Spoiled's "Very Merry" Hearth's Warming
Spoiled Rich was not usually one to let others see her in a moment of weakness, rich ponies were of the mentality "Never let them see you suffer". Any semblance of doubt, worry, or anxiety was to be kept well hidden.
But in a moment like this for a pony who had only just now undergone a change for the better, this was a situation that she couldn't pretend she wasn't bothered about. Not even taking her daughter along as a pillar of support (a structure of uncertain quality given the previously strained relationship between the two) was enough to make her feel confident about this.
Spoiled was about to visit the one pony she had yet to convince of her change of heart. The one pony who more than anything had consumed her thoughts since that fateful visit from those three special guests the night prior. Her own mother, Sour Milk.
More than anything, Spoiled really wished she could've brought her husband along for the journey too. She always felt better with him by her side. Alas, Filthy Rich had declined the invitation. "If you're gonna go up there and visit your mother, you'll have to do it alone. I know it ain't right to speak ill of other ponies, but the one time I met your mother I could tell she didn't like me at all. No sense in stirrin' up bad feelin''s from the past." He had put in no uncertain terms.
So here Spoiled was, with only her daughter tagging along. The two currently gazing up at an old farmhouse that rested just across a field from an old barn. Above them was a sign which was covered up by the thick snow. But Spoiled was certain she knew what it would say if she brushed it aside: Sweet and Sour Milk's Dairy Emporium. A rather fancy name for a dairy farm that had clearly seen better days.
Perhaps sensing that her mother was troubled, Diamond spoke up and broke the silence that hung over the farmland. "So... this is where you grew up, Mother?" She asked in an uncertain tone.
Spoiled struggled to keep her lips from quivering, she doubted she'd be able to say it was because of the cold (even though she was not much of a Winter pony, she always preferred the warmth of Spring and Summer). "Y-yes, my Diamond," She replied as she forced a smile. "And now you can probably see why I've been avoiding this place for so long. The years have not been kind to it. I'm honestly surprised it hasn't already been shuddered and demolished."
But Diamond's cornflower blue eyes lit up in amazement as she let out a gasp! "What are you talking about, Mother? This place is huge! I daresay it puts even Sweet Apple Acres to shame! Forget sleigh rides and snowball fights, you could build an entire snow kingdom here!"
"She's really been hanging around those Cutie Mark Crusaders too much. My own daughter, impressed by a run down old dairy farm. I can't possibly be losing my mind, can I?" The rich mare thought to herself, as she watched her daughter dart all around the premises in childish wonder. Even as a filly, Spoiled had found this place to be far from appealing.
Still she hadn't come all this way here to make fashion statements. There was a reason for her visit and the mare with a turned up snout knew it. She carefully reached out a hoof and replied in as gentle a tone as she possibly could. "Now now, that's quite enough, Diamond Tiara. You can play in the snow later on to your heart's content. But right now there's somepony we came here to visit. And it would be quite rude to keep her waiting."
"You mean, I'm finally going to get to meet Granny Sour?!" Diamond eagerly exclaimed. "Oh Celestia! If this is a dream, do NOT wake me up!"
Spoiled wished more than anything for her daughter's enthusiasm to be contagious, she could sure use some of it right about now. Convincing her own mother that she had changed was a task she was already dreading. What she wouldn't give for a confidence boost, because turning around and leaving was surely out of the question. A nagging thought in the back of her mind kept telling her. "You have to do this! If you don't you may never get another opportunity in this lifetime."
Trotting their way through the snow covered fields, mother and daughter soon reached the front door of the farm house and Spoiled rapped a hoof against it three times.
The door was soon answered by a bulky earth pony mare that was easily recognizable to Spoiled. For she sported a coat of dark green, and a brilliant white (almost snow white you might say) mane and tail styled like that one stallion whose name Spoiled could never remember, short and loosely styled. Her eyes were a dark purple in color that had apparently not lost their shine even after all the years that had passed, and for a cutie mark she had two milk bottles in the shape of a v. There was no mistaking it, the mare that stood before her was none other than Sour Milk.
