The moon glowed with a furious light, igniting the snow covered streets in an illuminating shimmer. Canterlot was quiet; so very quiet. Nopony would willingly venture out into the cold, least of all tonight, for tonight was Hearth’s Warming Eve, and the only ponies who dared to brave the thick frost and hibernal winds were those rushing as fast as they could to a place they called home, where they could relax by the embers of burning fireplaces and within the warming hooves of those they held most dear in the world.

One home on a paved suburban street was practically radiating warmth. The humble cottage exterior was in actuality an extravagant mansion in disguise, with the white painted outer walls seamlessly blending with the snow that enveloped the ground, all the way up to its thickly concealed blue-tiled roof. Within the house sat a family of five, seated around a ornate dinner table, clothed in a vibrant red material appropriate for the season. The masters of the house had gone to great lengths to ensure that everything was as perfect as can be, for they did not get many chances anymore to show how much they valued their most treasured guests; of whom were more valuable to the husband and wife than any amount of bits or gems they had in their possession.

“Twilight, you did such a great job getting all this together.”

“Yeah, Mom! I don't even know what this food’s called, but it tastes great!”

“Yeah, Ms. Twilight. What Shining said.”

Twilight Velvet blushed upon hearing her husband, son and essentially her second-son compliment her on her preparations, her radiant expression clearly visible on account of her pale ivory coat. She gave an appreciative glance to the three of them before she turned her eyes to the ceiling with an unconcealed smirk. “Only the best for my boys. I do hope you are taking notes though, Shiny. Once you have a place of your own I expect nothing but the best whenever me and your father come to visit.”

Shining Armor scoffed, addressing his mother from his position at the side of the long table, while Spike watched him from the other side. “Can I at least get promoted first before you start planning dinner dates? I kind of need to be able to afford a house before you can come visit,” Shining finished with a sigh, not wanting the pestering thoughts to cloud his current positive feelings.

Velvet heard her husband Night Light chuckle from his end of the table directly opposite her, which attracted her wandering gaze. “Well once you do, who will be the first to know? Us? Or you know who?” Night asked in a humorous tone.

“Oh come on, Dad! Not in front of Mom!” Shining grumbled juvenilely.

Twilight Velvet smiled as her husband and son proceeded to exchange a minor back-and-forth argument, with Shining vigorously trying to dissuade his father from continuing the line of conversation into the topic of ‘you know who.’ Velvet, with some reluctance, broke her stare from the pair and instead directed it towards the other member of her family who up to that point had remained in silence; in such a silence that it was easy to forget that she was even present to begin with.

Velvet held in a loving sigh as she observed her unaware daughter, who was currently sat alternating her flustered sight between her sibling and father, to the plate of Velvet’s cooking at her front, and then back to the book resting in her hooves, which possessed so advanced a title that Velvet couldn't even pronounce it despite her exuberant reputation as a wordsmith of sorts; on account of her long and stellar career as an author.

Pride weld in her eyes as she gazed upon the mare her daughter had become. No longer was Twilight Sparkle a curious and impressionable youthful filly, those days were long behind her. Now, sat before Velvet, was a slender and petite young mare, who possessed an aura of wisdom and worth, and stunning features that any stallion, or mare for that matter, would fawn over. Opinions may vary over just how much Twilight Sparkle was worth your time due to having something of a reputation of being a ‘shut-in’, but to Velvet, her daughter was practically perfect in every way.

She was her everything.

“Twilight, dear?” Velvet began, with Twilight responding with a slow, if sluggish, raise of her head. She locked eyes with her mother, holding a small but genuine smile. “Yeah, Mom?” Twilight asked, her hooves still holding her book firm.

Velvet, with some discomfort, shifted her gaze towards Spike sat at Twilight’s side, casually munching on some gems provided by Princess Celestia as an early holiday present. Twilight looked as well, and knowing that she now had her attention, Velvet asked her lingering question. “How have you and Spike been getting along at the castle? It's been awhile since your last letter. Are you both still living in the tower suite?” Velvet finished with a smile.

