They Might Be Aliens

She didn’t expect a corridor.

Every time before this, it had felt like falling through fabric, an odd and suffocating feeling. But this time, it felt like she had been ejected from a chute.

She expected to be arriving just in time to watch Gusty the Great slay the fearsome Grogar. The ancient times were her favorite to visit because the pony race had not yet settled in Equestria. In those days, creatures of horror ruled the land. Every visit was full of tremendous adventure!

So the fact she did not end up there—but here in a hallway—did not peak her curiously or cause her any alarm. All it did was cause the pony to feel wildly annoyed.

Time to go.

She shuts her eyes, expecting to feel the fall and the fabric at any moment. But nothing happened. She opens one eye to check. Maybe I missed it?

But when she opens both eyes, Honey Drift realizes that she did not miss anything and that she had not gone anywhere. She was in the same exact place the chute had dropped her a moment ago.

And that only meant one thing. That she was not within time anymore if she couldn’t travel away.

Honey Drift decided to have a sit, because she does all her best thinking when sitting. But her body doesn’t move. She tries to budge her torso and then her hooves, but nothing happens. The pony can, however, move her head. She looks down to check her hooves, nervous that something is wrong with her legs. She feels her stomach drop when she sees that she is floating. Am I suspended in place? She swallows her panic and inspects the corridor visually to better understand her situation.

Honey Drift would later explain the corridor to have been dug by giant space moles. From her perspective, it tunneled through fluffy mounds of dust. And beyond these enormous pillows were luminous stars, the only source of light here. The glow of these stars seemed to reflect some large particles in the dust. It made it seem like the corridor cut through clouds of sparkles in some places. It was spectacular.

But the pony was too unnerved by the quiet, as if noise didn’t exist here, to enjoy the view around her. This place felt supernatural. She also thought it was unlikely she was alone in this place since the corridor certainly didn’t make itself. Instinctively, she smelled the air for clues of life, but it had no scent.

She tries to call out to say hello, but no sound leaves her mouth. She tries a few more words, but to no avail. Then in frustration, the pony tries to yell profanity. But her voice could not penetrate the silence.

An intrusive thought entered her mind and overwhelmed her with an eerie feeling that maybe she was abducted. After all, how else could she have gotten here? Time travel has not failed her before, nor has it ever dumped her in space.

Honey Drift decided it was time to find the exit and her way back Equus. But the pony wasn’t quite sure how to move since she was floating and suspended in place. After some thought, she decided maybe the problem was that she was trying to walk out of here. What if she tried to swim, and just pony paddled her way home?

She said it to herself jokingly, as a little levity in a hopeless situation. So the pony was quite unprepared when she was suddenly floating free in the corridor. In a panic, she committed to the pony paddle to move forward, but instead, the movement turns her sideways.

The pony braces to hit the dust cloud, expecting it to contain her within the corridor’s barrier. But she continues to drift through the dust and towards the stars. Honey Drift tries to stop, and she tries to paddle in other directions, but this just makes her spin like a wheel. She emerges on the other side of the dust and stares out into the void.

And as the pony’s screams die in her throat, she begins to see that what she thought were stars are in actuality, shimmering portals at varying distances. Wherever she is, it’s not space. Honey Drift realizes that some of these portals were very close, but the thought was too late, since she was already cartwheeling into one.

The pony suddenly experiences the familiar sensations of strangling and stretching as time swallows her. She is spit out into total darkness. And though she could not see her hoof in front of her own face, she knows with certainty that she was in a barn. Not only could she smell the hay, but she could feel the stalks poking into her fur.

Honey Drift holds her breath, listening for signs of life. The nighttime creatures of the forest are enjoying a summer night. Nothing sounds out of place, so she stands up carefully and slowly. The pony waits again for noises before spending a few minutes cautiously reaching out her hooves to feel the immediate space around her.

The pony studies the air with quiet huffs. She’s not alone.

“H…hello?,” she finally says nervously into the blackness.

The light flicks on and Honey Drift immediately feels blinded by it, wincing in pain and shutting her eyes.

“Sorry, we should have done that earlier, darling.”

Her eyes slowly open once the burning sensation passes. After adjusting to the light, she sees Rarity smiling triumphantly next to the light switch by the wall. Honey Drift slowly turns her head to see that Rainbow Dash, Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie are standing in a circle around her, smiling like statues. And near Rarity, hiding behind the wall and peeking from around its corner, is Fluttershy.

“So let me get this straight, you ponies were all just…standing around…in the dark? Cuz that’s totally normal.”

“No no no, we were in here waiting for you,” Applejack says matter-of-factly. The rest of the Mane 6 share a secret, knowing look. Except for Fluttershy, who is trembling behind the wall.

