Open Door Hospitality [Private: Xithy]

[Stitch]

((ForgottenExistance))

Well today was the day! It was that time again to collect the excess honey from the hives and get it ready to put up for ponies to buy. Yellowjacket stretched with a yawn as he sat up in his hammock, smiling at the back of his small home where he kept the apiary. Honey collecting was one of his favorite days, because it meant he got to really get right up in the hives and really get close to the insects that so many ponies were afraid to get near. Sure, he’d been stung a few times, but usually if you didn’t mess with bees they weren’t going to mess with you. And thankfully he did have his hat around to protect his face. Wait, his hat! Yellowjacket slipped out of the hammock and trotted inside his home curiously. Now where had he put it? Come to think of it, it was probably near where he’d left the smoker.

The unicorn headed to the shelf where he kept the smoker and peeked behind it. No… No hat. Just to be sure he picked up the smoker too, and still no luck. With a sigh, Yellowjacket set down the smoker and turned to give the room a puzzled expression. It wasn’t like him to lose something this important, so where was it? His beekeeping hat and veil were really all he used because he had years of experience in the apiary, but that didn’t mean he was wanted to forgo safety completely! Plus it was still morning, so he had plenty of time to try and find it.

Maybe he’d left it outside near the apiary itself? Heading back outside, the yellow stallion paced calmly through the apiary in search of his hat. He felt comfortable enough walking amid the bees without protection, it was when he started sticking his hooves and horn in the hives that he liked having the hat and veil. Well it didn’t look like he’d left it out here either! Letting out a frustrated sigh, he turned to head back inside when something caught his eye. Was that a pony coming up the way? Smiling at the thought of having somepony to talk to while he pondered the location of his protective gear, Yellowjacket trotted around to where the path ran past his home, “Hello out there!”

[ForgottenExistance]

Xithy thought that it had been a really curious sort of morning. No one had screamed at her, no one had run in terror, and there were no pitchforks involved. Not that she minded, though. It was always best whenever she had quiet days like that, where she didn't have to run and hide because of what the ponies thought about her. Not that she blamed them, it was perfectly reasonable of them to be suspicious. It just made things harder for her whenever she just felt like exploring and making notes about the places she'd been and the like.

Of course, she had come to the conclusion that Ponyville was just a weird place, considering that very few other places in Equestria would have had such a tame take on her appearance. The first time she had been there, it was absolute pandemonium. But with how used to world-threatening invasions and attacks, the citizens of Ponyville really didn't seem to mind once they got used to the presence of a changeling wandering through the town every couple of weeks. It was because of the tame reaction that Xithy decided that she really liked Ponyville and the area surrounding it.

After having spent most of the morning wandering around, talking with the few ponies who trusted her enough to talk to her, she decided to meander down to the Whitetail Woods and take in the sights. It had been a while since the last time she had wandered through, and she always did enjoy taking the scenic route in her adventures. With her notebook held in front of her in her magic and a pen scribbling away as she wandered, the little changeling was perfectly happy with how her day was turning out, and was wearing a rather joyful smile.

She didn't think there was much of a chance of her running into anyone in the Whitetail Woods, so she wasn't thinking about what she could say to any pony that she might run into. She had already explained her situation to just about everyone who would listen to her in Ponyville, and even then, most of them were at least a little weary of her. So whenever her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of a stallion calling out to her, Xithy yipped in surprise and jumped almost a full hoof off the ground, her eyes widening as she dropped her notebook and pen onto the ground and turned to face the pony, and the abode she had unwittingly walked towards.

"O-oh! Umm, hello!" She called back as she got her footing again. She had to admit that she got a little shaky any time she ran into a pony she didn't recognize, but she tried her best to keep the stammer out of her voice as she called back to the pony, trying not to sound odd. It was the best she could do to put on a nervous smile as she took in the appearance of the new arrival.

