In The Love Nest... [CrimsonNova & PonyHooves]

[PonyHooves]

Whisperpaw chuckled softly. He knew that his younger cousin had plenty more to learn about life before she'd understand what true love is. He turned his head back to Seaspray. "Are you ready for the picnic, my dear?" He swiftly kissed her on the cheek once more.

Midnight Sun's stomach rumbled loudly. "I'm hungry... I hope we get to eat soon." She said as she looked up at the happy couple. She didn't know what to think of Seaspray. In a way, she was like an aunt, but in another she also had a mothering side. The foal knew her mother couldn't be replaced. But families can have more than just one aunt. She decided to let the word slip. "Auntie Seaspray, surely you must be hungry too!"

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray stuff her hoof in her mouth to stop her giggling, and she nodded happily. "Yes, I'm looking forward to it!"

Seaspray was just turning to walk in the opposite direction when she heard Midnight Sun's comment. She froze in shock and her eyes widened a little at the given title, but she brushed it off and tried not to make a fuss. She was insanely glad the foal was taking to her, and she couldn't get enough of the fact she had managed to befriend the young filly.

"I am, sweetie. I haven't eaten since I left Seasaddle Bay earlier today," she said softly, as her stomach rumbled loudly, and she laughed.

[PonyHooves]

Midnight Sun smiled brightly. Seaspray didn't seem to mind being called 'Auntie'. Midnight Sun cantered around happily while holding up her books with magic. She felt as though she had a place in this small area. She felt like she belonged. As she cantered the puppy stayed by her hooves; her tail wagging happily as she could sense Midnight Sun's joy.

"She really thinks of you as a part of her family..." Whisperpaw whispered into Seaspray's ear. He was suprised by what his little cousin had said. But it was a nice suprise. It was just like they were one big, happy family. He stayed close to Seaspray as he walked towards the picnic area. A sensation of love seemed to captivate both his heart and his soul. It felt wonderful.

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray looked to Whisperpaw and tilted her head, smiling warmly. "I am soon to be part of your family now, hon."

She looked up to her horn, and she felt a warmness spread over her body and to her heart as she gazed upon the material that had the power to join two families together. It was strange, really. Such a small, seemingly meaningless object could have such power!

She glanced around the area, smiling at everypony she could see; every pet she could see; every little place the sunlight touched. She had never felt so.. accepted before; never felt as though she belonged like this before.

[PonyHooves]

"Yeah and a special member of the family too." He replied as he untied the picnic basket so that he could remove it from his back. He opened up the picnic basked and pulled out the picnic blanket. The stallion carefully spread out the picnic blanket on the grass in the shade of an oak tree.

Whisperpaw had never felt so alive. He had always felt quite dull inside, as though something was missing. When he was just a colt, he assumed that it was his mother and father who had jobs that kept them away from him. But as he grew older, he knew it wasn't them as his aunt in Canterlot read every letter they sent to him. They were thinking about him each and every day. For a while he couldn't think of the solution to this perplexing problem. That all changed on that day he first saw Seaspray. She was the missing link in his life and now they were together.

The black stallion sat on the picnic blanket. He was calmly watching Seaspray with his gentle eyes. She was so beautiful and elegant. He liked the way her mane gently flowed in the hushed breeze that refreshed ponies out in the warmth of the day. He loved her beautiful smile and her eyes seemed to enchant him with their mysterious ways. She was a kind soul with such passion in her heart.

He couldn't observe her for any longer. Whisperpaw held Seaspray's hoof before kissing her so tenderly on the tip of her nose and then once again on her cheek. The unicorn looked into her eyes and spoke in a tone, so gentle. "You are the brightest star that shines at night. You are the radiant glow of the sunrise. You are the gentle touch of the wind in my mane. Seaspray, you are my everything."