Sour Milk was taken aback at the sight of her own daughter, also taking notice of the filly with a coat of pink and a cutie mark depicting a very obvious diamond tiara. "Well well well," She commented in her usual distinctive drawl. "What an unexpected Hearth's Warming present. My daughter and granddaughter, come to visit me I presume."
Spoiled nodded slowly. "Yes, Mother. How... 'wonderful' to see you again," She stood aside and extended a hoof as she seemed to comment in a monotone voice. "This is my daughter, Diamond Dazzle Tiara."
"Just call me Diamond Tiara," Diamond Tiara corrected. "Everypony does, though Dazzle is certainly a better middle name than what my mother used to have." The pink filly couldn't resist letting out a slight giggle.
Sour Milk laughed too. "Oh trust me, my husband and I struggled for weeks to come up with a fitting name for our only daughter. Wasn't until I felt her first kick that I knew what I wanted to call her. And boy let me tell you, she sure lived up to her name during the delivery."
Spoiled coughed into a hoof, eager to change the subject before the topic went in directions that probably weren't appropriate for young ears. "That's quite enough of that, Mother. Remember, there are young ones in attendance today."
Sour smiled. "Oh yes, I haven't forgotten. It's a pleasure to finally meet my only granddaughter. Oh, and ain't she a chip off the old block? Why, she's practically the spitting image of you when you were her age, Spoiled."
"No kidding, I am?!" Tiara exclaimed in shock. "I mean, I know Mother didn't get that nose job until after I was born, but still."
"Well if you don't believe me, feel free to look through Spoiled's baby pictures," Sour offered. "I tell you, for a time I actually thought I was wrong to name her Spoiled. She actually was a pretty sweet little filly, even worked the cows without fuss."
"Speaking of cows," Spoiled commented as she and Diamond made their way inside the farm house. "I was wondering about something. There don't seem to be any maids or servants running around here, and I don't see a sign of Father anywhere. I hope you're not working all by yourself on the farm."
At that Sour laughed. "Oh of course not, Spoiled. My darling Sweet's away for the holiday, spending some time in Las Pegasus. Probably spending his bits on the magic show too. And you needn't worry about me, plenty of hired hooves are glad to work this place. But it's Hearth's Warming, nothing's open. No sense in keeping 'em around and paying them to work on a holiday. Even the cows need a rest occasionally."
"Is Esmeralda still around by any chance?" Spoiled inquired as her daughter took off her hat, boots, and scarf.
Sour nodded in confirmation. "You bet she is. Her milkin' days are done, but she still has her uses. She can haul a plow like no one's business. I'm sure she'll be glad to see you again."
Still clad in her Winter attire, Spoiled carefully made her way across the fields to the barn. An entire herd of cows greeted her, some of whom recognized her. They chatted among themselves. "Is that Spoiled Milk? She seems different somehow. Definitely not the same filly who used to tend us to from sunrise to sunset every day."
Realizing that she had unintentionally drawn a great deal of attention to herself, the mare with an upturned snout cleared her throat as she asked the cows. "Pardon me, ladies. But would any of you happen to know where I can find Esmeralda? I'd like a chance to meet with my old friend."
Almost as soon as the words had left Spoiled's mouth there came a reply. "Spoiled Milk? Is that you I be hearing?" The other cows parted way, as an old brown spotted cow with black spots came clomping up to the mare, her bell ringing loudly for all to hear. Said cow sported faded blue eyes and a dark brown mane that was graying in spots. Otherwise there seemed to be no signs of her having physically aged at all.
Spoiled almost let out a gasp as she threw her hooves around the cow! "Esmeralda! Oh how I've longed to see you again!" She fondly exclaimed!
Esmeralda was quite surprised to have Spoiled's hooves wrap around her. "Ah, Spoiled Milk. At last you've returned," She fondly commented. "Goodness, you sure have grown. Why, I can remember feedin' ya with some of my milk when you barely came up to my knees don'tcha ya know?"
