“Hey, hun,” A muscular stallion called out. “Do you think our little flapper is ready to stay up for the Midsummer Theater Revival?”
A cream-colored mare with a fashionable blue scarf and tan sun hat came into the room. “Our sweet little Coco?” She replied with a Trottingham accent. “It would be most delightful to take her to see Charity’s social. However she is still having some, well, ‘wardrobe troubles’ as it were.”
The olive-green stallion lowered his head. “That’s that fancy talk for still being in diapers,” He sighed with his thick, Manehattan accent. “We really need to get her out of them. No kindergarten is going to accept her when her ‘wardrobe’ is outdated.”
The mother looked about their apartment to see if their daughter, Coco, may be within hearing distance. “I simply do not know what to do,” She swooned in an unhappy tone. “It’s like she sees her nappies as part of some elaborate costume and just refuses to part with them. I’ve tried everything I can think of to convince her otherwise, but nothing works.”
The brawny stallion went to comfort his wife. “You’re friends with Charity Kindheart, right?” He questioned. “Perhaps she may have an idea on how to help our precious pumpkin, given her liking of all that fancy dress stuff?”
The mother blushed. “Oh!” She gasped with concern. “I do not feel it proper to bring a foal to tea with somepony of the status of Ms. Charity Kindheart.”
“Sweetheart!” The native Manehattan husband announced. “If a chariot driver like yours truly can win the heart of a peach like you, I am sure our Coco can find a place at the table with her ma and Charity Kindheart.”
The maternal mare let out a laugh as she nuzzled her husband. “I do love your charisma, Oliver Pommel,” She commented. “I would love to have your confidence in being able to just throw caution to the wind and reach for the stars.”
“Ah, sugar lump,” replied Oliver as he pulled his wife into a hug. “You just have a way of bringing the best out of this old trotter. I’m certain Charity Kindheart will know what to do. She seems to have an answer for everything in this town.”
Coco Pommel was still napping as her mother and father had their discussion. She was clad in a flower-print cloth diaper with a pink dress that accented the petals of the diaper. She also had a sunhat that had a flower which matched the ones adorning her absorbent undergarment. However the hat had fallen off from the young filly’s tossing and turning in her bassinet as she dreamed of doing all those things she heard her parents took pride in.
Coco was not a ‘girly-girl’ by any means. However she did like seeing colors match and pretending to be all sorts of different characters from the storybooks her parents read to her. Her father had some really great tales of how he handled ‘grumpy customers’ while meeting famous Bridleway ponies. And her mom would often share the majesty of Trottingham, trips to Canterlot, and what it was like to see the beautiful carpets, tapestries, and clothing that noble ponies and the uniformed guards wore.
The little filly wished more than anything she could grow up to be like any of those things. The many costumes she wore were her way of imagining what her life would be like as somepony else.
“Coco, dear,” Her mother called, rousing the foal from sleep. “We must make haste, for we are expected for tea over at Ms. Charity’s house.”
The teal-haired foal fluttered her big blue eyes, rolled onto her back, and then sat herself up. “Ready, Mum,” She greeted. “Is okay I wear my costume?”
Mrs. Pommel brought her daughter out from her bassinet while looking over her ‘costume’, and frowned. “I’m afraid not,” She sighed upon seeing a patch of yellow on the white part of Coco’s diaper. “Your colors are clashing.”
Coco pouted upon being made aware of how she had wet herself in her sleep. “Sorry, Mum,” she apologized. “Is time for me to get new costume?”
Mrs. Pommel knew this meant getting her daughter cleaned up, on top of finding another ensemble for her foal to wear for the social she had managed to plan amidst Ms. Charity Kindheart’s busy schedule. “Of course,” She relented. “I think I know just the thing too. Come, let’s resolve your ‘wardrobe problem’.”
Coco’s mom quickly cleaned and changed her daughter into a red heart printed cloth diaper, dressing her in a white-bordered lavender sailor collar, along with a scarlet tie around her neck and a tri-shade hair clip in her mane.
Coco looked into the mirror after her mother was done dressing her up. “Who I supposed to be?” She asked upon not recalling any stories of anypony ever being dressed in such a way.