[Stitch]

It was somepony approaching! Yellowjacket smiled, it’d been awhile since somepony had visited him all the way out here. Usually he had to go into Ponyville to meet others, though that’s what he got for living in Whitetail Wood. Not that he was complaining, but it was nice to have visitors too. Though as the newcomer approached Yellowjacket’s smile turned more to a look of surprise. Not only did it seem he didn’t know this pony, but it wasn’t a pony at all! Coming down the path towards him was a changeling of all things. At least, he thought it was a changeling; Yellowjacket had heard the stories about what had happened in Canterlot as most ponies had but he hadn’t been there to see it. Then again, what else could the creature coming towards him be than a changeling? He certainly didn’t know of any other beings who were pony-shaped but insectoid in their nature.

Come to think of it, that was actually really interesting. Were changelings more like insects or more like ponies? They certainly looked more like insects. Big, pony-shaped insects. Though weren’t they also supposed to be parasitic and sap the love from ponies? It was more than a bit nerve-wracking to think that one of them was approaching his front door. But he’d already let it know that he was there and… Yellowjacket blinked, pausing mid-thought. The changeling had just… responded to him. He didn’t know they could talk, believe it or not. That was unexpected. Okay so they had an intelligence that went above basic instinct… Again this was both interesting and rather unnerving. Weren’t changelings supposed to be… evil?

This one didn’t seem evil, or at least, when ponies fell over Yellowjacket’s first instinct to consider them evil. His first instinct was to usually see if they were alright. Cautiously taking a few steps forward, the yellow unicorn glanced down at the notebook and pen that had fallen when the changeling had jumped and sheepishly scooped it up with his hoof to offer it to her, “Um… sorry to startle you. I’ve never seen somepony like you before,” and with any luck keeping her talking would mean that she didn’t try to attack him or something. Yellowjacket still wasn’t quite sure what to expect from the insectoid creature, but being friendly had never really backfired before, maybe it would help out now? The changeling was definitely interesting, and Yellowjacket couldn’t quite help but stare a little bit at the holes in the hooves or the gossamer wings. “What is somepony like you doing here?” He had to wonder, because from what he understood through the grapevine changelings were kind of like bees or ants. They had a queen and operated with that hive mentality. To see one alone made him wonder if there was going to be more of them. Should he tell somepony? Were they in danger? The stallion had no idea and the only way to get answers was to talk to the strange but fascinating creature who’d walked up to his front door.

[ForgottenExistance]

As much as she may have trusted that she wasn't about to get attacked, Xithy couldn't help the wave of panic that washed over her as the pony approached her. Taking a small step back away from the stallion, the little insect watched in surprise as he walked up to her and picked up her notebook. She was about to protest when he surprisingly handed the items to her, as opposed to making off with them. She was pleasantly surprised by the act, enough that she felt a little more at ease with the odd situation she found herself in.

Accepting the items back with her magic, she stored them away in the saddlebags she wore, giving him a nervous smile and a nod in thanks before she returned her attention to him. He didn't seem to have any malicious intent, for which Xithy was quite thankful. And considering that she wasn't at the sharp end of a blade, she found herself able to get curious. Specifically, once she wasn't quite so terrified, she found herself curious as to why a pony would be living so far out of town and right smack in the Whitetail Woods all by himself.

Realizing after a moment that her companion had spoke, and that she had been just blankly staring at him, she quickly snapped a sheepish smile, "Oh, it's okay!" she said hastily, "I'm just a bit jumpy, it's not your fault," she said, waving off his concern as best as she could. Of course, it was perfectly reasonable for her to be jumpy when walking alone in the middle of the woods, even on a clear path. If a pony saw her and thought she was a threat, she wouldn't have bystanders willing to step in for her like in town.

Idly and nervously rubbing her left foreleg with her right fetlock, her sheepish grin turned down a little at him saying 'sompony like you', singling her out. It was something she was used to, it wasn't like she was trying to blend in and mingle with the crowd, but it still reminded her that she wasn't a pony. She quickly found her voice and spoke up, "I'm sorry, I was just exploring. I like the Whitetail Woods, but I never thought there was anypony living here," she admitted, looking up with an ever so slightly embarrassed expression on her face.

