Bedridden Bonbon

by DexThePony

Chapter 4

Author's Note:

Sorry for the long wait, I had to deal with Writer's block. I sincerely apologize with the short chapter. I'll make up for it in the next one so in the meantime, enjoy this small family moment.

The hearth was warm and gave off an orange inviting glow.

Tootsie lay on the floor, coloring a drawing of her and Crackle. Seated on her favorite armchair in her favorite position, Lyra gently strummed her favorite instrument with her eyes closed. Meanwhile, Bonbon rested on the couch as she read a Ronald Dole novel.

Lyra looked over to her daughter's drawing and smiled a bit. Putting the lyre down, she got off her armchair and made a little announcement. "Why don't we have our nightly camping tonight? Wouldn't you two like that?" The unicorn lyreist asked with a smile.

Tootsie perked up and immediately stopped drawing. "Really? Tonight? Even with Mommy's condition?" Tootsie asked while looking over to her Mommy Bonbon.

Bonbon simply nodded and smiled. "I'm feeling a bit better now sweetie so I guess it's okay. Besides, it's been awhile since we've done that and I miss it", The earth pony then got up and trotted over to her wife. The response elicited a squeal from Tootsie.

"Then it's settled. Tonight is camp night!" Lyra said while raising her forehoof as her daughter did a happy little dance.

===

Tootsie wiggled into the pillow fort she and her mothers had finished setting up. Waiting for her inside, Lyra and Bonbon were spreading out lots of blankets.

"I still don't know why you call it 'camping' when it's done indoors and with a pillow fort at that!" Bonbon said with a giggle.

"Eh, I couldn't find another word." Lyra admitted, smiling once she saw her daughter.

"What're we gonna do this time Momma? Share stories? Puppet shows? Play I Spy~???" Tootsie asked, unable to contain her excitement. Lyra chuckled then went over to her.

"Tootsie, we've been over this. We can't play I Spy since it wouldn't be that fun in here." Lyra said with a hoof around her daughter. Tootsie's ears flopped down in disappointment.

"Aww, then what are we gonna do this time Momma?" the pale filly asked, trotting over to her favorite blanket that Bonbon just spread out.

"We'll just chat and share stories, sweetie" Bonbon replied, hoof on her daughter's back.

===

"And then TB ended up landing headfirst into a cloud!" Tootsie laughed while sharing what had happened that day. Lyra chuckled from imagining Tornado Bolt squirming around, head literally in the clouds. Bonbon chuckled too, though it was quieter in her case.

"So me n' Alula had to try to pull her out. Alula kept worrying about how Tornado's mom would react." Tootsie Flute continued.

"I bet she got cross with her husband" Lyra suggested.

"Next time, I'm gonna tell TB to be more careful!" Tootsie said.

Lyra chuckled a bit, then realized something with Tootsie's story. "Wait...you said you tried pulling Tornado Bolt out of the cloud...does that mean you were in Cloudsdale?" The question made the little unicorn bow her head down in shame once she caught on to what her mother figured out.

"Yes Momma..." Tootsie replied.

Lyra sighed then crossed her forehooves together, "Tootsie, what did we say about the cloud walking spell?"

"Don't try it unless I'm with a grown-up pegasus or unicorn I trust", Tootsie responded.

"That's right. But why did you do it anyway?" Lyra asked.

"I kept practicing it this week and I finally got the hang of it today Momma! Can't I at least try it on my own now that I got it?" Lyra's daughter asked pleadingly, purple eyes giving into her mother's golden ones the pitiful look.

Normally, Lyra would try two options.

The first option was to ask Bonbon's opinion or choice on the matter. But upon looking at her side, Lyra saw that her wife had fallen asleep, probably not too long after contributing to the chuckles earlier.

Time for option two, Lyra thought.

"Ohhh, how can I stay upset at you when you look at me like that?!" Lyra said whole hugging her daughter. "I'm gonna let you off this time but I'll have to tell Mommy about this, okay Tootsie?" Lyra continued on, hoof gently stroking Tootsie's mane.

"Okay, I understand Momma" Tootsie said, sighing happily while snuggling into her mother's embrace. It was both a sigh of relief and a sigh of contentedness. It had been so long since they could all just have their family moments like this one.

Ever since that fateful visit to the clinic, Tootsie found herself not spending as much time with her mothers as she used to. Bonbon was confined to within the house and Lyra made herself extra busy with work and taking care of her wife. It didn't help that with it now being summer, Tootsie wouldn't at least be occupied with school and the like.

"Hey, do you still wanna stay up Tootsie?" Lyra asked her daughter softly. Tootsie replied with a nod, which Lyra returned with a smile.

Even if Bonbon was asleep, Tootsie could still have parent bonding time. And as long as there was still parent bonding time, the unicorn filly would be happy.

===

Tootsie held up the kaleidoscope flashlight, watching as its beam of light presented a wonderful variety of shadows of different shapes and sizes.

"You know, I've always wondered why you love that thing so much", Lyra asked with amusement. Her daughter being fascinated or interested in things in certain ways was always cute to her. One such fascination was with onesies, but Tootsie immediately outgrew that.

"Cuz it reminds me of the ponies I love", Tootsie replied. Lyra raised an eyebrow up, a bit surprised by her daughter's answer. Then again, Tootsie was a bit eccentric for her age. Not that this stopped Lyra from asking another question.

"Oh? And how does it remind you these ponies?" Lyra asked.

"Well, it gives light, just like the ponies I love. Whenever I get sad, you or Mommy brighten up my day~! Or, that time when I was upset that Twist liked somepony else, but then Dinky cheered me up. Or that other time I got my cutie mark, and then Crackle and I celebrated by going to Sugarcube Corner. And and uh their shapes and sizes...well, they're all different and unique, like the ponies I love."

As soon as Tootsie was finished with her answer, Lyra felt a warm glow of sorts in her chest. It really filled her with joy to hear how much her daughter appreciated not just her and Bonbon's love, but that of others. This was enough to cause an emotional reaction that consisted of happy tears and a runny nose.

Meanwhile, Tootsie just kept staring up at the unique shadows her flashlight casted. Her ears perked up when she heard the sniffing. "Momma, are you okay? Do you have a cold?" Tootsie asked, concerned and innocently unaware of what her mother was really doing.

"No, no. I'm fine Tootsie, just just..." Lyra moved closer to her daughter then wrapped a forehoof around her.

"Sleep now kid, tomorrow's another day."

Comments

[SilverArc]

This is a very nice chapter, with great bonding between Lyra and Toostie. Bonbon wasn't much in this chapter as I hope but it didn't mess the experience.

Keep it up, and I hope you overcome writer's block.