Mrs. Pommel finished packing a diaper bag before leaning down to nuzzle her daughter. “Thought we’d see what you’d look like as your own character today, dearie. Somepony ready to hopefully undergo an important step towards being a big pony,” She replied before setting her daughter upon her back. “Now do hold on, Coco. We are a tad tardy and it would take far too long to put on your saddle seat.”
“Never let go of Mum.” Coco cooed while squeezing her hooves against both sides of her mother’s barrel for safety.
“That’s a good lass,” The proud mother smiled as they headed off to Charity’s home. “Off we go, then. We mustn’t keep Ms. Kindheart waiting.”
Charity was delighted to see Mrs. Pommel and Coco arrive at her humble home. Despite having amassed a small fortune through her years as a costume designer in Manehattan, Charity never forgot how she had arrived in the big city with barely a bit to her name. Her belief was to give back to her community, and so she spent most of her bits building and maintaining a park with an outdoor playhouse, while helping to fund a shop for less fortunate ponies to get food and clothing.
“I see that Coco still likes to play dress-up, is that correct?” Charity asked. “And you think that is why she is struggling in her toilet training?”
“Too hard take off nappy,” Coco added while fumbling at the cloth diaper’s tri-fold that was held together by a safety pin. “I try.”
Mrs. Pommel sighed. “I had not desired for business to come before pleasantries,” She apologized. “But my husband seems to believe you can do what even the best nannies affordable cannot.”
“Not a worry,” Charity smiled while picking up and looking at the young filly. “I see a future star in fashion and design, and want to help Ms. Coco on her way to greatness! Like all little ones, that starts with helping her graduate from diapers now that she is old enough not to need them.”
Coco giggled as she heard the pleasant comments from Charity while being held high enough to look at both her mother and Ms. Charity’s faces.
“Chamomile, dear,” Charity asked while looking towards Mrs. Pommel. “Have you ever thought that your daughter felt her diapers were a part of her ensemble?”
Chamomile put a hoof to her chin. “Well,” She replied. “I never did consider that possibility until you pointed it out just now. Oh dear, perhaps that’s why training her has been so difficult.”
Charity continued to play with Coco while addressing her mother. “Safety pins are great for foals who lack control of their, well, private matters,” She continued. “So perhaps we need another way to help our aspiring designer to not feel so, uh, ‘obliged’ to do her business within her wardrobe. A way for her to understand where her business is supposed to go.”
“What do you suggest?” Chamomile asked with hopeful anticipation.
Charity placed Coco down on the floor to play before continuing her discussion. “I’ve had the pleasure of working with elastics,” She explained. “Elastics allow for less wardrobe adaptations as they are able to fit a pony without the need for cumbersome buttons, zippers or pins. They’re much easier to put on and take off.”
“Pardon my forwardness,” Chamomile remarked with concern. “But how does this help me get the lass to do her business where it is meant to be done? If they can be taken off so easily, what’s to stop her from simply removing her wardrobe by accident, and giving me an accident to clean up?”
Charity laughed before putting a reassuring hoof upon Mrs. Pommel’s side. “Let me work my magic and we’ll find out together,” She proudly replied. “And before you ask, I wish for nothing in return for what I’m going to do. For me, I feel this may be of benefit to other fillies and colts who are like your daughter. It may well revolutionize foal care as we know it!”
It was barely a day later when Charity called Coco and Chamomile over to debut her clothing concept. “Behold!” She cheered with pride. “Care to give the young lady some privacy in the washroom to try these on?”
Chamomile was confused. “Sure…,” She pondered while seeing how the garment was already formed into a diaper without it showing any signs of folds, pins, buttons, etc. The only big difference was a frill-like series of protruding, wave-like fabric that appeared around where the garment would rest upon the lower torso of her daughter.
Charity noticed the hesitation and decided to just move to give Chamomile the diaper. “Come along,” She insisted. “We mustn’t hold up your daughter’s toilet training any longer.”
Mrs. Pommel called for her daughter and with strange garment in hoof, headed for the washroom.
Coco was soon slipped into the new “costume” as Charity explained. “Now, Coco, you’ll notice that your new attire is considerably lighter than your old wardrobe. That means it cannot hold as much of your ‘business’.”