Xithy had never been able to walk through all the paths in the woods, so she made a point of taking a new one each time she made her way through. But even then, she had never actually seen a house in the woods. Thinking back, she figured that it was probably because she either had her muzzle buried in her notebook, or because she had just always been taking recreational paths. It had never occurred to her that there may have been certain areas in the woods where ponies actually lived. She made a mental note for next time.

[Stitch]

As interesting as it might have been to see what a changeling might have written down, Yellowjacket wasn’t about to go reading somepony’s notebook. The fact that it was a changeling’s and he wasn’t exactly sure what was going on here or where this changeling had even come from. Obviously up the way, but what was it doing in Whitetail Wood? From the voice he guessed the changeling was female, but that was assuming that normal changeling drones had gender. It wasn’t as if Yellowjacket had experienced the opportunity to speak to a changeling before and ask them or even seen one before at all. All he’d done was heard stories about them and what had happened in Canterlot. Obviously their magic was comparable to unicorn magic, at least in terms of manipulating items, because she seemed to accept back the notebook and pick up the pen without any issues. There was a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach to know that a changeling was better at magic than him, but the yellow stallion pushed the feeling aside; he didn’t need to get worked up about that right now, or ever really.

Though her staring at him was a bit unnerving. Maybe changelings spoke a different language and she had to translate things in her head so that she could talk with him? Or maybe… Wait she was speaking again. Yellowjacket tilted his head and gave her his attention politely, though honestly he was curious about her. There were so many questions he could ask. Her being a bit jumpy for instance, was something that surprised him. Why would a changeling be jumpy when it could turn into anypony and just leave? Did her wings work? Could she fly away? They didn’t look like pegasus wings, so maybe they worked differently? He wasn’t trying to stare, really, but she was interesting and just so unlike other ponies he’d ever seen… It was probably because he was looking so closely that he noticed her smile turn down, and it took a moment for Yellowjacket to realize that it was in response to what he’d said.

The stallion turned his attention away, embarrassed. Somepony like you? What kind of sentence was that? He hadn’t been thinking, and changelings weren’t like any other pony, so how could he say that any other way? “Yeah,” he glanced back at her, “There’s a few of us around here, I think. I’m out here because it’s easier to raise bees, I’m a beekeeping pony, see?” Yellowjacket gestured with his hoof back towards his home where the sound of buzzing could be heard. Looking back at her he shook his head slightly, “You don’t need to be sorry. It was just… well I don’t get visitors often and I’ve never seen a changeling before,” he finally admitted. From what he’d heard he’d always guessed that changelings were more like insects than ponies, but maybe she was about to change his mind on that.

[ForgottenExistance]

Despite her idle curiosity, Xithy did notice that he was staring at her, and she couldn't contain the nervous clicking that her wings started making against her back. It was a sort of idle bit of body language that was present in a lot of insect species, that when nervous their wings clicked against their backs to make noise. To Xithy, she hated the sound, and particularly how it happened without her actually thinking about it. But the best she could do was give a sheepish, nervous look up at the pony in front of her, trying not to make him feel bad for staring. After all, she could understand why he was curious. It wasn't every day that a pony got to see a changeling, and it was a lot better than him chasing her off with a torch.

She noticed the stallion's cutie mark at about the same time that he mentioned it. She had heard of beekeeping before, but she had never actually gotten the chance to see it up close. It was always something that she was curious about, though for her nature, it was almost a morbid curiosity. With a bee's hive's similarity to the changeling hive, observing a beekeeper at work was almost as odd as it was interesting. That being said, Xithy was still curious as to what a beekeeper actually did, and hoped that the stallion tolerated her long enough to see.

"It's okay," she said quietly, giving him a little smile, "And I'm sorry to ask, but what's it like being a beekeeper? I'm really curious," she said, her compound eyes almost lighting up as her curiosity got the best of her, "It's okay if you don't want to answer, though," she added quickly, trying to give him a way out. With her curiosity getting the best of her, Xithy nearly didn't notice that her wings had stopped their nervous flicking, her nerves temporarily set to the side at the prospect of new information.