Midnight Sun rolled her eyes around at her cousin. She sat on the picnic blanket as she carefully lowered the books onto it with her magic. The foal looked at the puppy and smiled. She wanted to name her. But she was saving the naming ceremony until she had confermation that the puppy was indeed a stray. For a moment, Midnight Sun watched the puppy. She stopped watching when she saw her curl up beside the foal and fall asleep.

Midnight Sun opened up the book, Dog Breeds 101, with her hoof. She still didn't know how to open books with magic as of that point in time. But she wasn't bothered about that. Midnight sun wondered if she could find out what breed of dog, the puppy was. It seemed like a good reason to take a look in a book that was all about dog breeds.

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray lay down beside Whisperpaw on the blanket, and she smiled, blushing softly as Whisperpaw showered her in sweet words in his gentle tone.

She never could have believed that today, she'd be lying here like this with her special somepony, especially with a ring on her horn! She glanced to Whisperpaw, a bright smile on her face as she began to daydream about her wedding day.

She snapped out of her fantasy and looked over to Midnight Sun. The young foal was clearly very intelligent for her age, and she smiled. She couldn't remember her foalhood; her accident had prevented any memories. That was one of the reasons she was so determined to cherish every moment of her future life, and so kept a diary which she wrote in every night.

She rested her neck on Whisperpaw's and murmured softly. "Does she always read so much?"

[PonyHooves]

Whisperpaw felt the warmth of Seaspray's body against his. He never thought that this day would come. Because of his shy and timid nature, he struggled at the best of times to even make a simple conversation with anypony. But here he was sat down on a picnic blanket with his special somepony leaning against him. What made this day even more special was that he had managed to pluck up the courage to propose. It was like a beautiful dream.

He then noticed the way she looked at Midnight Sun. Seaspray asked about the foal's reading habbits. He remembered that time he left Solstice Heights to meet his other aunt who lived in Manehattan to see his little cousin in person for the first time. She had only just learned how to read and when he met her, she had read four children's books and was half way through reading the fifth one.

"She's been like that ever since the day she learned how to read... In fact, it can be very hard to get her to put a book down once she's started to read it." He informed Seaspray. "I remember when I visited her on the day she had learned how to read. Her mother couldn't get her to eat anything until she had finished the tenth story book in the series of childrens books."

Midnight Sun was too busy reading her book that she didn't even hear the conversation about her reading habbits. The foal read every word in silence. She read the words mentally as she had learned through reading various different books in the past. Midnight Sun read all of the text on the page and ignored the pictures until she was sure that she didn't miss out a single word. Once the text had been processed in her mind, her eyes quickly glanced at the pictures before she turned the page. After reading eight pages, the foal placed her hoof on the photo of a dog. It had the same markings as the puppy that slept peacefully beside her.

"So your a Border Collie." She spoke softly to the sleeping puppy. A smile crept up on her face just as she returned to reading the book.

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray nodded and began to caress her fiancé with her nose, nuzzling all along his neck and burying her face against it in a gentle embrace. She thought about Midnight Sun's reading habits. She supposed it was just a comfort thing; much like her midnight strolls along the beach back home at Seasaddle.

She was indeed very intrigued by the foal, and she wanted to bond as much as possible with her, not only for the sake of Whisperpaw, but also because she was genuinely concerned about her role as a part of this family. She wanted to do things properly, and become every bit a part of this family as her role as Whisperpaw's wife as she should be.

She looked back over to the young filly as she heard her murmur something to herself. "What's that? Did you find out what breed she is?"

[PonyHooves]

Midnight Sun turned back to the page about Border Collies. She levitated the book towards Seaspray and gently lowered it down on the picnic blanket infront of her. The foal carefully stood up so that she didn't disturb the sleeping puppy. She quietly walked up to Seaspray and sat beside her so that Whisperpaw was sat at one side of her and Midnight Sun was sat at the other side.

"She's a Border Collie. See, she matches the physical description in every way. Oh, and the picture of course." She explained to her. "Border Collies are working dogs. They were originally bread for hearding sheep and other farm animals."

