Bridget the blue wingy mummah had a pretty great life. She lived with her mummah and daddeh in their apartment since she was a foal five years ago, and recently she’d had six beautiful babbehs. Mummah and daddeh had been so excited for the babbehs! But while Bridget was just a Soon Mummah, daddeh had a friend start coming over. He told her not to tell mummah, but she never was great with instructions.
Mummah left all at once. She had two friends come and pack her things, and she promised Bridget she’d find a way to get “custardy.” Bridget wasn’t sure how nummy ice cream would get her and daddeh to stop being dummeh and start loving each other again, but if mummah said it would help Bridget had absolute faith in her wisdom.
By the time the foals were born, it was clear mummah wasn’t coming back. When they were cleaned off, fed and resting in the nice heated bed mummah had bought for her, Bridget went to the living room to talk to daddeh. He sat where he’d been sitting for months: Zonked out and crossfaded, watching tv.
“Hewwo? Daddeh? Bwidget am hewe, daddeh am wakies?” She approached softly. She could smell the silly wawa from the hallway, she knew better than to wake up sleeping daddehs. Fortunately, he responded. “Y…yeah I’m in…in here…ugh…” He sounded tired, and maybe a little sickies. He’d definitely need huggies from his good little girl Bridget.
She approached the armchair and daddeh picked her up. He made a slight burp and it reeked of flowers, berries, and ethanol. “Wassup lil’ lady. Daddy’s here. Ya done with the babies?” She nodded intently. “Yep! Babbehs aww gud! Am aww gud babbehs, hab wotsa miwkies an huggies, den make gud mummah singies fow babbehs tiww babbehs gu asweepy. Shhhh!” She clumsily lisped a shushing sound as she booped her own snout with her hoof, eliciting laughter from daddeh. “Bwidget jus wan gif huggies tu daddeh, tawkies wif daddeh.” He smiled and patted her head. “Okay Bridget, what’s on your mind?” She fidgeted nervously. “Weww it jus…Bwidget…Bwidget miss mummah, an wan knu wen mummah cummin backsies? Nu hab seen mummah since was onwy teeny wittwe bit soon mummah, an nao babbehs am weaw babbehs! Nu tummeh babbehs nu mowe! Bwidget suuuuuu escited tu wet aww babbehs meet mummah! Den mummah an daddeh wiww get tu gib gud namesies tu babbehs wike did wif gud Bwidget, mm hm! Yup! Das wite!” Being a fluffy, she forgot that her hopes were hopes and not actual future events. It happens when they discuss plans with more than one step sometimes. They start getting excited, believing somehow that the task is already completed, rather than not yet begun.
If she hadn’t been so wrapped up, she’d have seen the smile leaving daddeh’s face.
She was cut off as he casually rolled her off his lap, down his legs, onto the floor. She wasn’t hurt, just startled, dizzy, and a bit confused. “Eep! Bwidget fawwin downsies! Daddeh, sabe gud Bwidget!” He ignored her pleas, instead wedging a foot under her and saucer passing her, kind of roughly this time, towards the entrance of the hall to her saferoom closet.
Of course daddeh was drunk, so he gave the pass too much oomph and his aim was shit. She went tumbling side over side like he’d intended, but her ass bounced off the side of the hallway with a “thuk” sound followed by a yelp and frantic hushed cries from a fluffy trying not to be hurt more until it knows if it’s safe.
“Huuuuuu owwies…wai daddeh gif wowstest sowwy wowws? Huuuu Bwidget nu am baww fow daddeh pway footy wif…” She gathered herself and stood, wincing when she had to move her hind weggies, the right one especially. She turned back towards daddeh, half expecting him to be rushing over. Either to help her and apologize, or to finish the job. She was ashamed that she felt the second more likely.
What she hadn’t expected was for daddeh to be sitting in his chair, fully reclined, back to watching tv. “D…daddeh! Wai…wai huwt Bwidget? Am bwan nyu mummah!” She puffed her cheeks and spread her front weggies in a show of force, kicking her back weggies like she was preparing to charge. She gritted her teeth through the owwies.