Despite the fact that he had been staring at her, she had to admit that he seemed like a nice enough pony. She didn't feel the need to turn tail and sprint back the way she came, which was a lot better than most of the cities she had went to. And he was at least willing to talk to her, which made her trip worth while.

Glancing about, she could tell why he and others would want to settle in the area. It was quite beautiful in the woods, and provided quite a bit more privacy than the town did. With the shades of the wood and the light coming through the canopies, it was almost picturesque in a way, and she couldn't help but feel a bit of jealousy for the ponies that lived in the area. Getting to see such scenery every day was something that she'd love to be able to do if she ever decided to settle down after her long search.

[Stitch]

When suddenly a mysterious clicking filled the air, it caught Yellowjacket’s attention and the stallion looked around for a moment before realizing the source of the noise. It was the changeling’s wings! He knew that some insects could click their wings against their backs to make noise for various reasons, but the thought hadn’t really crossed his mind that changelings could too. It was actually really interesting and again he was hard pressed to try and figure out if the changeling before him was more pony or insect. Or maybe it was a perfect amalgamation of both that coexisted perfectly with itself? That was fully possible, considering that the changeling in front of him didn’t seem to be showing any outward signs of distress at merely existing. She actually seemed… nice. Now whether that was a trick or not, Yellowjacket had no idea, but he also wasn’t really worried about it.

Especially when she asked him about beekeeping. The yellow stallion’s eyes lit up with excitement at her question, and he smiled genuinely. Shaking his head with a chuckle, he put her nerves to rest, “No it’s alright, really. I love what I do and I love my bees. Want to come see them?” It wasn’t often somepony was interested in getting up close and personal with bees that could sting them; it was part of the reason that beekeeping ponies weren’t running around all over the place. But every now and again somepony was interested enough to take the risk even if they weren’t planning on being involved with bees for any extended length of time. Those times were the reasons that Yellowjacket kept his hives as clean and clear as possible. Well, that and the fact that it was better for the bees if he was being honest.

Sharing his passion, however, wasn’t low on the list of ways he liked to spend the morning. The clicking from the changeling had even stopped, and the stallion decided to take it as a good sign. Turning, he gestured for her to follow with a hoof, the light of excitement in his eyes. “Come on, I can take you back there if you want. Or if you’d rather stay outside the flowered area they don’t usually go that far.” He headed closer to the hives, not really worried about being stung. Would he prefer to have his beekeeping hat, which he still couldn’t find? Sure, but Yellowjacket had been doing this long enough that he wasn’t super worried about getting stung. And if he did get stung, or his guest got stung, then he knew how to handle a beesting. At least, on a pony he did. Hopefully nothing would happen to her. Come to think of it maybe he should find the rest of his beekeeping suit and offer it to her? It wouldn’t fit perfectly but it’d cover her and that was really all it needed to do. “Um, do you want any protective clothes to be around the bees? I’m Yellowjacket, by the way, what’s your name?” Being more focused on his bees made it easier for him to treat her like any other pony and not like a strange creature.

[ForgottenExistance]

Xithy wasn't sure if the world had gotten brighter, or if her eyes had just gotten wider. At the mention of being able to go back to see the bee hives, she was absolutely ecstatic, excited to see the natural art that the bees produced. She had to admit that she was curious, and having her curiosity satisfied was something that drove her above and beyond. So, turning to the stallion, she gave a quick and enthusiastic nod, "Of course I'd love to go see them!" she exclaimed happily, her entire posture changing like a subtle flick of a switch.

Of course, thinking about it, she wondered only briefly if she should have been afraid of stings. Playing pony for so long had a lasting result of making sure that she was afraid of sharp things and things that might hurt, bee stings included. However, a quick glance at her chitin was all that she needed to reassure herself that the bees wouldn't be able to hurt her. As such, she looked up at the stallion and smiled, "If it's okay, I'd like to go back there," she said enthusiastically, nodding slightly in the direction that he had previously mentioned.

To emphasize her point, she tapped a hoof against her chest, resonating a light tapping sound of hard chitin against hard chitin, "And I don't need to worry about them biting me, it's okay," she said, giving a sweet smile before quickly trotting to keep up with the stallion. At least when she wasn't wearing a disguise, she didn't need to worry about pretending to be in pain whenever she got stung by a bee. If a bee tried to sting her chitin, it would be like trying to sting a sheet of metal or a wall of solid brick.