Twilight’s own expression perked up and she raised a hoof, which followed on from her words as she spoke with enchantment. “Actually me and Spike live in the library now! Princess Celestia thought I would like it in there more, there's less distractions and the park is right around the corner. It's much easier now to get my essays done,” Twilight said with a grin.

Velvet’s smile grew, relieved that her pride and joy was happy. Twilight had moved out permanently some months ago now, and her first few weeks living in the castle were somewhat difficult on her, but it appeared that she was well over any and all former doubts and fears she’d had, if her current ebullience was any indication. “That's good to hear, Twilight,” Velvet said soothingly.

Twilight responded with a curt nod, before her eyes fell back to the open book pages under the table as if by instinct. Shining and Night’s argument had now diminished into simple small talk, which Spike was listening to with the greatest of concentration. Discovering that everypony else was occupied, Velvet found herself sitting in an awkward and unexpected silence as she was unwilling to interrupt the divine atmosphere. She had hoped that Twilight would be prompted into talking to her some more due to her initial question, but that hope did not come to pass.

The senior mare watched from her position at the head of the table, simply observing the rest of her family, wondering how they all felt on this occasion. Her husband Night Light was severely overworked; an occupational hazard of his low-level position within the Equestrian government, the holiday was a time when he could just kick back and relax with his wife and his children. Shining Armor was similarly tired, his regal position within the royal guard pushing him to his absolute limits, the holidays were one of the few times a year when he was able to visit his family now, since he didn't receive much downtime.

Twilight Sparkle though was an enigma to Velvet. She could not get a true read on her, her own daughter, and Velvet found that rather unnerving. She appeared happy, almost infectiously so, but Velvet saw a sadness, a longing, for something she couldn't identify. Perhaps Twilight was still adjusting to her time away from home? Maybe there was a big assignment coming up that she hadn't prepared for as much as she thought she could? Velvet didn't know, and not knowing was hurting her.

This train of thought reminded Velvet of her own concerns regarding Twilight, specifically about how being the Princesses pupil was affecting her. Twilight was stone faced through it all, from the moment she had received the privilege so many moons ago until now, yet there were many times in her youth when Velvet had seen a different side to things; days when Twilight would miss dinner in order to complete a project, days when Twilight would cry herself to sleep when she didn't receive a perfect score on a test, days when she refused to speak to anypony when she felt that she had somehow disappointed the Princess.

Days like those were when Velvet felt like she had made a terrible mistake.

Twilight had always been a smart girl, far above and beyond what Velvet was at her age. When she was a filly Velvet could barely lift a quill, yet Twilight was lifting heavier things before she could even walk. Velvet always knew that Twilight was destined for greatness; that she would accomplish wonders, but she never thought that the Princess herself would think the same way, and then act on those beliefs.

She remembered the day when Twilight had received her cutie mark; she had been so happy, finally feeling as if she had found her place in the world. She’d entered Celestia’s school for gifted unicorns some time later and had recently graduated with top marks, but rather than move on to do whatever it was that she wanted to do next with her life, Twilight decided to instead stay in the castle with Celestia to further continue her studies, now into topics and subjects directly from the Princess herself.

Velvet adored Princess Celestia for everything she had ever done for Twilight, but she could not help but feel at times that this was not the best decision for her.

Twilight needed room to mature and blossom, room to grow away from the prying eyes of her parents and teachers. Velvet was proud when Twilight had taken the initiative to move out, but felt rather disheartened when she’d learned that it was only so Twilight could be even closer to the Princess than she had ever been before. What would Twilight do on the inevitable day when Celestia was no longer there for her? On the inevitable day when she had to go on with her life, when she was no longer Celestia’s student. What would she do then? Would she be ready? Was Twilight Sparkle ready to face the world that had remained to her the one enigma that she did not yet understand?

Perhaps she was, perhaps Velvet was not giving her daughter enough credit. Maybe Twilight was ready to face Equestria head on, maybe she was already beyond needing help from her mother or her father, and perhaps even the Princess herself. But considering the fact that Twilight would rather read a book on some obscure magical theory at the dinner table, on one of the few times a year when their whole family was together for once, indicated to Velvet that maybe that wasn't the case.