Midnight Sun was enjoying the fact that Seaspray had taken an interest in what she wanted to do research on. Back when the foal lived with her mother, she was the only one who ever had the thirst for knowledge. Her mother wasn't interested in the books she read and so Midnight Sun had gotten used to reading all on her own with nopony interested in reading with her. The fact that Seaspray wanted to know what the foal had found in a book, really brightened up her day. She was connecting with the mare and felt as though that she was with her auntie who lived in Canterlot.

Whisperpaw smiled softly as he allowed the two to connect emotionally through interests in the findings of that book. While they were talking, Whisperpaw opened up the picnic basket and began to set the food neatly on the picnic blanket. He took extra care to ensure that all of the food came out looking as good as it did before he even put it in the picnic basket. Once that was done, the stallion snuggled up close to his fiancé. He inhaled her scent and let out a quiet sigh of both joy and relief.

"The lunch is ready... Would you like to do the honours of persuading Midnight Sun to leave the book alone so she can eat." He whispered in Seaspray's ear.

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray smiled warmly as the foal came over to sit beside her. She listened intently to Midnight Sun's explanation, and once she was finished, the mare thought for a little bit, and tucked her hooves more comfortably under herself. "Well, not only did you happen to find a beautiful friend - she certainly is a fine looking dog - but you also found a very helpful one!" Seaspray laughed gently.

The pair fell into an easy silence, and Seaspray contented herself in watching Whisperpaw set out their meal. She considered herself very lucky. He really was a very special somepony, and quite talented - and he, of course, was all hers.

She smiled as he sat back down next to her, and upon hearing his playful request she leaned in to Midnight Sun and rubbed her horn against the foals in an affectionate way. She knew the foal would become irritated if she began to try to replace her mother back in Canterlot, so she didn't make it an obvious gesture. She lowered her voice so Whisperpaw wouldn't hear.

"And I'm sure that you and you're little friend can read more when you're supposed to be in bed, but right now, I think it's time for a little bit of lunch, don't you?" Seaspray winked playfully at the foal, and raised her voice back to it's normal volume to compliment the stallion sat beside her. "It looks wonderful."

[PonyHooves]

Midnight Sun giggled as she playfully winked back at Seaspray. She left the book and looked at all of the food. She didn't know what she wanted to eat. But it looked so delicious. The foal began to do a childish form of picking out what she wanted to eat. "Ip, dip, snail goo, mother's eating funky food, Chew it here, swallow there, this food will make me a mare!" She finished up pointing at the dandelion sandwiches.

Whisperpaw chuckled as his younger cousin make her descision by making up a silly rhyme. He slipped a dandelion sandwich onto a separate plate for Midnight Sun and then placed the plate in front of her. He watched for a moment, as he saw her take the first bite into the sandwich. After seeing that she was content in eating, he turned his attenion back to his fiancé.

"What would you like to eat, my dear?" He asked her in his tone so gentle.

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray smiled as she got through to the foal, and nodded at her choice in food. She turned back to Whisperpaw and tilted her head. "You know, those dandelion sandwiches do look rather tasty."

She laughed lightly and shrugged. "I'll have one too."

She took her plate from Whisperpaw with her magic, nuzzled him in thanks and began to tuck in. As she chewed, she sighed appreciatevely. Between a bite, Seaspray looked up to him again. "This really is delicious. Thank you for taking such care for a wonderful treat for us."

[PonyHooves]

"Your family... Both of you." Whisperpaw replied before slipping a dandelion sandwich onto a plate. He happily began to eat his sandwich. The stallion had never felt so relaxed around his little cousin before. Usually by now the pair would be yelling at each other for a reason that none of them fully understood. He much preferred his cousin to act in this peaceful manner.

"This is what you do for family?" Midnight Sun spoke as she had finished her sandwich. "Mother would never allow me to eat food off a picnic blanket. She said I'd get germs and become really sick." The foal spoke with pure honesty and innocence. She looked up at Whisperpaw and Seaspray, with her big, innocent eyes. She didn't understand what to believe. She wanted to believe that her mother was right. But Whisperpaw wasn't sick and she was sure that he had been on plenty of picnics.