Yellowjacket was a good name, it fit his profession pretty well. Or, at least Xithy thought so. It certainly worked well with what he did and what his cutie mark was, so she thought that it was a perfect fit for the stallion. Sticking out a hole-filled hoof towards him to shake, she gave a wide smile, doing her best to shed all traces of her nervousness, "It's nice to meet you, Yellowjacket! My name's Xithy," she introduced herself, thinking that it had turned out to be a pretty good idea for her to just wander out into the woods.

She briefly wondered if she should have introduced herself using her pony name, though it was only a passing thought. Changeling names were often comprised of "x" and "z" sounds, making even their names sound bug-like in nature. Some ponies had a hard time pronouncing them, which was why she had taken to calling herself the same pony name as her primary alias; Stellar Quill. It was a lot easier to pronounce than Xithy was, and it sounded a lot more natural. But, hindsight was perfect, and Xithy had already introduced herself using her proper changeling name to her companion.

Even if she didn't actually wind up learning anything about beekeeping, Xithy still thought that it was a very good day. She had met a stallion who seemed to be pretty nice, and he was willing to show her what his trade was. She hadn't been yelled at or chased away, so it was a pretty good day anyways. Even though she was still a little worried that Yellowjacket might wind up snapping and chasing her off, she was much more excited to learn something new, and was anxious to be lead towards the stallion's beehives to do just that.

[Stitch]

To know that another pony, er, changeling, was so enthusiastic about leaning about bees and beekeeping brought a giant smile to Yellowjacket’s face. The stallion hadn’t exactly always been sure about pursuing what he enjoyed doing considering how it didn’t fit with the rest of his family’s more magically inclined natures. Maybe he should have been an earth pony? Oh well, Yellowjacket was definitely happy with his choice and even if he wasn’t, dwelling couldn’t change the past. Plus, even though she was a changeling he was glad that Xithy seemed genuinely interested. It certainly helped the rumors that he’d heard about changelings to be put to rest. Maybe they weren’t all bad after all.

What was even better was that her enthusiasm didn’t seem to diminish at the prospect of stings. Though after listing to her explanation, he couldn’t help but chuckle. Yellowjacket hadn’t wanted to assume, and certainly he didn’t want to invade her personal space by touching, but he wasn’t sure if the chitin that her skin seemed to be made of was functional or just some weird trick of the light on otherwise normal pony fur. That was another point for the insect-based changeling theory versus the pony-based changeling theory. Though if he was honest he’d probably put his bits on them being a fairly even mix between the two.

“Alright then,” he smiled and led the rest of the way into the apiary proper. He didn’t fence the bees in or anything, but generally bees didn’t tend to go too far from their hives unless they were making a swarm to go and form a brand new hive. When that happened, depending on the state of the rest of the apiary Yellowjacket either helped direct them to another side of the bee farm or he made sure they were safe on their way out of his apiary. If he tried to keep every single bee that ever came then he’d be overrun. Yellowjacket knew his limits, something he’d learned through years of trial and error, and he knew how big he could keep the apiary while managing it all by himself.

Stepping to the side so that she could get a full view of the not huge but certainly large enough apiary, Yellowjacket gave her a nod, “Nice to meet you too… X… Xi… Xithy?” then he blushed. The unicorn had to admit her name was hard to pronounce, but he hadn’t expected to stumble over it quite that badly. “Sorry, I’ve never really heard a name like yours before. Are uh, all changeling names similar to that?” Usually pony names tended to include references to nature or feelings or gems, something that ponies usually would pronounce in another setting even if they didn’t know the pony they were potentially referring to. His own name, for example, was almost prophetically fitting.