“Twilight? Can I ask why you're reading?” Velvet suddenly inquired, with Twilight jumping at its unexpectancy. She turned to face her mother with a minorly oculus look, while her father and brothers turned to her, curious as to what her answer would be. Realising that she was being observed by all, Twilight sunk into her seat slightly as she replied with uncertainty. “Well, I've got a big test coming up after the holiday, so I better study as much as I can, Celestia probably wouldn't like it if I spent the whole of my time slacking off.”

Velvet frowned, and reached out to her wine glass with her magic, suddenly finding it quite difficult to remain still. She broke her eyes away from Twilight and made it look as if she was concentrating on her own home-cooked dinner, yet that couldn't be further from the truth.

Velvet always understood Twilight’s need to study; she was intelligent, and intellects required books as much as any quill required ink. But there was a time and a place, and the dinner table was not one of them, least of all at this time of year. Taking a few moments to herself to be with the ones she loves most would not be, in Twilight’s words, ‘slacking off.’ In fact considering Twilight’s less than stellar reputation of being anti-social, she most certainly needed to put the books down for a bit and focus on others for once rather than the imaginary consequences of potentially irking Celestia.

Velvet’s eyes widened, and she choked slightly on her wine. Concerned eyes flew in her direction, but she dismissed them all with a waving hoof. “I'm fine,” she stated quickly, returning her glass to the table. She had just been so shocked at her own thoughts that she had forgotten to swallow. Rising from her seat, Velvet made her way towards the direction of the kitchen, subconsciously avoiding Twilight and Spike’s side of the table. “I just need some water, plus I need to check on dessert. I'll be a minute,” she announced in fledged nonchalance, prompting her children to return to their prior activities and conversations. She didn't notice Night Light’s worried stare as she made her way out.

Entering her luxurious kitchen, adorned with platinum and blue colourings along with a tiled floor, Velvet poured herself a small glass of water and downed it immediately to smooth her itching throat. She was disgusted with herself, disgusted that she could even think about her daughter in such a way. Twilight was happy, happier than she had ever been. Reading was not just a hobby to her, it was her life, the reason she woke up in the morning. Yet despite that, despite it being Twilight’s passion, Velvet didn't like it, she didn't appreciate that Twilight did not know when it was and wasn't appropriate, but Velvet couldn't bring herself to be angry towards anypony except herself.

What kind of mother thinks about their child like that? Twilight was not a little girl anymore, she was not her baby. She was a mare, inexperienced and youthful perhaps, but a mare nonetheless and was free to do whatever she wanted to do with her life, regardless about what Velvet thought on the matter. But then why, despite all of Velvet’s dismissal, did she feel this way towards Twilight?

Did she know what was best for Twilight? Maybe she did, maybe she didn't, at this point it was irrelevant as Twilight was her own mare and quite capable of making her own decisions. Perhaps she felt that Twilight wasn't ready to face the world alone, but Velvet recalled that she couldn't be certain about that, or about anything else for that matter.

Perhaps she just missed her daughter so much that she just wanted to feel like she was still relevant to her life in some way, even though Twilight would rather read a book in her presence than speak with her.

Velvet rose a hoof to her mouth, not expecting her thoughts to take such a turn, but the more she pondered it and the more it weighed on her mind, the more true it started to sound.

Velvet was old, the paleness of her coat and mane only growing paler as the years went on. She had tried her hardest when Twilight was growing up to be as much as she could and do as much as she could for her, but despite her efforts Velvet had the feeling that it was all for naught, with the feeling only growing the further Twilight seemed to drift from her. Velvet was not as smart as her, she was not as magically talented despite what her cutie mark would suggest, and they were nothing alike in personality; Twilight was more similar to Night Light in that regard whereas Shining Armor was a closer match for Velvet.

In fact, now that she thought about it, the only thing Twilight Velvet and Twilight Sparkle seemed to have in common was their looks, their names, and their skills with a quill, beyond that they may as well have been strangers to each other.

