Maple rolled awake with a soft grunt, realizing with pleasure that she had nothing important to do that day... and that Starlight was presently sleeping on her. The filly was snuggled up so far, she was using Maple's barrel as a pillow, mouth cracked open with a thin thread of drool hanging out. It was the kind of situation a mother would find adorable and anyone else would cringe at, and she felt a warm surge as she realized her reaction was the former. Unable to lift a hoof to wipe the drool away, Maple settled her head back into the bedding, perfectly content to let her day start as slowly as it wanted to.
They stayed that way for at least half an hour, during which Maple alternated between letting her mind lazily wander and planning and plotting for the day ahead. Starlight likely didn't need another bath, not after she had gotten rained on the day before. Then again, few ponies in Riverfall ever went to bathhouses to get clean. Doing that again wasn't off the table.
Weighing meals in her mind, she alternated between making lasagna and doing something with corn for dinner. She found she had a particular urge to eat corn right then, the thought of its scent making her mouth water alone... but there was the issue that she didn't have any corn, and would need to go out and get some. Fortunately, she was looking for things to do with her day, and a trip shopping was something Starlight hadn't done yet that might be very interesting.
She resolved to do that, laying there with Starlight's head resting upon her. All she needed to do first was get up... and that required the lazy filly to awaken herself. Maple exhaled, not at all minding that it might be a long morning.
As if on cue, Starlight sniffed, snuffled, snorted and awoke, blinking around before rubbing her face with a hoof. She turned, blinking again when she saw Maple staring at her. "Oh, you're up."
"I was going to say the same to you," Maple laughed. "Enjoying the morning? I sure am."
"Uh huh." Starlight licked her lips. "I'm hungry."
"Aww." Maple pouted slightly. "Well, I am too. Might as well get up and start the day?"
She rolled to her hooves, humming lightly as she furled the window covers and pushed open the door. Outside, dawn had long passed, sending light streaming into the house and eliminating the need for artificial illumination. Walking into the kitchen, Maple pulled out a saucepan, turning on her stove. "Oatmeal, Starlight?"
The filly nodded, depositing herself at the table and yawning away the last vestiges of sleep.
"I think," Maple began, readying water to cook the oatmeal, "that we should have some kind of morning tradition. Don't you?"
"Huh?" Starlight looked questioningly at her, one hoof on the table.
"Oh, I don't know. Something like asking each other how our night was, or always adding something special to our breakfast, or sitting by the window together. Shouldn't we?" She filled a glass as she spoke, ferrying it over to the filly.
Starlight took it, slurping noisily. It was suspended in her aura, Maple noticed. Apparently, feeling well enough to use magic extended to the morning.
"Yeah, I guess." Starlight finally set down the glass. "I slept okay. After you came in."
"It sure looks like it," Maple observed, watching as the water heated. "Weren't you only barely feeling well enough to use magic yesterday? And then you did all those spells, but now you look fine."
Starlight shrugged. "I dunno. I don't really remember yesterday. But I feel fine, and it would be dumb to want to feel bad."
"Well, don't overtax yourself," Maple reminded as she waited for the water to boil. "But I am glad you're feeling better. Hmmmm..."
She stared out the window as it simmered. Outside, the rare weather seemed to be drawing the entire town out of their houses. Due to the perpetual shade offered by Riverfall's tree canopy, it wasn't likely hot, but for many ponies it was still a welcome break from the chilly rains.
A few beams of sunlight that managed to make their way down landed on the colorful pennants designed to give the town direction, lighting them up like a festival. The dirt road was just becoming dry enough not to stick to the hooves of passing ponies, a welcome gift for the crowd of mares that wandered aimlessly, basking in the not-rain without purpose or care.
The hiss of boiling water interrupted her, and she turned back to her oven, pouring in the oats and stepping back. That would take a minute or two to cook. In the meantime...
"Starlight?" she asked with a measure of caution. "I was thinking of going shopping today, to get things for dinner. It's a nice day out, though, and there are a lot of ponies outside. Want to come with me?"
Starlight gave her a slightly strange look. "I'm not scared of other ponies. I just don't like it when they're treated differently for things they can't do anything about. I don't want to be a hypocrite. Otherwise I'd be just as bad as Sunburst's parents."
Maple sighed, giving the oatmeal a stir as it cooked. Inwardly, she was impressed that Starlight knew what hypocrite meant, but she had a suspicion mentioning it wouldn't do any good. "Starlight, you saved his cargo, and you very much did it on purpose. Isn't letting ponies thank you for that different from splitting up two friends just because you can?"
Starlight almost seemed to think about it... and then pouted. "No. It isn't."
"Okay..." Maple closed her eyes, then let out a breath, opening them and pouring the oatmeal into two bowls. She pulled out a banana to top them with and began slicing it, thinking. It was clear Starlight's response was based entirely on emotions and what connected in her mind to her hurts, rather than logic. Having once felt such a response herself, Maple was entirely able to sympathize... but it didn't stop her from seeing plainly how much happier the filly would be if she could move past this, and she wasn't sure how to help. The best she could offer was time and friendship.
...And a warm bowl of oatmeal. "Here you go!" she chirped, pushing the steaming breakfast in front of Starlight.
Maple watched as she dug in greedily. That seemed to have worked, at least for the moment. Pleasantly, she settled in across the table from Statlight, licking thoughtfully at her own bowl. With everything considered, it was still a perfectly fine morning, completely lacking in scared fillies, annoying drums and griffony drama. How long would that last? Until she reached the market, she wagered. Still, all the more reason to enjoy it while it was there.