"You'd only get germs and become sick if your food was touching the ground... The picnic blanket protects the food from the germs." Whisperpaw explained to the foal.

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray repressed a shiver of joy when she heard the word again. She really was becoming part of a family now. She couldn't wipe the smile off her face, and she knew that Whisperpaw was feeling likewise.

She looked over at Midnight Sun. "Be thankful you're not eating a picnic in Seasaddle Bay. You could really call it a sandwich," she joked lightly.

She finished her own sandwich and then returned to her position as she lay with her head on Whisperpaw's back, basking once more in the afternoon sunlight. She turned her head a little, watching as the ring on her horn glinted in the sunlight. It still felt so surreal; like a beautiful dream. She chuckled softly and nuzzled Whisperpaw's back.

[PonyHooves]

Midnight Sun took a moment to process what Whisperpaw had said. She then understood that her mother didn't like picnics because she was an upper class pony who found that causing a picnic blanket to touch dirty ground was uncouth. The foal then heard Seaspray's comment. She soon understood what that meant and began to laugh. After that, she sat back down and proceeded in continuing to read her book.

Whisperpaw stretched out his front hooves. The hot sun felt good on his pelt. The stallion loved the way Seaspray gently nuzzled his back. It felt soothing, as though she was relieving his tension with a light massage. A smile was resting gently on his features. His eyes looked sleepily into the distance as he thought about the future and all of the wonders that came with it. Whisperpaw couldn't help, but grin rom ear to ear as the thought of a wedding floated around in his head.

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray was glad she made the young filly laugh, and she smiled. She could feel Whisperpaw sigh as she nuzzled his back, and she carried on, enjoying the fact that she was relaxing him.

The sun was warm on the mare's sea-blue pelt, and she could feel Whisperpaw heating up as well. She began to feel quite sleepy, and she rested her head against his neck, her eyes drooping a little as the slow, steady rise and fall of Whisperpaw's chest as he breathed.

She was determined to remember to talk to Whisperpaw about the possibility of a family later on, and see where they stood on the subject, but right now she was too sleepy..

[PonyHooves]

Whisperpaw could feel his eyes grow heavy. As he did so, the stallion noticed that Seaspray was gently resting her head against his neck. She also had that same sleepy expression on her face. He didn't mind staying awake for the love of his life. Somepony had to watch over Midnight Sun. She was only eight years old after all; which meant that she was still just a foal. He didn't want to even think about the possibilities of his Manehattan aunt's only child getting hurt. She would be disappointed and then she'd tell his other aunt who he grew up with in Canterlot. The guilt would be too much to bear and he didn't want to be shunned by his two aunts.

After trying to fight the tempting lure of sleep, his eyes finally snapped shut. Whisperpaw had fallen into a deep sleep. His head was gently resting on his front hooves as he began to dream sweet dreams.

Midnight Sun had completely read dog breeds 101. She started to look at all of the different books she had chosen. They all were tempting. She knew not to judge a book by its cover and so she read the description on the back. It was still a difficult descision. She loved the formality and detail of eack book. Midnight Sun often found it hard to choose between books that weren't connected in a series order. She liked to read books with a more adult approach to choosing them which is why she wasn't playing her choosing rhyme game.

The border collie woke up from her peaceful nap. She silently stretched, before she wandered off away from the picnic sight. The foal wanted to get Whisperpaw to stop the puppy from leaving. But when she saw that he had fallen asleep, she decided to take matters into her own hooves. With that in mind, Midnight Sun sneaked off to follow the border collie. Soon, she was too far away to be seen from the picnic area.

The puppy wandered off into a part of Solstice Heights that had uneven, rocky ground. Solstice Heights was only a village near Canterlot and the mountains. This meant that the ground would be uneven and possibly dangerous in places. Midnight Sun didn't see the dangers. She only saw the puppy wandering away.