The mare nodded. "You always were my favorite cow. Never put up a fuss when I tried to milk you, and never left any 'presents' for me to clean up."
Esmeralda just happily mooed as her bell rang again. "What be bringing you back up here to the old farm after all these years? Last time I saw you, you wouldn't stop bragging 'bout how you were getting engaged to the most handsome stallion you'd ever met."
"Let's just say I had some... unexpected guests show up the previous night that talked some sense into me," Spoiled vaguely answered. "It's still a lot for me to process as I'm sure it is for everyone else. I'll admit though, the thought of seeing you again was a big part of my decision to finally come back here. In a way, you were like family to me."
"Oh shucks, Spoiled, you be making me blush don'tcha know?" Esmeralda sheepishly replied. "But it's nice to see you're back to being that sweet and cheerful filly you once were."
The happy reunion with Esmeralda didn't last nearly as long as Spoiled would've liked. But the earth pony knew that seeing her favorite cow again wasn't the only reason why'd she returned to her family dairy farm.
Trotting back inside, she began to prepare herself for the inevitable talk she would need to have with her mother. To show Sour that she had indeed changed for the better. A task that was certain to prove difficult given Sour's reputation.
But upon re-entering the old farm house and making her way to the living room, Spoiled was most surprised at the sight that greeted her strong opal eyes. For it was one that she never would've imagined even in her wildest of dreams!
Seated on the old, worn out sofa was none other than Sour Milk herself. Diamond Tiara sat comfortably in her lap, clearly relishing in every moment of the experience that she was currently a part of. And the two were scanning through an instantly recognizable (and rather thick) book, the Milk family photo album.
"I tell ya, Spoiled gave 'the terrible twos' a whole new meaning. Drove my husband and I crazy," Sour commented in only partial exaggeration. "Couldn't leave her alone for two seconds without her wandering off somewhere and getting into trouble. Got so bad I had to start putting a bell on her just to keep track of her."
Diamond clearly got a kick out of hearing the embarrassing story if the profound giggles she let out were any indication. "Wow, and here I thought Mother was always little miss Prim and Proper."
Sour laughed too. "Took years for my lessons to sink in with her. I swear, if she wasn't working in the fields or milking the cows, she was causing me an untold amount of headaches. I actually signed her up for the Filly Guides, thinking it would straighten her out." Using a hoof, Sour turned the page and she and Diamond gazed upon a picture showing a filly sized version of Spoiled, dressed in the filly guide outfits.
"Mother was in the Filly Guides? I had no idea! Seems like there's a lot of things she never told me about her life." Tiara commented in amazement, now wishing more than anything that she'd thought to sign up for the filly guide the year prior. It was among her many regrets.
"Oh trust me, when someday you have foals of your own you'll understand." Sour replied.
Spoiled decided to make her presence known at that very moment, not wanting to be embarrassed any further. Something told her that her mother had yet to get to the really humiliating photos. She cleared her throat quite audibly, thus drawing attention to herself.
In contrast to her namesake, Sour appeared to become rather sweet as she looked at her fully grown daughter and innocently commented. "Oh, Spoiled, sorry I didn't notice you earlier. How did the reunion with Esmeralda go? You always were fond of that cow."
"Not as fond as Diamond has become of Randolph. Now it's like that old butler is her long lost uncle with how much she hangs around him." Spoiled thought to herself, and made a mental note to call Randolph in and thank him for his long time services. Now that she was going to pay him what he deserved, some praise was long overdue. Then she returned to the subject at hoof, as she replied to her mother in as polite a tone as she could. "Oh, it was just fine. Esmeralda looks like she hasn't aged a day since I last saw her. I can only hope you and I will be as lucky when we get to be her age."
Sour waved a hoof. "Oh don't be talking nonsense, Spoiled. We ain't nearly that old. Just ask your father the next time you come for a visit, he'll tell you that I'm actually quite youthful for my age."
