//------------------------------// // Chapter 5- Pinkie Pie // Story: Sweet as Honeydew // by Obsi //------------------------------// Steeling himself, Honeydew rose up from the door handle he’d been sitting on in order to rap his hoof against the door itself. “Twilight? Are you still in there? Do you need much longer?” “Just a few more minutes, honey~” Twilight replied in a sing-song voice, causing Honeydew to glance to the clock. Though the idea of tracking the time by means other than sunlight still seemed outlandish to him, he’d practised reading these devices, and this one said that there wasn’t much time left!  “What are you doing in there? The pink one wanted us to be there soon.” “A moment, Honeydew, I’m almost ready.” she chuckled. “In fact, you might want to get off the door handle, I’m just about done.” As she came out, he could instantly tell that something was different about her. The way she held herself as she ran a hoof through a mane that seemed to sparkle, the look of her vibrant, purple eyes seeming more prominent than ever, framed by perfectly curved eyelashes- had they always been this long? And there was some kind of subtle coloring around them, further serving to pull one’s gaze into her purple irises. Pleased to see that her coltfriend had clearly noticed, Twilight smiled. Her lips had been coated with the same glossy purple as her eyelids. “How do I look?” “Y-you painted yourself…” he muttered, turning his wings so that he could view her from another angle. “D-did the pink pony say something about that? Is it part of the ceremony?!” swallowing, he glanced at the markings on his own coat. They were already starting to fade. Panic rose in his throat as he turned toward the clock. What to do, what would be less of an insult to the pink pony, to arrive late, or to not follow proper tradition?! “Calm down, honey,” Twilight calmly said, reaching out a hoof for him to land on. He noted that it also felt smoother than usual, freed of all the usual particles of dust and dirt that normally found their way into them. “You didn’t do anything wrong, I just wanted to look a little better. So, what do you think?” “You look great, of course. You always do.” there was not a shred of doubt or insincerity in his voice as he looked up at her, his feelers twitching curiously as he leaned from side to side. “I just sometimes wish I could see all of you at once more often.” “Oh, Honeydew.” she chuckled, before leaning in, carefully pursing her lips as she met his, a maneuver they were both quite familiar with. Twilight grinned as she looked down at the breezie, whose head was practically coated in vibrant purple now. “As much as I love seeing you like this, I think we should clean that up before we meet with the others, shouldn’t we?” His eyes closed, Honeydew stuck out his tongue, spitting out the fragments of color that had gotten into his mouth. ----- “Twilight!” the shout echoed from the rooftops as the alicorn came into view, carrying Honeydew on her back. Perched upon the cupcake-like roof of Sugarcube Corner, Pinkie called out to them, eagerly waving a pair of colorful flags tied to each of her hooves. “Good afternoon, Pinkie.” Twilight called down, chuckling at her friend’s antics.  “Hi Twi, hi Honeydew.” Pinkie waved once more, not paying an ounce of attention to the flag that got detached from her hoof and tumbled down the roof. “Come on in, the others are already waiting for our surprise!” “A surprise?” Honeydew asked as the pink pony climbed through a window with surprising nimbleness. “For you too.” Twilight chuckled as she landed on the balcony and took the door. Pinkie’s bedroom, round as the cupcake it outwardly appeared to be and spacious enough to hold an entire crowd, was much cleaner than Honeydew had expected. Sure, there were a couple of balloons and streamers, objects he knew from the photos Twilight had shown him when he asked about pony parties, but this room had more in common with one in the castle than those chaotic images. There wasn’t even any food. But the rumble from the door was enough to push that thought out of his head as Applejack entered the room, followed by Rainbow Dash, Rarity and… yellow-pink. Suddenly, the room didn’t seem quite as big anymore. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to stay out in the open. He already knew them! Well, most of them… Swallowing past the lump in his throat, he waved a hoof. “H-hello.” “Howdy there, ya two.” Applejack grinned, exchanging a hug with Twilight. “Almost thought ya wouldn’t come.” “Yeah, what took you so long.” Rainbow Dash grumbled. “It is called being fashionably late, dear.” Rarity explained in a tone one would normally reserve for foals, before winking at Twilight. “And I see you’ve used the time well, you look gorgeous, darling!” Trying to hide her blush, Twilight pretended to examine her wings. “Sooo, what’s this party gonna be like?” Rainbow Dash wondered, swooping through the room with a critical eye. “I’m not seeing anything party-ish here.”  “An’ what’s up with all these toys?” Applejack wondered, poking a plastic slide that could’ve only been used by a doll. “Pinkie, have ya finally snapped?” “Nope!” to her credit, the pink pony didn’t seem fazed by the comment at all, instead grinning like a maniac as she jumped over her own bed. “The party is right here, you just gotta find it!” “Uh… are ya sure that whatcha said made any sense? Cause ah’m don’t think ya can’t play hide ’n seek with a party.” “Of course I’m sure, silly.” Pinkie giggled. “The party is riiiight here!” With that, she placed a horseshoe carton on her bed. One it's sides spelled in bright, skewed letters: ‘Secret Party’. “This is the great surprise-y part!” “I don’t think we can fit in there, Pinkie…” Rainbow said, scratching her head. “He can.” Pinkie said, placing a surprised Honeydew inside the carton. “But we can’t!” the pegasus groaned. “Maybe we caaan.” Pinkie said, turning around with an expectant look. “Twiiiilight?” The alicorn snickered as her horn glowed, the magenta aura appearing around Pinkie Pie, then the rest of them. “I think there might be a way.” Honeydew watched in wonder as the ponies he’d gotten to know as both people and living mountains seemingly fell toward the ground, their tree-trunk-like hooves losing contact with the ground as they were seemingly pulled inside of their bodies like the head of a tortoise. Though confused for a moment, it only took them a moment to spread their insectile wings and safely glide down to the ground. Pinkie Pie actually let out a cheery “Wheeee!” as she landed in the middle of the toy-slide. “So worth borrowing this from the twins!” “Surprise~” Twilight fluttered her eyebrows as she closed his open jaw with her hoof. “I-” Honeydew stammered, looking from one breezified pony to the other. Unable to speak, he simply threw his hooves around her, both of them laughing as she stumbled backwards. “Heck, it’s nice meetin’ ya from eye ta eye.” Applejack grinned, knocking her hoof on his shoulder. “I love your feelers.” Pinkie giggled. “You look rad!” Rainbow said. “And muscular~” Rarity purred. “I can see why Twilight picked you.” “Hey, hooves off, he’s mine” Twilight chuckled. “Oh, and I’m happy for you, darling.” she pursed her lips. “Even if it makes me a little jealous.” “Stay jealous.” Twilight said with finality, grabbing Honeydew’s hoof. “Mine.” “If you say so, darling.” Rarity rolled her eyes, joining Applejack in drinking some punch. It was a strange experience for Honeydew to watch it, to interact and joke with these ponies like it was entirely normal! But then, it had been getting normal already, hadn’t it? Between meeting up with Applejack, Rainbow and Rarity, he’d almost felt comfortable around them anyway. In a way, it was sad how much of a relief this felt like. Would the size difference always be a hindrance, always hold some feeling of dread as he spoke with them? Even Twilight could still unnerve him at times, especially when she came into view without his knowing that she was there at all. But… now wasn’t really the time to worry, right? Despite knowing little about these occasions, watching the other chat and laugh certainly suggested that this wasn’t some careful ceremony where one had to worry about taking the proper steps. It seemed to just be… having fun together. Biting his lip, he watched Twilight and Rainbow Dash speak, their voices raised. His curiosity peaking, he approached the pair, who were now each placing a hoof on the table, gripping the other’s. “Props for even trying, egghead, but you’re going down.” Rainbow grinned. “Don’t be so certain, Dash, I’ve gotten plenty of workout in the breezie world.” Twilight replied, adopting a gaze of pure concentration. “On three?” “Sure, but you don’t stand a chance.” she chuckled lightly. “I bet I’ll beat you in less than three seconds~” “We’ll see.” Twilight’s face could have been carved from stone for how intense she looked. “1…” Rainbow rolled her eyes, relaxing her shoulders. “2!” In an instant, Twilight threw all her might against Rainbow, whose eyes widened as she tried to catch herself, her hoof hovering mere inches from the table. Straining, she fought back against Twilight, but despite her efforts, the back of her hoof hit the table just a moment later. “Y-you cheated! You said on three!” Rainbow exclaimed as Twilight stuck out her tongue. “I demand a rematch!” “Nope.” Twilight smirked. “I won fair and square.” “Oh, no you didn’t!” Rainbow shouted as she chased a laughing Twilight, demanding a ‘best of three’. “Rainbow Dash, she can never let things go.” Applejack smirked, glancing over to Honeydew. “Can ya believe that she challenged me for constant rematches over an entire week, just ‘cause I kept beating her?” “Then you’re