Half-Hour Horses

by HoofAndQuill

Mystery Ingredient [Comedy]

(The Prompt: The secret to Pinkie Pie’s punch.)

(This one wasn't quite as punchy as I'd hoped. Also time limit sort of crept up on me.)

"It's time for the extra special game for this party!"

Pinkie Pie waved her hooves in the air to call her friends over to the little table she'd set up. Rainbow Dash shook the apple bobbing water out of her mane as she trotted over with the others. "A new game? Looks like it's just punch."

Pinkie shook her head, and her poofy mane bounced around with the movement. "Nope! It's punch with a secret ingredient! The secret ingredient is a mystery! Anypony who guesses it gets a super special prize!"

Rarity prodded the glass in front of her with a hoof. "Really, darling? It isn't something unpleasant, is it?"

Twilight Sparkle lifted her cup in her magic, and hesitated a second before tipping it back and taking a sip. She paused a moment, savoring the taste, and swallowed. "Hm. It does taste better, but I don't know why."

The other four mares took turns sipping at the sweet, pink beverage, each commenting in turn on how the punch was just a bit better than usual. Pinkie tossed back her glass without a second thought, and laughed. "Okay, just let me know whenever you think you know what it is, and I'll tell everypony at the end of the party if anypony got it!"

--

"No, silly! Cider would taste TERRIBLE in punch! It's got all those weird spices and stuff!" Pinkie giggled and hugged Applejack warmly. "Besides, your family's cider is already perfect! It doesn't need to go in punch!"

Applejack chuckled as she worked her way free of the hug. "Well shoot, I thought for sure it'd be somethin' like that. I know I can taste apples in this."

"Applejack dear it's plainly just a bit of extra sugar. It's much sweeter than normal, and unless I'm entirely mistaken there seem to be hints of unprocessed cane sugar." Rarity sipped daintily at her fruit punch, looking for all the world as though she was sampling some foreign delicacy or expensive wine.

Pinkie laughed again and carefully patted Rarity's mane, making sure not to muss it. "Noperooni! I learned not to put more sugar from my 'Candy is Dandy' party a long time ago! I was shaking and buzzing around like a bee for days!"

Rarity raised an eyebrow, looking at her punch skeptically. "Gummy wasn't bathing in this again, was he?"

"You don't get two guesses, silly!"

--

"Um... is it... extra berries?" Fluttershy smiled as she took another sip, letting the liquid pool on her tongue a moment before swallowing.

Pinkie Pie shook her head while drinking another glass herself, giggling as she mostly succeeded in getting punch all over her own muzzle. "Nope! But that's a really good idea for next time, Fluttershy! Some kind of punch-berry-apple sangria!"

Fluttershy smiled despite her failure. "Oh, well... it's lovely, whatever it is."

Rainbow Dash swooped down from the ceiling, laughing at her own stunt flying indoors. "No way it's something like berries! It's got to be something totally awesome, like... uh..."

Pinkie giggled at Rainbow's hesitation and poured herself another glass.

"Like... rainbows! Did you find some pegasus to get you some rainbows from Cloudsdale? I can taste a little spice in this!"

Rainbow Dash's triumphant expression fell when Pinkie Pie just burst into giggles instead of proclaiming her the victor. "Rainbows are too spicy for punch! But they'd make a super amazing surprise cupcake icing! That's the best idea ever!"

--

The party was winding down as the night waned on, and Pinkie was always quick to pick up on that sort of thing. Applejack and Rainbow's dancing was getting sluggish, and Rarity was missing pretty badly in her dart game with Twilight. Before anypony could start coming up with a reason to take off early, Pinkie Pie hopped up on a table. "Okay! Party's getting close to over so it's time to talk about punch!"

That got the attention of the scattered group of friends, drawing everyone over to Pinkie. Pinkie looked down at her friends and smiled at all of them smiling and looking up at her in anticipation. "So everypony guessed something, except Twilight! What do you think it is?"

Twilight Sparkle sipped at her punch again, and paused a moment to think. "I really have no idea. It tastes better, but I can't figure out how."

Pinkie giggled again and threw her hooves up triumphantly. "Then nopony guessed it! That means we can just try again next time!"

Applejack chuckled and Rainbow Dash smacked her own face with a hoof, looking a bit frustrated. "Oh, come on! You gotta tell us what it was, Pinkie! It stinks not even getting a prize or anything!"

"Everypony is tied for second place! Second place prize is a big hug from your friend Pinkie Pie!" Pie wrapped her arms around everypony at once, heedless of the impossible distance involved. They all laughed hugged her and each other, the punch quite forgotten for the moment.

--

"Thank you again for inviting us all to this absolutely wonderful little get-together." Rarity took a few steps backward out of Sugarcube Corner, waving goodbye to Pinkie as she left.

Twilight Sparkle stayed behind, and she and Pinkie quietly set to clearing the decorations and cleaning up spilled drinks and snacks. Twilight couldn't help glancing at the punch bowl as Pinkie hummed to herself and hopped around the room. The others may be able to let that sort of mystery go on unsolved, but it was just outside of her ability to just... ignore a mystery like that.

She set aside the bundle of decorations to be discarded, and trotted over to the punch bowl. She refilled her cup, and took another sip, letting it swish about a moment. It was sweet, fruity, and pleasant, like Pinkie's punch always was. Twilight turned to look for Pinkie, only to be met with the mare's face just about an inch away.

Twilight jumped backwards and shouted, which ended up casting punch in all directions. "Waugh! Pinkie!"

Pinkie Pie just laughed as she righted the spilled punch bowl, and then started moving the mop over the puddle on the floor. "Sorry, Twilight! You just looked super serious about the punch!"

"Pinkie, what was the secret ingredient? I'll just not play next time, but I can't tell what it was." Twilight dabbed napkins over her face, drying most of the spilled punch.

"Weeeellll.... okay, I'll tell you, but you have to Pinkie Promise not to tell anypony else!"

Twilight smiled, and did the appropriate gestures as she spoke. "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye."

Pinkie nodded solemnly, and then leaned in close and whispered. "I already told you though. The secret ingredient was a mystery!"

Twilight's face fell into a flat expression. "Pinkie, you have to know what it was."

"I do! It was a mystery! See, everypony always loves my punch, right?"

Twilight nodded.

"Aaand everypony likes party games! Sooo, I added a mystery! I told everypony there was a secret, and so they all really tasted the punch and liked it more, even though it was the same!" Pinkie Pie spread her forelegs in a triumphant pose, smiling down at Twilight.

Twilight looked up at Pinkie, and then burst into laughter. She threw her hooves around Pinkie in a hug. "Thanks, Pinkie. Promise I won't tell anypony. You were right, this was the best punch ever."

Comments

[PresentPerfect]

Hah! I knew it. :)