“So, I need costume changes more often?” Coco questioned as she wiggled about in her new attire.
“Not quite,” Charity replied as she brought Coco before a large trench like object. “It’s much more efficient and hygienic to manage your business from a new venue. This is a flush toilet, which is what proper ponies use when they get to be about your age. Using it makes you more like those big ponies you like to pretend to be,” And she then explained. “I designed this fabric so that even a foal like you can easily pull it down without assistance. From there, you simply relieve yourself as necessary.”
Coco discovered that Charity was right on her new wardrobe. It was far easier to slide it down compared to the old ones, there were no safety pins or buttons to fiddle with. But she was still a bit uncertain about using a “flush toilet”. There was one thing she was still confused about. “How do I clean up?” She asked.
Mrs. Pommel presented a paper like substance to her daughter. “With this. It’s called toilet paper. When you’re all done, you simply take some from a rack and wipe until your rump is fresh and clean. It’s even easier than wipes, because you can just discard them in the toilet. And the toilet takes care of the rest. It’s highly efficient.” She demonstrated this by stepping on a brightly colored pedal.
A loud roar filled the washroom that frightened Coco a great deal! Fortunately, her mom and Charity were able to quickly calm her down. And Charity specifically told Coco. “I know it sounds scary, but I assure you it’s nothing to be afraid of. That is simply the ‘flush’, which is what you do when you’re done using the toilet. And I hear some noble ponies are working on a model where you don’t even have to stand. Supposedly, there will be a seat and a much easier way to activate the flush. For right now though, you’ll have to get used to standing over the toilet when you need to go.”
“Think you can manage that when we get home, sweetie?” Mrs. Pommel asked her daughter. “Perhaps we can surprise your father when he comes home from work?”
Coco nodded her head in excitement. “Okay. Try for Mum.”
Chamomile and Oliver were astounded at how quickly their daughter, Coco, took to using the potty. For her, it was like a play where, if she had to relieve herself she just would say things like: “End scene!”, “Wardrobe check!”, and “I need an intermission.”.
Oliver, being the no nonsense Manehattan stallion, soon taught his little Coco that the flush toilet was a ‘talk-the-talk’ that only made scary sounds to try and keep ‘trot-the-trot’ ponies, like her, from giving it ‘the business’.
The new diaper, which Charity made more of upon knowing of how well it worked, made staying in costume and clean super easy as the young filly could easily slip it down, show the potty who was boss, and pull it back on all clean, comfy and stylish upon tending to her hygiene needs.
The ‘hygiene’ aspect was more enforced by Chamomile who, prior to having Coco, had to educate Oliver in the importance of soap, shampoo and deodorant. Chamomile also got him to wear cologne. However this was more for her than it was for him as she loved her rugged husband looking and smelling so suave.
Oliver was especially pleased with how fast things turned around for Coco on toilet training. “I knew Charity Kindheart could help!” He thought to himself while helping his daughter clean up after yet another successful trip to the potty.
Coco, for her part, was just pleased with how happy she made her parents. She never would’ve imagined that mastering usage of a “toilet” could open so many doors for her. And her “big pony” status that accompanied her success with her new wardrobe afforded her more freedom than she had ever known before.
By the time of the Midsummer Theater Revival, many neighborhood fillies and colts were wearing Charity Kindheart’s amazing cloth garment, in order to improve upon making toileting a lot less of an effort for their advancement from foal to big filly or colt.
In time, Coco found she did not need the ‘diaper’ to make her ensemble appear unique and stylish. However she did remember what her mother had put her in on the day she was introduced to Ms. Charity. So, with a little help from Charity herself, she recreated the very outfit she wore on that fateful day to show how much her mom, Charity and her love for clothing design had all come together to help her meet (and conquer) one of her first real challenges of her life.
Many more challenges would come along for Ms. Coco Pommel. However she knew she could always rise to the occasion thanks to the faith put into her by her mother, father and Charity. She never forgot that even long after it seemed like everypony else in her community had. And while most ponies would have only faint memories of those early years, Coco never forgot them or the pony to whom she owed so much for enabling her to take that first step towards being a “big filly”.