stronger than her?” “Definitely. Even if she don’t wanna admit it. Why? Ya wanna give it a go?” grinning, she placed her glass on the table. “M-maybe later.” he muttered, watching as Rainbow caught up to Twilight, tickling her into submission. “A-actually, rather not.” “Fair ‘nough.” Applejack shrugged. Rainbow Dash eventually ‘coerced’ Twilight into a series of rematches. Though, to her dismay, although she won all of them, she never seemed able to fulfill her bet of a three-second victory. Unable to continue a conversation with Applejack, Honeydew watched from a distance as the ponies erupted in laughter over a joke he wouldn’t have understood. “Darling, your face looks like a downpour waiting to happen.” Rarity’s voice whispered in his ear, causing his head to snap around- he hadn’t even noticed that she hadn’t been a part of the group. With a spark of her horn, she moved over a couple of pillows before letting herself fall into one. “I-is that a pony saying?” Honeydew muttered, taking a seat on the pillow next to her. “It means that you look sad.” she placed her cup on the ground, focusing fully on the breezie. “The others seem to be enjoying themselves, why not join them?” “W-well, why don’t you?” he stammered, glancing to the crowd, which was cheering as they put a blindfold on a shivering yellow-pink. Rarity briskly waved a hoof. “Oh, nono, darling, these kinds of party games aren’t really my forte, though I do enjoy watching the others have their fun, childish as it may be.” leaning closer, she narrowed her eyes at him. “But I have a feeling that it’s not the same for you. Would you like to join them, Honeydew?” “Uhm… maybe?” he said, shimmying to a more comfortable distance to the observant unicorn. “But I don’t know the game…” “I’m sure Twilight wouldn’t mind teaching you, she doesn’t ever seem to tire of it.” having elegantly brushed off his objection, she took a sip from her cup. “So, what is keeping you?” “Well…” Biting his lip, he watched as yellow-pink stumbled from side to side, as if she’d drank an entire fermented berry. “It’s a pony game.” “Oh, dear.” Rarity sighed. “You know, Twilight came up with this whole thing to make it easier for you to talk to us.” “She did?” “Of course, can you think of a better reason for why she and Pinkie would set this up? But that is not enough, is it? Is it because we are still enormous in your head?” He shook his head. “It’s not the size. Not just. It’s not even just because you are ponies, I can speak with… one of you, at a time. But just as much as you can make me feel tiny or weak, it also makes me feel silly. When I was with Rainbow Dash on that camping trip, he thought I could find the way back, but even your forests weren’t like mine. It’s like I know nothing about your world.” “But afterwards, Rainbow spoke very highly of your.” Rarity interjected. “Y-yes, because during the night, I had to fight off over a dozen of those bloodsucking insects. He said it was ‘chilly’.” “Cool,” Rarity translated with a smirk. “But then he pointed out that he could have just placed his pot over me and I would have been fine. I never even considered that, even though it was right there!” “I-I’m sorry, Honeydew,” Rarity interrupted with a chuckle. “But I noticed you keep referring to Dash as ‘he’ or ‘him’. You… are aware that she’s female, right?” “She… is?” his expression turned into one of sheer, nonplussed surprise. “Really?” “Really, dear.” Rarity said, trying her hardest to suppress a decidedly unladylike laugh. “But the voice-” With a long groan, Honeydew smacked a pillow into his own face. “You ponies are so hard to tell apart!” “This goes right into my rumor-mill.” she chuckled. But her expression fell as she watched Honeydew, his face still pressed into his pillow. “Sometimes I wish I was still with my clan,” he whispered, his voice nearly unnoticeable through the cushion’s muffling effect. “Where every breezie is like me.” “Oh, dear!” Rarity gasped, as the realization dawned on her. “You’re homesick!” “I’m not sick-” “It means you miss your home, darling.” she gently patted his shoulder. “What is it you miss? Just the place? Or something else you left behind?” “My- my duties.” he muttered. “I miss being able to go into the wild by myself. To find familiar things in the forest and then watch as they do something new. I- I miss returning to the clan and telling them of a great find. I wish I could see Kalypso again and feel the hope she gives everyone around her, even if she struggles to feel the same. And I feel bad, that…” he took a long breath, closing his eyes. “That I left my sisters behind.” There was a moment of silence before Rarity spoke up. “You never told me about your family.” “Yes… only Twilight and Applejack know, but I have four sisters. Hippe, Skylla, Charybdis and Harpie.” “I suspect there’s more to it?” she asked. He gave her a quick nod. “You have to know that we task the oldest sibling to watch over the younger ones once they’re old enough. Our parents moved to our mother’s clan when Hippe turned ten. Since then, she’s been watching out for us.” “At ten?” “Twilight thought the same when I explained it to her.” Honeydew groaned.  “But just ten years…” “It’s old enough to watch for the younger children.” he claimed, crossing his hooves as his eyes darkened. “But Hippe didn’t. As soon as she was allowed to leave for a scouting mission, she never came back. A year later, we find out she found herself a stallion in some other clan, and she left us behind to live with him.” Leaning back, he took a long breath. “So, it fell to me to watch out for my younger sisters. But… I suppose I wasn’t much better than her. I was going to be a scout, and so I was constantly out in the wild, sometimes for weeks. Leaving Skylla as the next in line. She’s never forgiven me for that.” shrugging, he stared at the ground. “I was angry at Hippe for so long, but look at me now. I’ve left them behind, just like she did.” “How- how old are they know?” Rarity asked. “You didn’t leave them as ten-year olds, right?” “No, no, Skylla is seventeen, Charybdis thirteen and Harpie eight. But it doesn’t matter. I still left them!” “Yes, you did.” Rarity said. “You know, I’ve had an ugly fight with my sister Sweetie Belle, to the point where she didn’t want to be my sister at all. I- I know it hurts. But I think the best you can do is apologize to her, and then… ask if she still wants you in her life. And if she doesn’t, well… at least you’re no longer trying to repair a bridge that will only break apart again.” She reached her hoof over his shoulder, waiting as he simply sat there, somberly mulling over her words. “Twilight has been trying to find some way to let us safely visit Kalypso. I-I could probably try to speak with her, but letting it all depend on her decision…” a shiver went through his body. “That’s terrifying.” “I think it’s the right choice. And do keep in mind, even if she refuses, it doesn’t have to mean forever. She might change her mind afterwards.” “She might not. But…” finally, he looked up, meeting her eyes with a sad smile. “Thank you for your advice. I never knew how much I needed to talk to another big brother.” “Oh, pish-posh, dear, I’m glad to help.” Rarity smiled, then suddenly leaned forward to kiss his cheek, giggling as he jerked back. “Don’t you worry about Twilight, darling, kisses on the cheek don’t count~” “I- uh-” stammering once more, he slowly lowered his hoof from his cheek. “S-still, thank you, Rarity.” “T’was nothing, darling.” she winked. “Now go back to her, will you, I can’t hog you to myself all throughout the party.” After sharing a short laugh, she waved him goodbye as he went to mingle with the others. Yet, as she went to refill her cup of punch, there was something nagging in the back of her mind. Some affront in the previous conversation that was crying for outrage. Eventually though, she shrugged it off. It couldn't have been too significant. --- Uncertain what to say, Honeydew approached the group of Twilight, Pinkie Pie and Applejack, who were sitting and chatting in their small circle. “Uh, hi.” he awkwardly forced out, interrupting something the pink pony was saying. “Honeydew!” Twilight whirled around, a grin spreading across her face as she met his eyes. “Where have you been all this time?” “Just talking. With Rarity.” he managed a shaky smile as he watched the other two breezified ponies. “What are you doing?” “It’s called ‘Truth or Dare’, honey.” Twilight explained. “You can play with us right now.” “O-okay.” he muttered, taking a seat between Twilight and Applejack. “How does it work?” “It’s simple!” Pinkie said, her grin as large as the bottle in her hoof. “We spin this, and the pony- err, breezie it points to has to choose Truth or Dare. Then you either do what the pony who spun the bottle tells you to do or you have to answer a question. But beware,” she added with a serious frown. “You must only speak the truth.” “S-so I can’t lie?” he muttered, awestruck. “Nope, not even the ittiest bitties lie.” Pinkie grinned. “Now, I think it was my turn!” And with that, she set the bottle on the ground and gave it a shove, sending it spinning. And spinning… and spinning… “Twilight?” Honeydew asked as the bottle just wouldn’t come to a halt. “I wanted to ask you about when we could visit home…” “What? You want to leave already?!” Pinkie gasped, her face as pale as the moon’s surface. “Ah think he meant his world, Pinkie.” Applejack whispered. Meanwhile, Twilight seemed to ponder the question. “I can’t say for sure yet.” she finally answered. “I’ve been running a couple tests lately, and I’ve been able to speak with Kalypso through the opening, but sometimes it still behaves erratically. It could take anywhere between one or three months until it opens