They Might Be Aliens

“Cupcakes are a breakfast food, right?”

Honey Drifts nods. “Really, an anytime food.”

Pinkie Pie leaps into the air from her seated position, her excitement uncontainable. She whirls to Fluttershy, eyes sparkling.

“I got this!”

Fluttershy, in contrast, looks bewildered. Cupcakes? Her research said breakfast was tea and muffins. Besides, the pegasus knows none of them had ever taken a cooking class.

“R-right. Cupcakes.” I hope you know what you’re doing, Pinkie.

Pinkie, of course, has no idea what she’s doing. “I’ll just be off to the closet for a few minutes.”

“‘Closet’?”

“Cooking place!” Pinkie twitches.

Honey Drift frowns. “You mean… the kitchen?”

“Yes! Kitchen!” Pinkie chirps, trotting toward a door on the wall adjacent to the tack room. She flings it open and disappears into inside, slamming it shut behind her.

It was the first time Honey Drift had been alone with Fluttershy since arriving. As they sat together on the barn floor, she took the opportunity to study the pegasus carefully. It felt impossible that any time had passed at all… in fact, Fluttershy seemed younger than she remembered.

Fluttershy, too, had noticed that they were the only two ponies left in the common area. When her eyes met Honey’s, she quickly looked away bashfully, her shyness getting the better of her.

“Can I ask you a question?” Honey Drift asks, her voice quiet but curious. “It’s a bit personal.”

Fluttershy blushes, shifting her mane to hide her cheeks. “S-sure.”

“How old are you?”

Fluttershy blinks. “L-Like right now to the m-minute? Or down to the seconds?”

Honey Drift hesitates. “Uh… years is fine.”

“And um… y-you mean pony y-years, right?” Fluttershy asks nervously.

Honey Drift gives her a confused look, but the pegasus continues her answer, “B-Because in pony years, I’m 18. Why? How old are you?”

But Honey didn’t answer. She seemed lost in thought, her gaze distant.

A few moments of silence pass before the stillness is shattered by the deafening whir of an enormous machine. The sound rumbles from behind the door Pinkie Pie has disappeared through moments ago.

Honey Drift jumps to her hooves, ears pricked. “What’s that?”

Fluttershy gently places a hoof over Honey’s and gives it a reassuring squeeze. “It’s okay. It’s j-just Pinkie using t-the printer.”

“‘Printer’?” Honey repeats, baffled. “I thought she was in the kitchen making cupcakes”

“Yes,” the pegasus says simply, because somehow, both are true.

She tugs lightly on Honey Drift’s hoof, wordlessly urging her to sit back down. After a brief hesitation, the pony obeys, settling beside the pegasus—this time even closer, so she doesn’t have to raise her voice over the relentless churning of the printer.

“I think I understand why you don’t remember me.”

Fluttershy’s eyes widen. “Oh…d-did you figure it out?”

“Yes. I time traveled here to Ponyville before you actually met me. When I first met you, you were a few years older than you are now. That’s why you don’t recognize me—I’m early by about nine years.”

A sigh of relief escapes Fluttershy’s lips, though it was drowned out by the machine’s noise.

“Oh… and how… how did we meet?” The pegasus looks very curious.

“The first time I time travelled, I came here to Ponyville to meet you.” Honey lights up. “The legends of the Mane Six were my favorite stories. The magic of friendship is—”

Honey grits her teeth as the printer makes a grinding sound.

“—incredible!”

Fluttershy appears as if she’s trying to piece together a puzzle. “So…w-we have a connection? It just um, hasn’t… happened yet?”

The pony smiles broadly. “Are you kidding? I had a connection with the rest of the ponies. You and I shared something completely different. It was really special.” She pauses. “At least, it will be. Nine years from now.”

“S-So I guess now would be a good time to mention that we, um… we don’t know your name.”

Honey Drift laughs, tilting her head. “I suppose I could make you ponies wait a few years to find out.”

She glances down to see she is still holding Fluttershy’s hoof—or perhaps Fluttershy is still holding hers.

“I’m Honey Drift. But my friends usually call me ‘Honey’ for short.”

“So,” Fluttershy pauses, looking into the pony’s eyes, “I can call you ‘Honey’ as your special friend?”

Honey Drift chuckles, meeting her gaze. “‘Special friend’?”

“Oh…” Fluttershy blushes deeply, averting her eyes to the floor. “G-G-Girlfriend?”

Honey Drift raises an eyebrow. “‘Girlfriend’?”

Fluttershy can’t help herself from stuttering, “Y-You said that you wanted to s-s-sleep at the t-treehouse and… and you called it h-h-home.”

“Oh, dear one,” Honey murmurs, placing her free hoof under Fluttershy’s chin. “You have nothing to be embarrassed about. As a matter of fact, you could say that we did have a special relationship last time I was here. And we did live together for a brief moment in time.”

A smug grin slowly spreads across Fluttershy’s face as she realizes she has a special friend whose hoof was now under her chin. Oh… this must mean she’s going to kiss me. She leans forward, her anticipation building.

Sensing the shift in energy, Honey Drift looks at the pegasus questioningly, who was puckered for a kiss. Not one to disappoint a pretty pony, she leans in and presses her lips to Fluttershy’s.

The printer stopped, and the barn fell silent once more.

The sudden quiet startled the ponies, causing them to break their kiss.

The only sound was the gentle rustling of dry hay beneath them as they shift. Still holding hooves, their noses brush together, a testament to their close proximity.

Suddenly, a door slams open. Pinkie Pie emerges, balancing an overflowing plate of the most perfect cupcakes in pony history.

This abrupt entrance further startles the pair, prompting them to stand.

“Cupcakes!” Pinkie sings, placing the plate on the table in the center of the common area.

As Pinkie approaches, Fluttershy subtly distances herself from Honey Drift.

Honey Drift, however, is entirely captivated by the cupcakes. She licks her lips, her turquoise eyes widening with delight. For the next glorious hour, it’s just and the cupcakes. The pony loses herself in the sugary confections, moaning with each bite, savoring every crumb. The weird barn and the other ponies fade away—only she and the cupcakes exist.

Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy watch in fascinated silence.

After Honey Drift polishes off more cupcakes than any pony has a right to eat, she lets out a contented sigh. Everything feels right in the world again. She smiles dreamily.

“Compliments to the chef.”

Pinkie giggles. I’ll be sure to tell the printer. “Glad you enjoyed them—“

“—Honey Drift,” Fluttershy adds softly.

Pinkie squealed. “Glad you enjoyed them, Honey Drift! But I better clean the closet before the others get back.”

“Kitchen,” Honey corrects gently.

Pinkie takes the empty cupcake plate and winks at Honey. “Kitchen.” She trots off, disappearing into the closet and once again slamming the door behind her.