Velvet bit her lip, and leaned against the sink she was stood in front of. Her breathing was ragged so she took a moment to steady it, but her thoughts continued to cloud her actions. She reflected on all the times when she couldn't help Twilight with even the simplest of tasks; she was never able to help her with her homework, she could never understand the context of the textbooks she would read to her at night in place of storybooks, she didn't even know how it was best to comfort Twilight when she felt so alone and alienated as Velvet had never had to deal with those feelings herself when she was that age.

But then, a few months into her first year at school, things started to change. The older Twilight became the more she seemed to stray in the direction of Princess Celestia rather than her own mother. Celestia would inform Twilight how to do her homework, she would help her understand the words to big for Velvet to grasp, and then there were even times when Twilight would rather turn towards Celestia for comfort and care instead of her mother Velvet.

And once again, those were the days when Velvet felt like she had made a terrible mistake.

A mistake, that was only considered a mistake, for purely selfish reasons on Velvet’s part.

Had Velvet not been as present or supportive as she could have been? Was letting Twilight take on such a role, however prestigious it may have been, at such an early age the right thing to do, or the right thing she could have done? Was the responsibility of being the Princess' pupil to much of a burden for the filly to handle? Twilight had prospered from the opportunity most certainly and the benefits were much more prevalent than the negatives; but the negatives still existed, and some were more noticeable than others.

Twilight was not a social pony, it had been obvious to Velvet and Night Light for over a decade now; they had tried as best as they could to have Twilight approach other ponies, to come out of her shell by even the smallest amount, but she was never interested enough and would rather spend her time reading yet another book or conducting yet another experiment. That was okay, and was not a major concern by any means, if Twilight preferred her own company Velvet was ultimately fine and happy for her, it was only when she considered what Twilight would have become or could have become had she not been christened Celestia’s pupil that she started to reflect on it all in a negative light.

Maybe if Twilight had not caught the Princess' attention that day she would have been forced to engage more with her classmates. She still would have gotten into the school, of that Velvet had no doubt, and she still would have graduated top of her class, and maybe she would have had a few more friends to boot. She didn't need the Princess to seize the world, but Velvet was starting to wonder if Twilight realised that, or if she attributed all of her success not to her own determination and perseverance, but to the fact that she had the Princess watching over her for most of her life.

Watching over her and being far more involved than Twilight Velvet could ever hope to be.

Her eyes squeezed shut, and Velvet ran a hoof through her white and purple mane, almost as if she was attempting to erase the thoughts from her mind as quickly as they had overcome her. Why was she thinking like this? Pondering these worrying things. She should be happy; happy that her daughter was worthy of such an honour, happy that Celestia saw something in Twilight that her parents perhaps did not.

Velvet tightened her eyes, cutting off all light from her concealed sight. Twilight was not the problem here, Twilight had done nothing wrong, in fact she had done everything right, she had only ever done everything right. The problem laid elsewhere. It was Velvet and her selfishness, that was the only reason her thoughts were clouded tonight, but try as she might she still felt as if the blame for her feelings was held by one other pony also, the pony who was slowly causing Twilight to drift away from her mother evermore.

Princess Celestia has never been anything but supportive towards Twilight Sparkle since the moment she had first laid eyes on her. She had assured Velvet from the moment that she had dubbed Twilight her protégé that she would never allow for Twilight to come to any harm, that she would never have Twilight endure more than she thought she could put up with, and that she had faith that Twilight was more capable and more resourceful than even she could begin to comprehend; a testament she had only reinforced to be true as the years went on and Twilight developed beside her.

Always beside her.

Celestia had always been there, even in Twilight's darkest moments, and Velvet realised that despite all her efforts, despite everything she had ever done, should have done, or will come to do, she will never be anything more than second to Celestia. The Princess had been more present, more approachable, and ultimately more worthy of Twilight’s love and admiration. Velvet could not fault Twilight for that, she could only fault herself for not being good enough.

Princess Celestia was the mother to Twilight that Velvet could never hope to be.

A coldness and wetness spread along down Velvet’s cheeks, the cold feeling only amplified by the freezing air that surrounded their home outside. She was crying, in a most undignified way that only served to embarrass her further. She futilely attempt to dry herself, but her red eyes and running makeup gave away any attempts she made to conceal her internal feelings, as her outward appearance and posture made her as easy to read as any open book.