That didn’t mean it was any excuse for messing up her name, especially when she was being perfectly friendly right back to him, and Yellowjacket genuinely felt bad. It probably showed on his face too as the stallion led the way closer to one of the hives. Not too close since he wasn’t wearing any protective gear, but close enough that he had to raise his voice a little bit to be heard over the buzzing, “So that’s one of the hives where they live and make honey. Do you want to see inside?” Part of him was kind of hoping she’d say no. Without protective gear, it was much, much safer for him to use his magic to show her inside the hive. Unfortunately it would mean trying to focus on it and being very careful. The last thing he wanted to do was harm one of the hives and embarrass himself at the same time because of his difficulties with magic.

[ForgottenExistance]

Xithy was incredibly excited to see what beekeeping was like. As much as she enjoyed music and culture, arts and crafts, books and poems, sometimes it was the simple things in nature that went unappreciated and were the true source of enjoyment. Things like beehives, apple orchards, flower gardens, those were all things that she had a hard time imagining a life without. They were an art on their own, and they graced Equestria in such a way that most ponies didn't even realize that they were looking at art. She was happy to see that Yellowjacket appeared to be a pony that understood, who knew what an art his craft was. She could almost feel the passion radiating off of him whenever he lead her towards the area where the bees were kept, a wonderful smile gracing his features.

However, even though she thought that Yellowjacket seemed to be a very kind and very enthusiastic stallion, she couldn't help but notice the fact that he didn't shake her outstretched hoof after introducing herself. Realizing that she probably looked like a fool with her hoof out, she gave an awkward chuckle and let her hoof drop to the floor, the chitinous protrusions that acted as her ears dropping slightly in the same way a pony's ears might. Giving him a quick smile to compensate, she shook her head, "I-it's okay, Yellowjacket. Most changeling names have a lot of weird syllables in them. You can just call me Stellar Quill, if you'd like," she said, quickly giving him a way of avoiding calling her by her awkward to pronounce name. Stellar Quill was her second name, the one she used the most whenever she was disguised. It was a lot easier to pronounce, and she actually did like it well enough.

Turning her attention back to the hives they were approaching, she couldn't help but notice a look of regret, or something similar to it, on the face of the stallion leading her. She felt a pang of regret herself, wishing she could have given him her pony name as well when she first introduced herself, so he didn't have to try and fail at pronouncing her actual name. She was reminded instantly about why she liked ponies so much, because they were usually gentle souls, and easy to be friends with. Yellowjacket proved not to be the exception, which brought a little smile to Xithy's face. Recognizing the slight twist of his features made her realize that he was actually trying to be friendly, which made her happy. If he didn't care about her, he wouldn't have looked like that whenever he mispronounced her name.

With her confidence restored that she was doing the right thing with chatting with him, she quickly followed him to the edge of the hive area where he was leading her. The droning of the bees reminded her of being back with the hive; a constant buzz of sound that droned out everything else. It actually comforted her to a degree, making the muscles under her chitin go slack slightly around the shoulders, giving her a more at-ease position as she observed the area. As much as she wanted to go inside and look around, she couldn't help but notice that Yellowjacket wasn't actually wearing anything, and he wasn't covered in chitin the same way that she was. If he made a wrong move in there, he could easily get stung, and she'd feel absolutely horrible if he got hurt while trying to be nice to her.

After another long glance at the beehive, she turned her attention back to the stallion and quickly shook her head, "No, no, it's okay. I don't want to be any trouble," she said, giving him a smile and putting her hoof up in a motion that was meant to mime him to stop as she said no. Besides him not having any protective gear or an exoskeleton, she was also a little concerned because she had no idea what to do inside the hives, and didn't want to disturb any of the bees too much. But at the same time, as she turned her attention back to the hive, she couldn't help but adopt an overjoyed expression as she thought about what he had said about the hives. She thought it was so cool that the hive made all their honey and lived in there, that it was like a massive city in such a small area. The goofy grin on her muzzle was way more than enough to show that she thought it was an awesome experience.