"Well if I could kindly be allowed to finish my sentence," Spoiled spoke up, sounding a bit more stern. "I couldn't help but notice you were dusting off the family album with the clear intent of amusing my daughter at my expense."
Sour laughed. "As I'm sure you'll do when you have grandfoals. It's what grandparents do, after all."
"Not Granny Smith. And I should know, she's had plenty of interesting stories to tell over the years," Spoiled remarked. "Anyway, my point is that are more... important things to worry about on this fine Hearth's Warming Day. I most certainly didn't come all this way just to be embarrassed, I'll have you know."
The bulky earth pony realized what her daughter was not so subtly trying to inform her of, and carefully shifted her weight as she lightly shooed Diamond Tiara off her lap. "Now now, I think that's quite enough of the old pictures for right now. After all there is still the matter of dinner."
"Really? But it's only three o'clock in the afternoon," Tiara observed as she eyed a nearby clock. "Hearth's Warming dinner never gets served at my place until at least five thirty or even later."
"Which is why we're starting now, Diamond Tiara," Sour delicately explained. "Takes quite a while to prepare all the food and cook it thoroughly. You do want a nice hot dinner, don't you?"
Diamond couldn't resist licking her lips. "Good point. Father always likes to say that all the best things in life take time." Her tone of voice conveying how much she missed him and wished that he could be here, even just for a little while. Hearth's Warming wasn't the same without him. She then trotted off to fetch her hat, boots, and scarf in order to pass the hours by playing in the snow.
Meanwhile, Spoiled made an unexpected offer. "Let me handle all the cooking, Mother," She insisted to Sour. "I do know my way around the kitchen."
"Are you sure about that? Because I seem to remember a certain young mare who couldn't bake anything without burning it or making a mess, or even both," Sour frowned in disapproval. "The last thing I need on Hearth's Warming is for you to ruin dinner and require me to endure the shame of ordering take out. Not many places are even open on this holiday, I'll have you know."
The mare with an upturned snout frowned right back. "My cooking skills have improved considerably since then, Mother. One of the first things Filthy had me do upon our marriage was take cooking lessons. They were expensive, but now I can safely say they were worth every bit spent."
"Guess that Filthy was good for something after all." Sour commented.
"I didn't come here to have you judge my choice of romantic partner," Spoiled sternly snapped back. "And if you're going to keep on making these rude remarks I shall just pack up and take Diamond home with me now. I still owe her that sleigh ride I promised, and I can do that here or back at my mansion with my loving husband. It's your choice."
Sour said nothing more on the subject of Filthy Rich. "Fair enough. I suppose it's not my place to say who you should've married. Just don't be afraid to call on me when you need help, and you know you will," She said with a wink. "Doesn't matter how many cooking lessons you take, a traditional Hearth's Warming dinner is always at least a two pony job."
"We'll just see about that." Spoiled declared as she took up the unofficial bet with her mother. Rich ponies certainly never backed down from a challenge, and Spoiled was no exception.
Drawing mostly on memory, Spoiled worked quick as a flash to get all the ingredients and cooking instruments needed to create the many savory treats of Hearth's Warming dinner.
It didn't matter to her that she was out of her depth, working without any hired hooves or even her husband. The most baking she'd done prior to this point, was one time when she had helped her daughter make cookies. That endeavor had not worked out the greatest for a variety of reasons, none the least of which had been that Spoiled and Diamond had not really cooperated. So Spoiled was even more determined than usual, hoping to redeem herself after that culinary disaster.
Pretty soon the rich mare became 'In the zone' to borrow a phrase her daughter had picked up from Rarity a while back. Cooking consumed her every thought and action and nothing else mattered. No detail was too unimportant to her. Every little thing had to be just right.
In the blink of an eye, over an hour ticked by and Spoiled was quite relieved that she'd put on an apron because it was stained with crumbs and splotches of things that would've been a pain to wash off her dress (which she wanted to keep in pristine condition). At long last though, she was finished and had pulled the final dish out of the oven to cool. Everything looked and smelled appetizing, at least to her (the mare was glad an upturned snout did not affect one's sense of smell).
