Cheating the Cycle of Life- A Padded Pony Collab

Even though he was only 3 years old (and going to be 4 in a couple of months) Joseph was always very curious. He had a tendency to ask a lot of questions, some of which his parents would answer for him, and some of which they would let him figure out for himself.

Of course, whenever Joseph got really curious, he would often drag his pet Timberwolf Stickz into his investigations. Some of which Stickz enjoyed. But more often than not, Stickz would grow bored and just go find something else to do, while Joseph continued to investigate.

One morning, Joseph woke up as he always did. Smiling happily at both his dry pull-up, and at Stickz sleeping peacefully on the floor of the bedroom.

As Joseph woke Stickz up, and the two of them took their morning potty break up, Joseph felt that today would be no different from the countless other days of the year.

But as Joseph neared the kitchen, he could overhear faint traces of a conversation. Apparently, his parents were arguing about something.

“I’m still not convinced it’s a good idea to let Joseph keep a Timberwolf as a pet.” Joseph’s Mom said angrily.

“Stickz has made Joseph far more happy than he has ever been before, and has been a big motivator in keeping him potty trained.” Joseph’s Dad said in reply.

“But what will other ponies think if they find out Stickz’s secret?” Joseph’s Mom asked angrily “They will freak out, and Stickz will be taken away and put down.”

“Ponies in this town have seen far worse things in their life than a random Timberwolf that has befriended a young colt.” Joseph’s Dad replied.

“But you know how curious Joseph is. What if Stickz runs away? Joseph will follow after him and get lost.” Joseph’s Mom complained.

“I’m pretty sure Joseph is smart enough to know better than to run off without telling us or somepony trustworthy,” Joseph’s Dad replied “I’ve even arranged for him to be foalsat by Fluttershy when we go out of town next weekend.”

“With that Discord creature around? I don’t think so!” Joseph’s Mom protested. “Discord is bound to cause trouble, and poor Joseph is going to get caught in the middle of it.”

“You make it sound as if Discord is some random stranger. He is a trusted friend of Fluttershy’s, and from what I hear he is surprisingly decent with foals.” Joseph’s Dad replied.

“Forgive me if I remain skeptical,” Joseph’s Mom said with a shake of her head “I still say we should’ve had him be foalsat by The Cakes.”

“You seem to be worried that Discord is going to do bad things to Joseph,” Joseph’s Dad replied “He is not some random stranger that goes around saying words like dong.”

Upon hearing the word ‘Dong’ Joseph became really curious. He had never heard that word before.

He turned to Stickz and asked “Hey, Stickz, do you know what a dong is?”

Stickz looked at Joseph for a second, as if wondering why Joseph was even asking him. Then he quickly shook his head.

“Maybe it’s a fancy way of saying toilet? You know, like how the grownups often call it the can or the john?” Joseph asked.

Stickz responded with what amounted to a shrug, and wandered away.

Joseph decided that it was best if he asked his parents, and so he walked into the kitchen to ask them.

But when he did so, he was surprised at what he saw. His mom was looking at his dad as if his dad had something wrong. The last time she had given such a look, was when he had let Joseph stay up past his bedtime.

On top of that, Joseph saw that his dad seemed really ashamed of himself. And the last time Joseph had ever seen that look, was when his dad had accidentally put him in a diaper instead of a pull-up, even though they were running low on pull-ups.

Seeing that sort of look made Joseph conclude that he probably shouldn’t ask them what ‘Dong’ meant. Whatever it was, he was probably better off not knowing. At least for now.

“Hey Mom, hey Dad.” Joseph called.

“Good morning Joseph, and good morning to you as well, Stickz.” Joseph’s Mom replied, smiling happily “Why don’t you two take your seats, breakfast will be ready shortly.”

Joseph obeyed, and climbed into his favorite seat at the table. Joseph’s Dad did the same, and Stickz took his favorite place underneath the table. Nothing more was said about the word ‘Dong’ and it wasn’t long until Joseph forget all about it.