Sunset Shimmer knew exactly what kind of aura this was, but this was Aurora's mom, not hers, so she still had to restrain herself and not indulge in it.
"Happy Hearths Warming Eve, Madam Meteora."
"Happy Hearths Warming Eve. Good child, you can just call me Auntie. I must thank you for being willing to be friends with Flying Light; she is sometimes not as easy to get along with as she looks."
"It should be said that I've received a lot of care from Flying Light, Meteora... Auntie."
Although Meteora was right, and Aurora was usually smiling while keeping ponies at a distance, Sunset Shimmer was no better. The two ponies were just pecking at each other like novices when it came to friendship, which was really not very interesting.
As her daughter's first friend, and given that the way their relationship progressed was rather... tortuous, they as parents couldn't help but investigate Sunset Shimmer's background, only to find that she was also a poor child.
Looking at Sunset Shimmer, who was at a loss before her, having an intention to get close but stopped by the timidity brought by unfamiliarity, Meteora as a mother couldn't help but feel love and pity.
"darling Sunset Shimmer, although this place is not as spacious as the Princess's castle, if you don't mind, just treat this as your own home. Please don't feel constrained at all."
"No, no, no, I think this place is no worse than the castle. I really like it here."
It might even be much better than the castle. After all, living here meant having parents around almost every day, while in the castle, it was hard to see The Grand Princess.
"I am very happy to hear you say that, Sunset Shimmer. I think you and our family will surely get along very well in the coming days."
Meteora stroked Sunset Shimmer's cheek, and before she could get too shy and prepare to run away, she pulled back her hoof and then pretended to crack a joke as if nothing had happened.
"How about this. I'll just arrange for you to stay in Flying Light's room. You two little ones must have a lot of topics you want to chat about and things you want to do, just remember not to sleep too late, okay?"
Sunset Shimmer, who didn't know Meteora very well yet, was immediately surprised and didn't know how to respond. Even Aurora looked at Meteora in some surprise, rubbing her chin and pondering for a moment.
Without a doubt, this was her own mother, and she would spend her whole life honoring her.
"I think that could work."
"You know I'm joking, right, darling?"
"I know, Mom..."
No matter what, Meteora wouldn't be so stingy as to arrange for a guest to squeeze into a room with the host; that wouldn't be proper etiquette.
However, what they wanted to arrange in private was not something she, an adult mare, could control.
Sunset Shimmer was taken aback by the mother and daughter, but she breathed a sigh of relief nonetheless.
The way this mother and daughter hid knives in their smiles when being devious was exactly the same. Come to think of it, although Meteora was full of maternal love, she was, after all, that Aurora's mother, so how simple could she be?
"You can go wash your hooves now and get ready for dinner, okay? I hope your private chat won't take too long."
Meteora placed the Hearths Warming Eve doll she had just made on the fireplace, next to the other dolls, and then left the living room.
Aurora looked at the Hearths Warming Eve dolls on the fireplace. This was a pony holiday tradition where every member of the family would place a doll representing themselves on the fireplace on this night.
However, the number of Hearths Warming Eve dolls this year was wrong. Besides their family of three, there was one extra, which was the small one Meteora had just placed up there.
'Could it be made for the senior sister?'
But this doll was a bit too small; it really couldn't represent Sunset Shimmer.
Although she didn't understand the meaning for the moment, it reminded Aurora of something.
"Senior sister, did you make a Hearths Warming Eve doll?"
"Uh... I suppose I did."
Sunset Shimmer's tone was somewhat uncertain.
She hadn't spent many proper Hearths Warming Eves, so she had long forgotten the specific customs. It was only recently that she looked up the information and picked it up again, so she still knew about the custom of hanging dolls on Hearths Warming Eve.
"It's just that I'm not very interested in sewing, so I made this. I don't know if it's okay."
As she spoke, Sunset Shimmer took a hoof-sized wood carving out of her bag. This was a byproduct of her honing her woodworking skills, and it was carved in her own likeness.
"What about mine?"
Upon seeing this 1/12 scale wood carving figure of Sunset Shimmer, Aurora asked for one directly without even thinking.
Her upbringing fell apart instantly in the face of this out-of-print, limited-edition merchandise crafted by her favorite herself. Longing filled the heart of the collector, and envy made her face almost contort.
However, Sunset Shimmer seemed to have misunderstood Aurora's question. She saw her take out another wood carving from her bag with a slightly flushed face, which was of Aurora.
She couldn't explain why she had carved another one of Aurora. Maybe it was just too boring to carve only herself, so she used Aurora to practice her hoof-work, and that was all.
"...Senior sister, what other surprises do you have that I don't know about?"
Aurora held this wood carving figure that belonged to her carefully, feeling like she had found a treasure.
'No... actually, I didn't mean that. Wait, there really is one of me?'
This actually made Aurora feel embarrassed.
But there should be one for Twilight Sparkle and Spike too, right?
Sunset Shimmer had originally thought so too, but later found that there wasn't enough material and not enough time, so in the end, she only made ones for the two of them.
"...Can I keep these two in my collection afterwards?"
"Suit yourself..."
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