Of course it didn't matter what Spoiled thought, the ones for whom she had cooked would be the judge. Unlike the hired help that might feel tempted to lie or tell a half truth to save their hides, Diamond and Sour would have no reasons to be at all dishonest. If Spoiled's cooking was found to be at all subpar, they would surely let her know.
But that was a matter that was out of Spoiled's hooves. All the mare could do was carefully set the food on the table, wash up, and call her daughter back in from a fun romp around the farm.
Diamond could hardly believe her eyes at the wonderful spread that awaited her in the dining room! Everything you'd expect to see at a traditional Hearth's Warming dinner, all set up and looking oh so inviting! "You cooked all of this?!" She exclaimed with amazement! When Spoiled nodded the filly with the headgear the same name as her let out a gasp. "Okay, this has all been wonderful. But seriously, who are you and what you have done with the real Spoiled Rich? There's no way this is actually happening right now!"
"I'm starting to think the same thing myself," Sour commented. "I want to believe this is all real, but it's like all my dreams have come true all at once. It just seems so unbelievable."
"Oh I assure you, I'm the real me and this is all very much real," Spoiled declared in the sweetest tone she had ever uttered. "So if you'll kindly take your seats, I wish to treat you both to a Hearth's Warming meal the likes of which neither of you will ever forget!"
Both Sour and Diamond soon found out that Spoiled hadn't been kidding. To say the food was delicious would be an understatement! It was so good that it defied words.
Tiara actually lost track of her usual etiquette as the meal progressed and she consumed more and more tasty food. Surprisingly, her mother only snickered at the display.
Sour did too as she told her granddaughter. "I see the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Spoiled used to eat like that all the time. And she wasn't a picky eater either, you could put anything on her plate and she'd scarf it all down in the blink of an eye!"
Diamond swallowed her food before replying. "Really? That's unbelievable! I can't believe my mother ever used to be... well, not my mother if you know what I mean. I mean, I knew she had to come from somewhere but every time I ever asked her about her life before she met Dad, she always refused to say much of anything. I can't believe I've gone all these years without ever hearing any of this."
"Well as you can see, there's a very good reason why I didn't bring it up," Spoiled admitted. "When one marries into wealth and privilege, it comes with certain expectations. Like it or not, I had to more or less change my ways to fit in with the upper crusts of society. I just never imagined my past would catch up to me the way it did."
After dinner was finished and the dishes put away, Tiara was bouncing up and down in excitement as she asked her grandmother! "Can we take a look at the photo album again?! I wanna see some more pictures of my mom when she was a little pony! They're so adorable and hilarious!"
But Spoiled had a different idea in mind, something personal that she had been putting off ever since making the decision to come back to the dairy farm on which she'd been born and raised. And one that she now knew she had to address. "Actually, Diamond," She not so subtly suggested as she pushed her headstrong daughter out of the living room. "Why don't you go play in the snow some more while your grandmother and I catch on up some things?"
"Ah but Mother, it's just not as fun to play by myself," Diamond whined. "And the cows are all sore sports, they're no fun at all."
"That's 'cause they ain't meant to be used for target practice," Sour lightly protested. "Try hittin' some tin cans, that's how Spoiled perfected her aim and became a snowball fighting champion."
And Spoiled added. "And if you behave yourself, I promise that after the talk is done I can take you on that sleigh ride we talked about the night before. Does that sound like a fair deal to you?"
Tiara accepted the terms after a bit of contemplation. "Alright, I guess I can entertain myself up for to another hour or so. But don't keep me waiting. You promised me a sleigh ride and I fully expect one. If you back out on it I'm telling Father on you, and you know he won't be pleased to hear you didn't keep a promise to me." Then the pink coated made a bee line for her Winter gear, making herself scarce for the time being.
That left Spoiled and Sour alone in the living room, content for a time to just stare each other down and size the other pony up. Their eyes tried to judge one other's expressions and body language to try and judge the other's intent.