And Twilight Sparkle, who was unknowingly to Velvet watching her from the doorway, was very good at reading books.

“Mom?” her voice called sombrely. Twilight Velvet jumped, and rather than turn towards the unmistakably curious voice of her daughter, she elected instead to pretend as if everything was alright, hastily rubbing her face of any present stains and straightening her back so as to resemble her almost constant presence of regality.

“Yes, Twilight? Did you need something?” Velvet asked, fledgling an attentive voice. Her continued sniffing gave her true feelings away to her daughter however.

Twilight entered with steady hooves, shutting the door behind her as she continued her approach. Velvet turned and began to fiddle with the oven, looking over the many treats she had spent several hours making to perfection. As Twilight furthered her approach, Velvet hoped to ask her if she could come and help her with the final preparations to the dessert, so as to distract her from the state she had witnessed her mother in when she had entered.

Twilight had no intention of doing so however, and confronted her mother on instinct. “Mom? Were you crying?” Twilight asked in a soothing whisper, her eyes glazing over as she took in the sight of her mother's puffy cheeks, which clashed extensively with the fake smile she attempted to don in response.

Velvet gave an unsteady and forced laugh, and attempted to bluff her way past Twilight’s evolving suspicions. “I didn't want you to see me like that. I burnt myself on the oven, it was a bit painful. I've ruined my makeup haven't I?” she spoke, in a stuttering and fabricated humourous tone.

Twilight was not fooled in the slightest, and her worried frown dipped ever so slightly into genuine annoyance at her mother's dodging of an answer. “Mom, you know that's not true, the oven’s not even on.” Twilight walked closer to Velvet, who recoiled ever so slightly. “Mom, what's wrong? Can't you just tell me so I can help make it better?” Twilight asked with a concerned stare.

Velvet couldn't help it and she teared up again, but not due to her prior feelings of inadequacy, instead because of Twilight's concern over her. In that moment she felt more proud than self-loathe. However, wondering about how Twilight would feel towards her if she confessed herself about how she truly felt only drove Velvet to weep harder.

Twilight responded in an instant and gently curved her legs around her mother, bringing her into a brittle embrace. Velvet griped her beloved daughter tightly and refused to let go, fearing that if she did Twilight would only recede further away from her than she already had.

Twilight for the most part was confused, but her mother was clearly upset about something and required comfort in some form, even if Twilight didn't exactly know how best to provide it. Should she go get her father? Would her mother appreciate that? Or would she rather that her current vulnerable state received as little attention as possible? Twilight didn't know for certain, a rarity she did not appreciate. What she did know for certain was that her mother was sad, and if she could do anything to relieve her of these feelings she would do so with every effort that she had. Turning her eyes towards her mother's head that rested on her shoulder, Twilight asked the most obvious question she could think of.

“Mom, what's wrong? Please tell me,” Twilight stated simply, allowing her mother time to compose herself as best she could so she may respond with the most clarity.

Velvet sniffed, embarrassed that she had allowed herself to lose her composure like this, in front of her own daughter no less. She refused to allow the situation to deteriorate any further however. “It's nothing, just a silly little thing I was thinking about,” she attempted to reassure.

Twilight was not convinced, her eyes narrowing as she responded swiftly. “If something is upsetting you, Mom, it's not something I can just ignore, and it is most definitely not just a ‘silly little thing.’ Not telling me what's bothering you is not going to make it go away,” Twilight stated firmly, but with care.

Velvet weld with pride again. That was her daughter; smart and persistent, caring and loving. Velvet could no longer tell where her sadness ended and her joy began, it all just started to blend and meld together.

With reluctance, Velvet unlocked her hooves from Twilight’s neck and backed away, fixing her out of place mane and rubbing the dried and discoloured streaks from her face. Twilight sat in waiting and concern, but allowed her mother to compose herself and begin at her own leisure. Twilight doubted that her mother required any further prompting from her.