After walking for a while the border collie finally stopped in front of a small stream to take a drink. The foal sighed softly. "You dragged me all of the way out here because you were thirsty! Do you have any idea how far away we are from cousin Whisperpaw. I can't even see any cottages? We must be on the border of Solstice Heights and the mountains." The puppy simply looked at the foal while licking a droplet of water off her own nose.

Midnight Sun was about to head back when she slipped on some loose rocks and her left back leg became twisted. She screamed out in pain. It really hurt.

Sensing her pain the border collie stood bolt upright. The foal had followed her out to the border of Solstice Heights; an area dangerous to foals. The puppy knew the area very well as she had wandered to several different parts of Solstice Heights in search of her next meal and some water to quench her thirst. If she could speak in the foal's language, the border collie would have told her not to follow. She thought that Midnight Sun wouldn't have noticed her sneak off in such a way.

There was no time to regret events of the past. The border collie had to alert the mare and the stallion that Midnight Sun was in trouble. She padded over to the foal and gently nuzzled her face to reassure her that help was on it's way. The puppy then ran as fast as she possibly could.

After a long time running, she made it back to the picnic blanket. The border collie began to bark hysterically. She also pawed at both Whisperpaw and Seaspray's bodies. The border collie just had to make them see that something was very, very wrong.

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray was in the midst of a pleasant dream when a loud barking sound snapped her from her nap. She jumped up, startled. She looked around, something was missing, and her head began to hurt as she tried to place it. She looked to the puppy, rubbing her head with her hoof as she suddenly realised what was wrong. "Oh.. Where's Midnight Sun?"

She put a hoof on Whisperpaw's shoulder and shook him gently, yet urgently.

"Whisperpaw, wake up!"

[PonyHooves]

It was a beautiful summer's morning. About a two hours before it could be classed as lunch time. Whisperpaw was stood at the front of the librarian's desk in Solstice Heights library, wearing his best suit. It was topped off with a rose to add that essential touch. The library was decorated with sparkling golden ribbons and the book shelves had been shifted aside. There was a stallion postioned neatly behind the librarian's desk. He had a ceremonial book resting on the desk, in which he could recite lines from if he were to forget them. Several different ponies were sat together in two neat rows, leaving a line down the centerthat lead directly towards the librarain's desk.

Seaspray appeared at the front enterance to the library. She was wearing a dazzling white wedding dress. Her face was blushing a pale shade of red. As she stepped in, several birds began to whistle in a harmonious tune, that seemed to bring together, everypony in the building and warm up their hearts.

Suddenly, the pony behind the desk started barking. Seaspray began to run towards Whisperpaw and shook him while telling him to 'wake up.'

Whisperpaw opened his eyes slowly. It was just a dream. He rubbed his eyes with his hoof and then looked at Seaspray. The expression on her face no longer held a smile. It had a look of deep worry as though something was wrong. The stallion began to think for a moment what could possibly be wrong. He didn't quite understand. He thought the picnic was going so perfectly. He and Seaspray were sharing some quality time together and Midnight Sun hadn't even tried to argue with either of them.

Whisperpaw's eyes widened. He was supposed to be watching his little cousin. He looked passed his fiancé to where Midnight Sun was sitting before he fell asleep. She wasn't there anymore. Instead, there was just a hysteric puppy barking in a loud manner and whining at both of them. The stallion leapt up to his hooves, sharply.

"Where's Midnight Sun?" He asked Seaspray. "I was supposed to be taking good care of her!"

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray shook her head urgently. "I don't know, I.. I fell asleep, and the dog woke me up, and now she's gone. I think we need to follow the dog."

Seaspray's eyes began to water; if anything had happened to the foal, it would be just as much her fault as Whisperpaw's, and she knew that she couldn't bare that thought; especially now that she had bonded with the young filly. She shook her head and wiped her eyes quickly.