[Stitch]

It was true that living out here with really only a few hives of bees for company was a bit lonely at times, but Yellowjacket had known that risk of lonesomeness when he decided to pursue his dream. Most ponies didn’t really appreciate bees and what they did, even if they were fans of honey. Unfortunately the fact that bees could sting ponies didn’t help their reputation, and sometimes it didn’t help Yellowjacket’s either as a pony who spent most of his time with these buzzing creatures. But despite what other ponies thought, he couldn’t see bees as evil or bad. Their stings hurt for sure but that didn’t make them bad creatures. It didn’t even necessarily mean they had malicious intent. And they stung so infrequently, all things considered, that Yellowjacket much preferred to see the wonder and the magic that they created through their honey.

Being able to share that sensation with someone else was a joy to say the least. It was always refreshing to find somepony who wanted to learn there was more to bees than their stingers, and the stallion reveled in the opportunity to share that. Such was his enthusiasm that he overlooked Xithy’s hoof. Not out of spite, but because he was just so excited that she was interested in the apiary that he was already heading that direction. He glanced back at her in time to catch her smile and returned it. He did feel really bad about mispronouncing her name though, and privately the unicorn made a promise to himself that he’d practice her name until he figured out how to really pronounce it correctly. “Thanks, but what kinda friend would I be if I didn’t learn your name? I’ll get it,” Yellowjacket smiled apologetically then continued leading the way to the apiary. Did he mean it that he wanted to be her friend? Sure, why not? She didn’t seem bad like the stories of changelings that he’d heard, and so long as she didn’t give him a reason to not be friends with him, then why not?

That said, he would remember Stellar Quill too. If she had to hide her identity at any point and he needed to address her it could be useful to have a second name. Yellowjacket liked to think that other ponies would be accepting, but he knew that for some it wouldn’t be enough that she seemed genuine. Personally though, he was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. And genuine seemed to be an understatement from the grin on her face. Yellowjacket mirrored it, even as she held up a hoof to stop him from going closer. Not wanting to run into her hoof, he stopped, “It’s no trouble, but it might be safer when I find my gear huh?" a small smile, a gentle attempt at humor, “You want to come inside and try out some of the honey for yourself?”

[ForgottenExistance]

Xithy didn't know much about beekeeping or art, she was by no means a professional in any shred of sense. But, that being said, she did know a lot about passion. She knew the signs of a pony that loved something, who were truly passionate about what they did. She could recognize the smile, the puff of pride, the glint in their eyes, or even just taste the passion in the air in the same way that she could taste love. Really, passion was just a form of love, but it was a love for something one did and believed.

Yellowjacket was passionate about his bees, and Xithy didn't even need to taste the air to be able to figure that out. It was infectious. She loved how passionate he was about his bees, and she couldn't keep the wide grin off of her muzzle as she was shown around. So often did she see ponies who were stuck with jobs that they didn't enjoy, or were just working to earn bits, or even were just bitter in general. She thought it was incredibly refreshing to see a pony who was just so happy to be doing what he did.

When Yellowjacket refused to call her by her pony name, and referred to him as her friend, she couldn't help but feel the grin on her face peel upwards even further. Looking up at him with slightly wide eyes, she couldn't help but speak softly, "F-friend?" she asked, blinking a few times in surprise, "I like that," she continued, her day absolutely made by a single sentence from the stallion. It wasn't every day that the little changeling made a new friend, and if Yellowjacket wanted to be her friend, she was more than happy to oblige the kind beekeeper.

Turning towards the hive, she gave a little nod, "I think it might be a little bit safer if you had the right gear for it. I'd hate it if you got stung on my account," she said, giving a little chuckle before looking over at him, "And you don't mind if I go inside? I mean, I don't really eat food, but I still love the taste of honey," she admitted, giving a sheepish grin. Changelings didn't really eat actual food, they instead got all their energy from love. But, that didn't mean that they couldn't taste the food.

Xithy was particularly partial to honey and vanilla. Those two flavors were the closest that she could compare love to, and specifically romantic love. Of course, different types of love had different "flavors", depending on if it were passion, lust, love, admiration, respect, or any other type of love. Romantic love was arguably the sweetest, and the little changeling had something of a sweet tooth, at least in a sense. Siphoning off romantic love was kind of cruel, though, so Xithy very rarely did that. In her quest to understand what love was, she also developed a respect for it.