Velvet was conflicted, she did not know how to express herself, or if she even should. She was the Mother, the immovable and unflinching pillar that was supposed to hold her children above the darkness and danger that lied beneath, but that image was now forever shattered due to Twilight witnessing her emotional breakdown. She was no longer an impenetrable figure in her daughter's mind, she was a pony; a pony like any other, with thoughts and feelings, strengths and weaknesses. Velvet was worried at how Twilight would look upon her after all of this.

But Velvet needed to remind herself yet again that Twilight was not a little girl anymore, and that she could most certainly handle herself. Twilight was more than capable of coming to her own conclusions and was old enough to understand that even her mother had her occasional faults and bouts of selfish desire.

At least Velvet hoped she was.

“I just…,” Velvet hesitated, but seeing Twilight’s caring look made her force herself into continuing. “Twilight, have I done a good job?”

Twilight's face scrunched up in befuddlement. “A good job at what, dinner?”

Velvet held a laugh, but realised that she needed to be more specific, which quickly shrouded the momentary feelings of pleasure she had enjoyed. “I mean, was I- could I have-” Velvet sighed, and seeing Twilight slouch slightly forced her to blurt out her question in alarm.

“Have I been a good mother?”

Twilight arched her neck back and her scrunched up face hardened into a glare, because despite her overwhelming feelings of worry, anger bubbled to the surface of her emotions and temporarily overcame her. “What kind of question is that?” Twilight said in a harrowing tone, while Velvet averted her eyes. “Have you been a good mother? Of course you've been a good mother! You've been a great- the best of mothers!” Twilight stomped forwards, while Velvet continued to look to the floor, unwilling to face Twilight in the eye.

She didn't exactly know what to expect, but she allowed Twilight to express herself in whatever way she wanted to.

What Velvet didn't expect however was for Twilight to once again wrap her arms around her, but it was an action she welcomed wholeheartedly. The mares sat in relative silence then, and Twilight began to rock her mother back and forth in her arms, remembering that she always used to like it when her mother did that for her when she felt sad as a filly, so perhaps it would work the other way around. Twilight wished to let her mother know that even if she was somewhat angry, she still cared; more than anything and everything.

“I'm not mad, Mom, I just didn't expect the question.” Twilight relaxed when she heard Velvet exhale. But she realised that she still needed to get to the bottom of all this; however deep it may take her. “Mom, why would you ask me such a thing? What made you want to ask me that?”

Velvet gripped harder, but Twilight refused to give any indication that she was being hurt by the tightened embrace. Velvet groaned slightly upon realised that she had no choice but to confess herself now, there was no way out of any of this. Plus, Twilight deserved the truth, whether Velvet liked it or not. “It's just, Princess Celestia…”

Twilight raised an eyebrow, not expected her mentor to be brought up so suddenly. “What about Princess Celestia?” A dampness pooling on Twilight’s shoulder where her mother's head was resting was the only response she received. “Mom?” Twilight prompted with a harsh whisper.

“I'm not her.”

Twilight’s face scrunched up again, but not from anger, now due to complete and utter befuddlement. “How does you not being Princess Celestia possibly mean that you're not a good mother?” Twilight asked with a warming voice.

Velvet pulled back roughly, much more roughly than she intended. She did not quite know how she could describe her feelings at that moment, but it was somewhere between, or a mix of, anger, betrayal, guilt and sorrow, all piling together and making Velvet feel as if she was breaking apart under her own thoughts. “Because I'm not her! That's why!” Velvet screamed, her somewhat maintained composed attitude from before shattering in an instant directly in front of Twilight. “You're a genius, Twilight! You're smart, you're beautiful, you are just so perfect, and I am just not good enough for you!”

Twilight sat up straight, subconsciously casting a silencing spell around the area on account of her mother's raised tone of voice. Velvet took several deep and ragged breaths, her bout of shouting was finished with, but she still had more to say and it was not like stopping was much of an option to her now. “Princess Celestia can give you everything you need in life. I can't! I couldn't help you with you magic studies, I don't know why you're interested in what you are, I can barely even talk to you! I don't know how to!”

