Sun Mote Copse the frumious bandersnatch!

Bronco felt sad when Sugar obediently withdrew from the brook and went after Elwood. He huffed when his mother chuckled, and he plonked his bottom down in the shallows defiantly. "S'no fair." He muttered, but looked up and perked up slightly when Sugar bid him farewell. He rolled his eyes and sighed. "Bye Shug," He said, albeit reluctantly, which probably wasn't the most polite thing to do. Sugar and Elwood were barely out of sight when he sploshed another foot down in the water and furrowed his brow. 

"C'mon Bronco," Niamh encouraged, but he simply turned his head to watch Elwood and Sugar disappear. They were getting snacks and flowers. What was he getting? Dragged home. 
"I don' wanna go yet," He said defiantly, and stared down at the water. 
"C'mon bud. You don't need to stay sitting in the water all day. You don't want your butt getting all prune-y," His mother chuckled, obviously trying to use humour to get her son out of the water, but he wasn't hearing it. 
"I don' care, I don't wanna go yet. I wanna go with Shug," He said.
"You can't go with her right now- her father wants her home." Niamh reasoned. 
"But we can still play. Can't I go an' play with her?"
"No, you weren't invited. You can't just invite yourself over, it's impolite."
"Ughhh. S'no fairrrrr," He whined, still unmoving, so his mother stood up and stepped into the water. 
"C'mon water slug. Let's go get some lunch an' go home. S'about time for a nap."
And that was probably the dumbest thing Niamh could've said. 
"Noooo! I don' wanna nap, Ma! It's not nap time! I'm not even tired, an' I'm not a baby!"
"I didn't say you were a baby-"
"Then I don't needa nap!"
"Yes, you do. So do I. We both need some lunch or we're both gonna get hangry."
"I'm NOT hangry, an' I'm NOT tired. Jus' lemme stay an' play in the water!" He ordered, voice rising. 
"Bronco Blackthorn, we are going, now." His mother said, stepping forward to nudge the bridge of her muzzle against his back, forcing him to his feet.
"S'NO fair! I don't WANNA go!"
"Now you're acting like a baby,"
"I AM NOT! I don't NEED to nap! I'm NOT tired!" By now, his mother was full on shoving him through the water, one push at a time, until she got him to the bank where he slipped and fell into the mud which Sugar had been using on Elwood's leg. This pushed him over the edge and his defiance turned to a tantrum. He flopped down in the mud and started crying very loudly, wailing here and there that he wasn't tired and that he didn't want to go, so his mother simply stood there, not touching him, letting him scream it out. But because his wails were obviously having no effect on his mother, who seemed to take more interest in watching a few birds that had perched overhead (secretly she was trying to do some meditating, focus on her breathing so she didn't just grab him by the scruff and drag him home) his tantrum escalated to a full-on hysterical meltdown. And she simply let him scream it out. 

His voice was fairly hoarse by the time his mother finally looked down at him, and he uttered a few more sobs for pity, but it didn't work. 

"You ready to go?" She asked, simply. "We got some rabbit still back at the den."
"I don't *hic* want rabbit," Because he simply wasn't going to say 'yes' to anything his mother said. 
"You want some deer?"
"No."
"Groundhog?"
"No."
You want a boot in the rear?"
That comment forced a small, hiccoughing chuckle out of him. "Noooo," He said, standing up and began to walk. They walked for a little while before his stomach began to gurgle, so his mother gave him a good nudge in the ribs. 
"Your hungry-monster is growling. C'mon. I'll race you back- if you win, you get to pick what's for lunch," She said, before she began to job off. Bronco sniffed, and then dashed ahead of her, now more aware of his hunger, which made him in the mood for any of the meals his mother had previously offered. Fairly certain her tactics had been successful, Niamh let her boy win the race home, and the two raided the den and surrounding areas for some good snackaroos.