Daddeh just laughed. “Hahahahaha oh man you really didn’t like that, huh?” She nodded her head, cheeks still puffed in anger. “Daddeh nu posed tu be meanies tu Bwidget! Mummah awways teww Bwidget nu wet daddeh be meanies, eben wen it wook wike daddeh jus pwayin!” She huffed and looked sad for a second. “Miss mummah. Wan…wan mummah backsies.” She furrowed her brow, choosing righteous indignation over self pity. "Bwidget gunna teww mummah on ou, daddeh! Wen mummah cum home Bwidget gunna teww mummah dat daddeh been kickin Bwidget wike baww! Nu eben gud kickies! Nu can aim at aww!" He smiled. Not a warm smile, an empty smile of resentment that one sees before receiving unexpected comeuppance.
“She’s not coming back.”
Bridget hesitated. This is the first she’d heard of this. Normally daddeh just deflects or cries or outright refuses to answer. She thought maybe he didn’t know. But she never imagined that mummah was gone forever forever. Just several forevers. Not this horrifying naked “forever.” “N…nu, dat nu wite. Mummah teww-” he startled her as he swiftly closed the footrest and began to stand. “What!? She told you what? That she’d come back for you? That she’d save you? Well she tried. During the divorce, she fought like hell for you and your babies. She really really wants you all to live with her.”
“Bu…bu nu wan weabe daddeh! Daddeh gunna cum wif Bwidget an Babbehs tu wibe wif mummah?” He slowly stepped towards her, and she began to shrink away from him, backing down the hall. “Oh, you’re not leaving. You’re staying with me. You’re never seeing that b…mommy again.” Bridget started to tear up. “Wai? Dat nu am faiw, Bwidget wub mummah an daddeh! Nu wan nebba see mummah gain! Bwidget wub mummah!” Her daddeh scowled. "Well I fucking don’t. She walked out on me, walked out on us. No goddamned way was I letting her have you."
Bridget was nervously tapping her hooves, making a sort of quiet omnipresent whine whenever she wasn’t talking or hyperventilating. “Huuuu Bwidget wub daddeh tuu, an awways wan be wif daddeh! Bwidget pwomise! Jus wan see mummah awso?” She let the pitiful tone her voice naturally possessed shine through in an effort to garner sympathy, but to no avail.
"Bridget? Mommy only left because you told her Daddy had special huggies with her friend. She’s gone because you are a dummy and a bad fluffy." Bridget let out a low whimper. Why would daddy say that? He’s being such a meanie! “Huuuu Bwidget sowwy fow be bad fwuffy daddeh, stiww wub Bwidget?” She sat back and extended her huggiest legs, tears in her eyes.
Daddeh leaned down and slapped her across the face. She tumbled over sideways, bouncing her head off the hard wood floor and smacking her snout into a table leg. Her nose was pushed back and up a bit, the soft bones behind it having bent from the impact. It was bleeding, and when she breathed it was whistling. She was clearly struggling as well, since the airway had been blocked somewhat.
Wheezing, she struggled to her feet. “Huuuu…haf…haf…su…su di…haf…haf…dizzies! Nee…nee way…hef…hef…*haaaaf…*way downsies…” She turned and started walking to her saferoom, blood dripping from her nostrils. She was breathing through her mouth, which fluffies hate. They can’t smell when they do that, and that’s their best sense. Breathing through the mouth is their equivalent to wearing sunglasses in the dark.
Daddeh grabbed her tail and lifted, ignoring her “yip!” He hoisted her up and hooked her long tail fluff around a coat hook, then tied it into a knot.
It was a low coathook. They’d hoped for kids someday, but…
Bridget’s back weggies were like a foot off the ground. She could only reach with her front weggies, and all her weight was on them. Now she could have relaxed and let the weight fall on her tail. It would be painful, but permanent damage would be unlikely. Staying on her weggies like this was damaging her joints and the fact all her weight was on them did a number on the bones, too. It was agonizing and it would jack up her gait for life.
But fluffies hate being lifted by their tails. They’ll avoid it to their own detriment. She didn’t let her legs rest for hours. By the time she passed out, the damage was done.