Velvet paused, and her face fell to the floor, she had never been more ashamed at herself than she was at that moment. “But Celestia can do all that. Celestia knows how to treat you the way you deserve to be treated, she knows just how special you are, and as much as I think I know the same I'll never be able to do for you what she can for you. I'll never be able to be more to you than Celestia is. I thought I was, and you probably thought so too, but we were both wrong!”

Twilight sat stunned while Velvet collapsed into sobs and wails. Twilight didn't know what to do, she had never seen her mother like this before, so fragile and just such… a mess. Letting her options of responses clear, Twilight did the one thing she could think of that had worked so far, she approached her mother one more time and allowed her to seek comfort in her welcoming embrace.

Velvet couldn't believe that she had allowed this to happen, she would rather have lied, bluffed and ignored her way out of this and away from her problems if the end result meant that Twilight wouldn't have had to witness just how much of a selfish and abhorrent pony she was in reality. She had just confessed to Twilight that she held her loving mentor responsible for her current state of being; how could Twilight even look upon her after that? Why would she even want to?

Twilight knew why, and she was about to let her mother know exactly how she felt towards her revelation.

“Mom, look at me please,” Twilight began in a slow voice. Velvet attempted to refuse, but Twilight practically forced herself into her line of sight. Once met with her mother's defeated and glazed over expression, Twilight allowed herself to speak and had no intention of stopping. “If you think for a second that having Princess Celestia as my teacher has in any way made you less valuable or important to me, then you're dead wrong, Mom.”

“But, Twilight-”

“No!” Twilight exclaimed in a fury. “Princess Celestia does care about me, she can provide me with more than you or Dad can give at times, and maybe she’s even better at doing some things than you are. But that does not mean that I care about you any less than I always have!” Velvet listened in a stunned silence, while Twilight allowed herself to take a breath. “You want to know what makes you my mother, Mom? What makes you more important to me than any other pony in my life or even Celestia? It's the fact that despite you not always knowing what you should be doing all the time, despite you not always knowing how to do my homework, talk to me, make me feel better… Despite everything you ever had going against you.”

“You never stopped being a mother.”

“You never stopped trying, you never ever gave up, and you could have so many times. How many parents keep going and keep getting back up even when they don't feel like it's worth it? Was I ever any less important to you because Celestia was there for me too? You kept going and you kept trying even when you thought that you wasn't worth it; that I would have been better off without you. Not every mother thinks like that, Mom, and Princess Celestia never was and never will be you.”

Velvet was silent; silent but grateful. Twilight took a final breath, and pulled her mother close. “You're more a mother than most are to their own foals, Mom. I don't think you realise just how good you are at being one.”

Velvet was not crying anymore, she couldn't, she wouldn't. This was no longer a time for tears, it was after all the happiest time of the year, and sitting with Twilight sharing in a loving embrace that they did not get a chance too often to have anymore made all of Velvet’s doubts and fears up to that point worth it. Perhaps Twilight was right; perhaps Velvet was better at all this than she thought, perhaps Celestia was not the wedge that would drive her family apart as Velvet feared she would, and perhaps Velvet had not been the blight on Twilight’s life that she feared she had been.

Actually, there was no perhaps, Twilight Sparkle was always right about everything.

And with that thought in mind, Twilight Velvet held Twilight Sparkle closer than she had ever before, and both mares wore smiles upon their faces as they nestled in the loving and warming comfort the other provided as mother and daughter eternal.

Author's Notes:

I absolutely believe that this is the best thing I've ever written, hopefully this isn't the pinnacle of my ability though.

Written for Equestria Daily's Friend Off, based on this great picture by awesomecoolwhip, Twilight Velvet looked really happy and sad at the same time so I just decided to write something about it while I still had the inspiration, plus the Friend Off was just the perfect timing. Celestia is basically Twilight's second mother, so I've always wondered how Velvet would feel about all that, and the distinct lack of Velvet stories just prompted me to get this done as soon as possible. Now though, since I have no more distractions, I can move back to completing my other ongoing stories!

Feedback is much appreciated, as are comments, likes, and general criticism, whatever makes you happy. Thanks for reading.