Honey Drift frowns. She never intended to visit Ponyville again, so she wasn’t sure how the ponies could be expecting her. But she has no energy to challenge this. The whole encounter with the corridor has both annoyed and exhausted her.

“I’m sorry ponies, but I’m feeling very tired.” Honey Drift yawns and looks to Fluttershy who is peeking out from behind the safety of the wall. “Same sleeping arrangements as last time? Should I head to the treehouse?”

Fluttershy blushes. Last time?

The statuesque smiles of the other ponies have faded. They share a nervous look with each other before focusing on Twilight Sparkle. Twilight clears her throat before speaking.

“Have we met before?”

“Yeah, how do you know about Fluttershy’s treehouse?” Rainbow Dash tilts her head. “Are you like a stalker or something?”

Honey Drift fakes a laugh and rolls her eyes. “Hilarious.”

She walks over to the wall that Fluttershy is mostly hiding behind. The pony gently takes Fluttershy’s trembling hoof and places it in her own. Honey Drift looks at the pegasus’s face, noticing that Fluttershy hasn’t aged a day since she saw her last. If anything, she appeared younger. Curious.

What is happening? Fluttershy turns bright pink from all the stranger’s attention.

“Can we please go home?” She is now looking into Fluttershy’s eyes. “I’d like to go to bed.”

The pegasus, flustered, drops her gaze to the ground. Fluttershy knows the stranger has confused her for someone else, but her heart has been racing since the moment she took her hoof. Shyly, she looks up at the pony and then moves her eyes to peer over the stranger’s shoulder.

Honey Drift can’t see the ponies behind her sharing silent gestures and intense eyeball communications. Nor is she paying any attention to Fluttershy beyond holding her hoof. That’s because the pony’s eyelids have started to droop and she would soon be asleep on her feet.

“Ponies, I-I-I suppose that um. I should take our guest to bed,” Fluttershy says in such a way that it sounded like a question.

The other four ponies stand there awestruck. Fluttershy has never gone rogue before. They share their shocked faces with each other before collectively looking at Twilight Sparkle. All their ears are flat and pulled back, showing uncertainty about Twilight’s reaction.

“Great idea, Fluttershy. I’m sure everything will make more sense in the morning after we have all had a rest.”

The four ponies cannot believe their ears.

“Sojust to be perfectly clear, our mysterious guest will be staying…in our accommodations?”

“And they we will be here in the morning?” Pinkie is trying her best not to scream. Are we having a surprise sleepover?!

“Sounds pretty reasonable to me.”

“Eh. Whatever.” Rainbow Dash isn’t that interested. Dorks.

Fluttershy gently shakes the stranger by the hoof to wake her. Once the pony’s eyes open, she begins to walk and leads the pony by the hoof towards the barn door. But instead of going straight, Fluttershy veers left towards the loft.

Honey Drift stops abruptly.

“Where are we going?”

“To…to b-bed,” Fluttershy responds, but it again sounds like a question. Or permission.

“Then why are we going this way?” The pony gestures her head towards the barn door. “The path to Everfree Forest is outside.”

Fluttershy blinks and then looks at Honey Drift sheepishly. “I…I don’t know another way.”

“What?” Honey Drift is dumbfounded. Did she forget the way to her own house?

The pegasus gently pulls Honey Drift by the hoof and leads her again. Reluctantly, Honey Drift follows and casts a backwards look over her shoulder at the other ponies. They’re all smiling like statues again. She turns and allows Fluttershy to pull her into darkness. There is no light reaching this part of the barn and the smell of hay is very pungent here

The two ponies continue walking and after a moment, they stop.

“Fluttershy, are we in the hay loft?”

“Just…just a moment.” Fluttershy is shuffling around in the dark as if she is looking for something.

“Are we getting a snack before bed?”

A lantern comes on in Fluttershy’s hooves. “No silly, this is bed.”

Honey Drift sighs. “So are you guys remodeling your cottages? Why are you sleeping in here now?”

“We’ve always slept in the hay loft,” Fluttershy responds quietly.

Honey Drift sighs again, exasperated. She knows these ponies have never lived in the barn together. “Where should I go?” She gestures to the hay.

Fluttershy points to a spot near the corner in the back of the hay loft. “You could curl up in my spot if you’d like. We don’t have guests stay over so I’m…I’m sorry we don’t have a different spot for you.”

At this point, Honey Drift is too tired to care where she sleeps. She steps into the hay loft determinedly, her hooves making crunching sounds as she walks to the corner of the loft. Her body collapses into the hay immediately, the dried stalks feeling both sharp and soft as they come into contact with her fur.

“Good night, pony,” Fluttershy says quietly from the entrance of the hay loft.

Honey Drift doesn’t respond because she is already asleep.