again.” “Oh, then forget I asked…” he muttered, but before he could lower his head in defeat, Twilight’s hoof reached out for his chin. “However,” she stated clearly, as she met his gaze with a smile. “Kalypso has been able to open the portal once before. And I see no reason why she wouldn’t be able to do it again, especially if there is something you feel you need to do back home.” “I- thank you!” Honeydew burst out, throwing his hooves around Twilight. With a laugh, she returned the embrace, resting her head on his shoulder. “...Ah dun fink they’re watffin’, Pinkie.” Applejack muttered, fighting an uphill battle for her own tongue to reach over the half-way mark toward her nose. “But- we were playing!” Pinkie moaned, wildly gesticulating to her friend’s struggle with her dare. “S-sorry.” Honeydew giggled, separating himself from Twilight, apart from one hoof, which he kept draped over her back. “T-that means it’s Applejack’s turn to spin, right?” “Darn right, it is~” the orange mare grinned as she shook the bottle. This time, it didn’t spin for nearly as long as it did for Pinkie Pie, soon coming to a screeching halt… pointing right at Honeydew. “Now you gotta pick between Truth or Dare.” Twilight whispered in his ear as she noticed his helpless look. “Uhm… Dare!” “Bad choice.” Applejack smirked, before brushing over her chin. “Hmmm, what do ah make ya do…” Suddenly, a devilish grin emerged on her face as she walked over to the table. “Ah dare ya ta beat Rainbow Dash in hoofwrestlin’!” “Oooh, she wouldn’t like that.” Pinkie snickered. “R-right now?” Honeydew asked, looking around for the prismatic pegasus. To absolutely no-ones surprise, she was floating in the air far above them, holding what looked like an entire miniature barrel of cider. “Nah, later’s fine. Let ‘er fill herself up summore. Ain’t no harm in makin’ it easier for yerself~” “Okay, you’re on.” Honeydew grinned before reaching for the bottle. “Uhm, truth means you cannot lie, right?” “That’s the rule.” Pinkie nodded. “A-alright.” he took a deep breath, casting a quick glance at Twilight before sending the bottle into a spin, hoping as it came to rest at him… Twilight… Pinkie… Applejack… him… Twilight, inching toward Pinkie, then finally coming to a seemingly abrupt halt, exactly in the middle between the pink and purple ponies. But who is it, Honeydew thought, glancing from one to the other. “I think it’s you, Twilight.” Rarity casually threw in, causing all their eyes to focus on her. With a casual shrug, she met Honeydew’s nervous look. “Truth?” “A-alright...” Honeydew swallowed, the sudden dryness in his throat threatening to cut off his voice. “D-do you want to marry me?” “I-I-” Caught completely off-guard, Twilight stammered, her hoof slowly wandering to her mouth in shock. “Ooooh, my gosh, he asked!” Pinkie gasped, her breathing intensifying. “It’s a little early to speak of marriage, Honeydew.” Twilight eventually said. “Ponies usually spend at least a couple years together before they make that decision… but YES!” wiping the tears from her eyes, she beamed with intense happiness. “I would love to marry you.” -------- It was getting dark outside when the first guests began to excuse themselves. Tired, they staggered, rather than walked out of the room, having been transformed back by Twilight’s magic. The alicorn herself seemed remarkably exhausted as well, having added the exertion of casting a dozen spells to her daily activities.  “Oops, you look really tired, Twi.” Pinkie giggled when she let out a mighty yawn. “Wanna make it a sleepover?” “That’d be nice, Pinkie.” Twilight muttered, barely able to keep her eyes open. “But I need to get some shut-eye now.” “That’s okay, Pinkie knows when to emphasize the ‘sleep’ in sleepover.” Pinkie replied. “I’m just gonna bring up the couch and then you can get your princess slumber.” “Well, I suppose I will be going as well, then.” Rarity said, shaking her head. “Two hours short of a proper beauty sleep, I am really letting myself go.” However, as she reached the door, she felt something tapping against her hoof. “Yes?” she asked, smiling down at the once-more tiny breezie. “Thank you.” “Oh, I already told you it was nothing-” “For the bottle.” he elaborated. “I saw the glimmer of your magic.” “Well…” With a grin, she lowered her voice so only he could hear her. “Let’s say I gave you an opportunity. And you did more with it than I could have imagined. Now, I think you should join your marefriend in bed. You’ll want all the strength you can get before you two discuss the wedding~” And with that, she left the room, leaving Honeydew and Twilight (who had already begun to snore) alone. He awkwardly waved his hoof, despite knowing she wouldn’t see it. I really am between worlds now, he quietly thought to himself. Even if Twilight would live with me and my clan, I’d miss him. The pony friend who has my back.