Lavender Café

Chapters

Chapter 1: The Spell Book
Chapter 2: Teleportation Practice
Chapter 3: Izzy's Gift
Chapter 4: A Masterpiece of Absence
Chapter 5: The Sunstone Sorbet
Chapter 6: Late Night Cocoa
Chapter 7: A Sheriff's Advice
Chapter 8: Royal Guidance

Chapter 1: The Spell Book

Author's Note

This is my first time writing a fanfic (and writing in this style in general), so the story may be a little rough. I hope you enjoy it though! 😁

Chapter 1: The Spell Book

Chapter 1

It was only a week ago that Magic had been returned to Equestria. Sunny could remember it clearly. The journey to find the Pegasi and Unicorn Crystals, and an attempt to bring them together that resulted in failure. Not because of a lack of trying, but because a Third Crystal was needed. She found the Earth Crystal inside her house, and in an attempt to bring all three crystals together, her home was practically destroyed by Sprout’s mech: “The Sprouticus Maximus”. After all three leaders of the three pony towns came together in unity, the crystals started to glow and lifted Sunny up into the sky, causing her to gain a pair of ethereal wings and an ethereal horn, and the crystals came together to bring Magic back to Equestria.

Her wings and horn didn’t last though. After the sun went down on that day, they disappeared. For now, she had a different task: Going through the rubble of her house to find some items that remained intact from the damage. Her house was very damaged from Sprout’s mech, but just enough of it was intact that ponies were able to go inside and look for some of Sunny’s belongings before the building was either repaired or destroyed.

Sunny had invited all of her friends along to help, and although Pipp was busy with royal business, Hitch, Izzy, and Zipp were all happy to help. They were only allowed to search the bottom floor as advised by the Canterlogic Construction crew as it was the area least damaged by Sprout’s mech. They couldn’t check any of the upper levels until the construction ponies came back to assess all the damages.

It was around sunset when Sunny and her friends arrived at the ruined house. “Well here we are… My house. Or what’s left of it at least.” Sunny said as they neared the house.

“Wow, Sprout’s mech really did some damage, didn’t it?” Hitch asked as they got closer to the doorway and the cracks in the walls became more visible. “I still can’t believe he would do this!”

Sunny was still surprised about that too. She’d known Sprout ever since she was a filly. She still had trouble believing that he would do something like this. Then again, Sprout had never really been the nicest to her, so his disregard for her home isn’t something she was very surprised about. She was more surprised that he would do such a thing, especially when he was supposed to be keeping the town safe.

“Hopefully we can get this place repaired. It’s not in the best shape I’ve seen-” Sunny winced when she touched a piece of the wall and watched as it fell off. “-But with all of our magic back, it should hopefully be able to be repaired with a little work.” Sunny said with a hopeful grin.

Once they reached the doorway, Sunny took a glance inside the house. All of her things were strewn across the floor. Her fruits and canned goods were scattered across the Kitchen, her books were on the floor in the living room, and her dad’s stuff were scattered across the foyer. Taking a second to look at everything, Sunny figured out how she wanted to go through everything.

“There’s a lot of stuff on the ground in there, so I think we should all take a corner. Izzy, could you check the Kitchen for any food that’s still good?” Sunny asked.

“I’m on it!” Izzy exclaimed

“Good! Hitch, could you check the living room for anything that’s still intact? I’m thinking of things like Books, Pictures, Furniture, and all that stuff.”

“Yes ma’am!” Hitch answered while putting his hoof to his forehead.

“And Zipp, I’d like you to come with me and help collect my dad’s stuff in the Foyer. He’s got some artifacts and research papers that you might be interested in, and there’s a lot in there. I’m hoping to collect everything we can from there.”

“Sounds interesting, I’m down.” Zipp replied.

With the plan agreed on, they all entered the house. Izzy went to the kitchen and started levitating whatever she could find and started checking for dents and expiration dates. Hitch went to the living room and started picking up Sunny’s books and picture frames while trying to avoid the broken glass on the floor. Sunny and Zipp both went to the foyer to look for artifacts and research papers that weren’t damaged.

Sunny and Zipp went through paper after paper putting them in piles based on what was in good condition, what was still able to be saved, and what was too far gone. Fortunately there were only a few papers that went in the “too far gone” pile while most of the others went in the other two piles. While looking through the papers, Sunny noticed Zipp looking at her.

“Hey Sunny, do you mind if we take a break from the papers? I wanna take a look at some of the books and artifacts” Zipp asked.

“Huh? Oh, sure! We can do that.” Sunny replied. She had kinda wanted to take a break herself. They both got up and went over to her dad’s old desk.

Sunny followed Zipp as she walked over to the nearby bookshelf. Sunny and Zipp both started scanning the books, and while Sunny was scanning them, she saw Zipp jump a little out of the corner of her eye. “Is that what I think it is?” she heard Zipp whisper. Sunny glanced at Zipp and followed her line of sight to a brown leather book with the title “Unicorn Magic 101”.

Sunny turned back to Zipp who stared at her, and giving a nod, Zipp yelled to the others. “Hey guys, come check this out! I think we found something you might find interesting!”

Izzy’s head popped out from the fridge, knocking over a can in the process. Sunny watched as she levitated it back onto the table and walked over. Hitch was in the middle of checking the couch cushions, so he set the cushion back down and walked over as well.

When Hitch and Izzy got there, Zipp turned to the bookshelf and pulled out the book and set it on the desk.

“Woah! Is that a book about Magic?” Hitch asked.

“That's what it looks like... Should we open it up and find out?” Zipp said, opening the book up and not waiting for an answer.

Upon opening up the book, they saw an index for spells and the pages they’re listed on. There were a bunch of spells listed too, like spells for Shields, Lasers, Levitation, Healing, Elemental stuff, it was like there were spells for everything! Sunny glanced at Izzy as Zipp read the spell names aloud and saw Izzy’s face glow up when Zipp said “Teleportation”.

“Hey Zipp, could we take a look at some of those Teleportation spells?” Sunny asked while looking at Izzy.

“Sure. Let’s see… Page 44.” Zipp mumbled as she flipped through the pages.

When Zipp got to the page, Izzy jumped forward to read the spells.

“Spell of Teleportation and Spell of Item Teleportation!” Izzy exclaimed as she read the titles of the spells aloud. Sunny could tell by the look of excitement on Izzy’s face that she wanted to start practicing them right away.

“Should we go outside and practice some of these spells? We can come back to scavenge stuff later if you all would like.” Sunny offered the group. Before she could even finish talking, Izzy had already been nodding her head frantically. Hitch and Zipp both looked over at Izzy and then back to Sunny and said sure.

They went outside and Izzy started by trying out the teleportation spell, which had mixed results. Izzy’s first attempts ended up in her not going anywhere. When she finally teleported, she ended up a few hoofsteps in the air, landing flat on her face on the ground. After another failed teleportation attempt that put Izzy in a bush, they decided to try item teleportation instead since that would be much safer. They took some of the busted up cans from the Kitchen and had her try item teleportation.

“C’mon, you can do this!” Sunny cheered as Izzy stared intensely at a dented can of soup. “You got this Izzy!” Zipp shouted from the doorway. Sunny watched as Izzy started to lift the dented can up into the air, and then poof! It was gone. