New Moon (My Little Pony)

11 (1/2) Breakfast

Bud felt warmth permeating throughout her body when she began to regain her consciousness. Her eyes opened slowly but then fluttered closed when a ray of sunlight struck her from the window. She groaned in annoyance and lifted her forehoof to mask her eyes from the rising sun. A yawn then escaped her, followed by a brief stretch of her legs.

After her limbs had run its course, her eyes finally dawned upon a gradual motion she felt brushing beneath her barrel. There, she recognized her two foals, sleeping soundly underneath her hoof and comforter. Nebula had buried a side of her face into Bud's lime coat while Artemis constricted his small hooves onto Bud's hoof. Her daughter looked so peaceful in her sleep and her son seemed satisfied with nibbling on Bud's hoof.

This was still strange to her. Seeing the two of them again was proof that this was now her reality. That everything she had experienced in the last few unusual days was indeed real. And every time she comes to that realization, she is met with mixed emotions.

There would be a moment of relief that her foals were not figments of her imagination, but then she would fell dread after realizing what her foals really are. Them being the reincarnation of the greatest threat to Equestria was still a fact she was having difficulty to accept.

Despite receiving some assurance of her daughter's trust, she could still feel the anxieties that followed her from the hospital. Still questioning if she is truly capable of raising foals like them. All of her years at working at her mother's daycare felt redundant when it came to them. This was something new, an uncharted place she has no idea to make sense of.

But why was that so? Was it because they aren't normal foals. Or maybe it's because they are her foals.

Bud hated thinking this way. A mother should not be so troubled about her role. Always seconding guessing herself every morning. But she couldn't help but ask herself these questions.

Before she could delve further into her darker thoughts, a flash of light immediately cleansed them away. Bud yelped at the sudden flash and then vigorously rubbed her eyes with her free hoof.

"Whoops," Bud heard a voice. "I'm so sorry my lovely Bud. My hoof slipped."

"Mom," Bud whined. "What are you doing!?" When she lowered her hoof, Bud found her mother standing beside the couch with a camera in her hooves. Hope placed it atop a small table that stood inches beside the couch as the camera slotted out a photo. "Were you taking pictures of me in my sleep again?"

"Please forgive your mother my lovely Bud. I couldn't help myself. When I saw you sleeping with your foals, you looked so radiant. It was too tempting for this old mare to resist."

"Why do you have to be so weird," Bud glared at her mother. "Wait, how long were you watching me?"

"Oh, not too long, I promise." Hope pulled the photo out of the camera. Bud will most likely find it plastered somewhere in this house the next time she comes by to visit. When she laid the photo back in the small table, she continued, "I really came here to wake you up for breakfast."

"You made breakfast without me?" Bud was disappointed. "But we always cook together in the morning."

"I know sweetie; I love those moments too. But, I felt bad stealing you away from your foals. Besides, you going to need all the rest you can get for the work you're going to be doing fo the rest of your life."

"..."

"Hm?" Hope was perplexed by her daughter's blank gaze. "Are you still tired? I can give you another few minutes if you need it."

"No, it's not that."

"Oh, have something on your mind then. Go on then, tell your mother what's troubling you." Hope lowered to the arm of the couch that Bud rested upon and ensnared her daughter's head to her chest. Her affection was nostalgic and comforting to Bud, but also very confusing.