It was Sour Milk who finally broke the tense silence that had started to build. "Why have you come back, Spoiled?"
"Beg pardon?" Spoiled questioned in what sounded like a sincere yet defensive tone.
"I don't hear from you for years, not even a letter or anything of the sort. Then all of a sudden, a day after three special guests help me reach out to you, you show up looking like the chipper filly I once knew and loved," Sour remarked in a noticeably bitter tone. "Your father's not here because he blamed me for what happened to you, said I pushed you away too hard. And it took me until now to realize he was right. Yet now you come whistling back like nothing's wrong, as if all those years of exclusion mean nothing. So why are you here? Are you trying to haunt me or something?"
"How could do I that? I'm no spirit," Spoiled chuckled briefly before adopting a much more somber tone of voice. "I'm being sincere, Mother. I really have changed, and all day long I've been trying to prove that to you. Of course, you've been making that anything but easy with how much you seem intent on embarrassing me. But don't tell me this isn't what you wanted, you had to arrange for those three special guests to come. I certainly can't imagine two of the princesses or that Discord creature would just up and bother the likes of me because they had nothing better to do."
Sour shook her head. "I had nothing to do with those three. All I know is that last night, while I was thinking about the fact that it was going to be yet another Hearth's Warming spent alone, these mysterious voices started speaking to me," With a sigh, she added. "They seemed to know everything about me: Past, present, and future, all of it gift related too for some odd reason. They said they could give me a chance to make amends, to give and experience the greatest gift of all as they put it. So I said yes and that was it. They said they'd take care of everything else, even arrange the guests that would appear on their behalf."
"And it worked!" Spoiled proudly declared! "Or do you somehow still not believe me?"
"No, I believe you now. I really am sour," Sour Milk admitted in an unhappy tone. "I can't believe the day has come when my daughter has become a better pony than I was."
"Well I could've toned you out anytime I wanted to, Mother," Spoiled told the elder earth pony. "But I listened and obeyed. It shouldn't have taken those guests to open my eyes. Still, better late than never I suppose."
Sour nodded and at that she embraced her daughter in a cuddle, the first hug she'd given in what felt like forever! "Oh Spoiled! Of all the gifts I could've received for Hearth's Warming, this has to by far be the best one!"
Spoiled just gave a sincere smile. Whoever or whatever was responsible for arranging this reunion on Hearth's Warming Day, she owed them a great deal of thanks. But how was she to even get in contact with them?
Unknown to either pony inside the farm house, from a nearby window a trio of magical reindeer were watching the whole thing.
"See, I told you it was gonna work out!" Alice boasted to the others. "And you all had your doubts!"
"I can only see the gifts of the past, not the future!" Aurora corrected. "So pardon me if I was a bit uncertain about the whole thing. You know we're not supposed to intervene in some matters."
Bori simply stepped between the two, keeping them both from fighting like she often did. "Come now, there's no need to fuss. We did our part, and our helpers did theirs."
"Which reminds me, we still owe Discord, Princess Luna, and Princess Celestia for having them fill in for us on such short notice." Aurora commented.
Alice smiled. "Don't worry, I already know what we're going to get them to repay them for their service."
"All in good time, you two," Bori smiled. "For now, let's simply relish in the fact that it's yet another job well done. Friendship truly is the greatest gift of all."
Author's Note
This was an idea I toyed with for some time after I published "Spoiled Rich's Hearth's Warming Carol" the year prior. It's actually become a pretty popular subject in some fandom circles to discuss reforming Spoiled.
Of course, when I wrote the fic to which this is a sequel of I had no idea "The Best Gift Ever" was going to come about or that we'd be getting the show's more or less definitive answer to the three ghosts of Christmas. But I decided to throw the gift givers in at the very end of this fic anyhow.
Convincing others you've changed is just as important as making the decision to change. Redemption is an ongoing process.
Hope you all enjoy my (early) Christmas present and final fic for 2018.