She then looked to her fiancé, and tilted her head towards the dog, then took off at a canter after the young pup, not even waiting for the stallion.

[PonyHooves]

They had both fallen asleep. That meant his little cousin could have gone anywhere. Why did he have to close his eyes? If only he had stayed awake. Then Midnight Sun would still be by his side. Whisperpaw was starting to feel guilty as he cantered beside Seaspray, allowing the puppy to lead them to the foal.

The puppy had successfully awoked the pair. She ran to Solstice Heights border with them hot on her trail. Whenthey seemed to be out of sight, the border collie would yap as loud as she could so that they could follow the sound of her voice.

Once she had made it to Midnight Sun's side, the border collie lay down beside the injured foal and whined loudly.

Whisperpaw galloped ahead of Seaspray in order to see his cousin quicker. He stopped head in his tracks when he saw her lying on the floor with her leg twisted in an odd position that didn't seem possible. Even he could tell that she had broken her leg. But Solstice Heights Hospital was closed for repairs as the building was so old that it had just collapsed. The nearest hospital was in Canterlot.

Whisperpaw was in tears as he picked up the courage to sit down beside Midnight Sun. "I'm sorry.. I shouldn't have fallen asleep."

"It's not your fault. I followed the puppy when I saw her sneaking off. I didn't know that she only came here to drink from the stream." Midnight Sun replied. She looked down at the floor so that Whisperpaw couldn't see her face. Her tears spilled on the rocky ground as she sobbed quietly. "It hurts..." She mumbled.

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray was exhausted by the time they reached the young foal; she had never run so fast such a far distance in her life. She bent down over Whisperpaw to nuzzle the injured foal gently. She put a reassuring hoof on the stallions shoulder, and spoke softly.

"I have spells that can help her, until we get to a hospital. I've only ever used them on animals, so I'm not sure if I'm capable of actually fixing her leg properly, but it might ease the pain a bit. I won't do it unless I have both of your permission though."

She looked to Whisperpaw, and used her nose to wipe away his tears gently, and then did the same to Midnight Sun.

[PonyHooves]

Whisperpaw gently nuzzled Seaspray. "Well, you can try... Solstice Heights hospital collapsed a few days ago. We'll have to take her into Canterlot." He always wanted to take his little cousin to see the different sights in Canterlot. But not like this.

Midnight Sun looked up at Seaspray with her big, innocent eyes. She raised her front hooves and wrapped them around her. The foal wanted a hug. "I didn't mean to spoil the picnic. You know that... Right, Auntie Seaspray?"

[CrimsonNova]

Seaspray nodded and curled her body around the foal carefully. She wrapped one leg around her midriff in a gentle hug, and she nuzzled her to calm her a little bit.

"I know that sweetie, it's not your fault."

The mare leaned forward and touched the tip of her horn to Midnight Sun's injured leg. Her horn began to glow a royal purple, and soon the glow spread to the foals leg. Seaspray's eyes squeezed shut, and she winced a little. After a little while, the glow began to fade and she opened her eyes, rubbing her head with her hoof. "Ow.."

She prodded Midnight Sun's leg with the tip of her horn gently, and when the foal didn't seem to notice it, she knew that the pain had ebbed away a little. "Is that any better?"

[PonyHooves]

Midnight Sun nodded slowly. "It doesn't hurt as bad now... Now it hurts like a bruise. But my leg is still all twisted and funny looking."

"That spell wasn't for straightening out your leg. Auntie Seaspray, wanted to make the hurt go away so you'll fell nice and comfortable when we take you to Canterlot Hospital." Whisperpaw replied. He nuzzled Midnight Sun's cheek before telling her to. "Just keep being brave."

"What about the puppy? We can't take her to Canterlot with us." The foal replied. "She's a hero... She got help for me when really I needed it."

"We'll take her back home and I'll give her some clean water, fresh puppy food and a nice warm dog bed. She'll stay there while we're out." Whisperpaw reassured the foal that her animal friend would be okay while they were gone.