Silent Graves

"I'm home!"

"We're in the kitchen!" called Brunch. As her husband walked in, his smile quickly faded. "I think I messed something up at lunch."

He sat down next to her. "I guess you were right about that celery. I thought it would last another few days. I take full responsibility for that." He gently nuzzled her neck. "Are you going to be alright?"

"Yeah, it's just some indigestion. We should be better tomorrow. If not, we're going to go see a doctor."

They both looked to their son, fully expecting him to voice an objection to going to the doctor, but no such complaint came. He just put his head down on the table and rubbed his stomach. "It hurts..."

"It sounds like you could use some good news," he smiled, reaching into his saddlebags. "I brought home something special, and as soon as we're all feeling better, we can celebrate." He presented to them a bag filled with morels. "The tastiest I could find."

"I don't think we're in the mood for eating right now," groaned Brunch.

"Not right now, for when you recover."

She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "That's very thoughtful, and when we're feeling better, I'm sure we'll appreciate it. But for now, do you think you could just do a simple soup? Or maybe order in?"

"I think I can manage that," he nodded, hopping up and walking over to the fridge to put away the morels in the mushroom box. He began peeling potatoes immediately, having decided on a nice chowder. After cubing and washing them, he brought them up to a boil with some onion, down to a simmer, and then set the timer before sitting back down. "So, what else did you do today?"

"We played some video games," groaned Pine. "I won."

This was quite a surprise. He was usually far more talkative, and especially cheerful when he won a match. "You must really be sick. I've never heard you so quiet before."

"I don't feel good," he moaned.

With a nod, the large stallion pulled his son up next to him, rubbing his shoulder gently. "It'll be alright, little man. You'll have some soup, you'll have a good night's sleep, and you'll feel loads better in the morning. Trust me, your dad's really smart."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

With a tousling of his mane, he stood up and moved over to the stove, giving the soup a good stirring. He sat down again and picked up Pine, setting the colt down on his lap. "So, what happened when you realized that your lunch was bad?"

Brunch groaned and put her head in her hooves. "I forgot to throw it out. I put it away before we started showing symptoms, and when the stomachache hit, we were too distracted to do anything."

As she was preparing to stand up, he waved his hoof. "Don't worry about that right now. I'll take care of it. I'll take care of both of you tonight. After dinner, what say we watch a movie? Just a relaxing night at home."

"It sounds like the best we can hope for, given the circumstances," answered Brunch.

When the timer went off, it was time to add milk, corn and flour to the soup. There wasn't much to a simple chowder, and a few spices mixed in just before serving would make it taste just a little better, and maybe aid in their digestion a bit.

About halfway through the meal, Pine was swaying back and forth, barely able to keep his eyes open. "You feelin' tired, Pine?"

With a wide yawn, the little colt nodded. "Maybe it's the sickness. I think I'm just going to go to bed."

With a nod and a quick bathroom break, Pine and his father walked to the boy's bedroom, and after tucking him in, he was out like a light, snoring softly. With a gentle kiss on his forehead, his father walked out of the room.

"Sound asleep," he told Brunch. "Passed out as soon as his head hit the pillow. Not even so much as a 'good night.'"

"Well, what did you expect?" she yawned. "He's had a bad day. Cut him a little bit of slack, won't you?"

"I'm only joking," he smiled, placing his hoof on her shoulder and leaning in for a quick peck. "I hope you both recover soon. If you're still sick tomorrow, I'll stay home. The only time I'll go out is to tell one of the neighbors to bring a doctor."

"Once the doctor comes, you can go to work. I don't want you to miss out on your camping trip."

"Nor do I, but it wouldn't be any fun if I'm out there all alone. I'd be worried about Pine the whole time. I would rather spend the whole day sitting by his bedside while he was sick than go out into the woods on my own, leaving him to suffer while I have a peaceful vacation. And I certainly can't just leave you to care for him while you're also sick. No, if this is going to be a big illness, I want to be around to keep you two safe. You're the most important ponies in the world to me. I'm staying right here."

With a playful shove, a smile crept across Brunch's face. He was glad to see her happy, despite her current condition. "You big softie."

"Now, how about that movie, hm?"

She put down her spoon into her empty bowl. "Actually, I'm pretty tired, too. I'm sorry, but I think I should head to bed."

A bit dejected, he shrugged, taking all of the bowls and washing them as she prepared for bed. As he put away the remaining chowder, he made it a point to dispose of the leftover lunch. As he opened the container, his eyes went wide. Something in the stir-fry was causing his wife and child to be sick, but it wasn't the celery. No, something far more sinister was awaiting him. As the truth washed over him, he dumped out most of the lunch. Not all of it, but enough to be certain of what he was about to do.

He entered the bedroom just as his wife was about to slip under the covers. "Were those mushrooms from lunch in the fridge?"

"No, I found them in your pocket. I figured you'd just forgotten to put them away. I figured they were fine. Winecaps are made of sturdy stuff. Why, do you think they might have gone sour?"

With a hard swallow, he nodded, climbing into bed with her. He was sure of what had happened, and in the back of his mind, he was formulating the plan as to how to proceed. The last thing he wanted was to cause her to panic. Right now, he just wanted her to be calm and happy. He wrapped his hooves around her waist and gently rubbed her abdomen until she fell asleep.