted and turned around.

'We've had cake to celebrate your courage, but we felt like something was missing. You did the right thing, although I understand you might feel like you have betrayed someone you once loved by filing a complaint.'

He slowly nodded. 'It's complicated. The more I get to know you girls, the more I realize how horribly she treated me. Yet, I must have had my reasons when I got in a relationship with her.'

'I understand it might be confusing for you. We'll be here along the way to support and comfort you whenever you need. All you have to do is ask.'

He nodded again.

'Now, before we go in, I would like you to cover your eyes. Stella has already prepared breakfast for us, and she'll be waiting for us in the living room. So don't get startled, okay?'

'Uh, sure?' he said, putting his hands over his eyes.

'Ready?'

Celester didn't wait for an answer. She opened the living room door and guided Rowan towards the coffee table.

'Good morning, Rowan,' Stella said in her grown-up voice. 'We prepared something special for you.'

He frowned, which was hardly visible, because his hands were in the way.

'Stella and I have been pondering the question "what presents do you give a rabbit?", but that was a tough one. We've been thinking and thinking, but nothing came to mind.'

'Then Cel suggested we'd try to come up with gifts for a precious little bunny, and that was a whole lot easier.'

'You can look now,' Celester reassured.

Rowan let his hands drop to his side. His attention was immediately caught by the cardboard box on the coffee table. It had the words "bunny starter kit" written on it in big crude letters. A ribbon was tied around the box, with a bow on top.

'I assume it's not your birthday today, but we figured you didn't get to celebrate the past two, and turning eighteen hasn't exactly been a party for you either,' Celester explained.

'Go ahead, Rowan. It's all yours,' Stella urged.

Slowly, he approached the box. He sat down on the couch, and the mares joined him on either side. Carefully, as if he was defusing a bomb, he pulled on one end of the ribbon. The bow came undone and top flaps popped up. He began breathing heavier as he fully opened the box.

The first thing he saw was a white stuffed polar bear stretching nearly two feet, with a jovial expression on its face. There was a soft rope with a card on its neck that read "Hello! My name is Nanuq!". Rowan gently pulled the plushie out of the box and held it against his chest.

'This... This feels nice. I didn't expect I would like having a stuffed animal.'

'He'll be your companion from now on, so you always have someone to cuddle with,' Stella said proudly.

The rest of the items were wrapped in colorful paper, obviously meant to appeal to children. Rowan took out the top present and tore the wrapping. Inside were two large onesies. One baby blue, with a large cartoonish image of a lettuce on the chest. Below that was the word "play" spelled in playful capital letters. The other onesie had the word "sleep" on it, with a drawing of a water well and a bucket below.

'Wait... Are these puns?'

Stella snickered, and Celester could not suppress a grin either. Finally, Rowan got the jokes.

'Best prints ever,' he laughed.

He put the onesies on the table, then reached inside the box again. This time, he retrieved a small rectangular package. Inside was a translucent plastic box, which contained an adult sized pacifier with a navy blue shield and a white center. There was a cartoonish picture of a star on the white part.

'A pacifier?' he asked curiously, as if he had never seen one in real life before.

'Uh-huh,' Stella exclaimed with enthusiasm. 'I don't know if you can appreciate it, but I encourage you to try it. Maybe it'll help you sleep better.'

The next gift was an adult sized baby bottle, colored and printed similarly to the pacifier. Rowan's ears flopped as he shyly looked at Celester.

'I wasn't sure if you'd like this, but I might have seen you shoot an envious look or two at Stella when I was feeding her.'

'Th-thanks,' he said, rubbing his big toes together.

'There's one more present in there. The most important item for a little bunny.'

Rowan peered over the edge of the box and saw a big rectangular plastic package. He pulled it out with both hands, and saw what he half expected the last item to be. In his hands was a colorfully decorated pack of diapers, printed in a nighttime theme. There were stars and moons on the outside, and the stars would fade away when the diaper was wet.

He gently put the pack of diapers down on the coffee table. All of a sudden, Rowan was overwhelmed by emotions, much of which he could hardly interpret - let alone verbalize. He tried a few times, but it was impossible to control his stuttering. After a few attempts, he subconsciously gave up and decided to just tightly hug Celester instead.

'You're so welcome, Rowan. In both senses, I mean. Maybe you still feel like you're imposing on us, but we absolutely enjoy your presence. You're kind, sweet, caring, and you're full of genuine love for other people. Maybe that's why we splurged on gifts for you.'

'I'sh picked most of 'em,' Stella said in her filly voice, joining in the embrace. 'It was weally hard, because Mommy said I'sh could only pick five.'

'She still managed to make it six,' Celester said with a chuckle.

They let go of each other and returned to their seats. Stella idly rubbed Rowan between his shoulders.

'There's two more things,' Celester continued with a more serious tone. 'I did want to have a present for grown-up Rowan as well. Look at the bottom of the box.'

Rowan turned the box upside down. Two official-looking envelopes dropped on the coffee table, both marked with the crest of the municipality, and addressed to him. One was marked with "1", the other had "2" written in a corner.

'They should have arrived in the mail, but I happen to work where these were sent from,' Celester said mysteriously.

Rowan frowned as he opened the envelope. Why would he receive mail from the government? And how did they know where he lived? Did this have something to do with the complaint against Azalea? He took the paper from the envelope and began to read it quickly. It was a rather short message, signed in the name of the Hornet City mayor, and stated that Rowan's formal address was now 145 Honeycomb Drive, Hornet City.

'Wait, is that... Is this house number 145?'

Celester nodded.

'You changed my address? Don't you need my signature for that?'

She shrugged with a grin.

'You_forged_ my signature?' Rowan asked in astonishment.

'Twice, actually,' Celester admitted casually. 'The other letter is what this is all about, and why I even know what your signature looks like in the first place.'

Rowan grabbed the other envelope and tore it open. His eyes rushed over the words, reading some words out loud every now and then.

'Uh-huh, response to your request, yadda yadda, uncomfortable, inappropriate, blah blah, by court order... Have your legal name changed, to "Rowan Buckthorn",' he read, ending the last sentence as if he questioned the very words on the paper.

'You had his name changed?' Stella took the words out of his mouth.

'Yup. If you can prove your name to be unfitting with your job and thus causing you economical difficulty, or if it is inappropriate or downright offensive, you can have your name changed for free.'

'Doesn't that usually take months?'

'Not if you have my job, and a coworker that owes you a favor and happens to know a judge that has the authority to sign such a declaration. I discreetly explained Rowan's situation to them, and they processed the request post-haste.'

Rowan carefully removed the small plastic card that was attached to the bottom of the letter. It indeed read "R. Buckthorn".

'This is my new ID,' he said to himself. 'What happened to the other one? Did you really disable it like you said earlier this week?'

'Well, since your name has legally been changed, there is no "Brek Buckthorn" with your social security number anymore. Should that old card still be intact, it can't be used for identification. On verification, it would immediately be recognized as null and void.'

'So I officially live here now, with you girls?'

'That's right,' Celester confirmed, pulling him back into a hug. 'Welcome home, Rowan.'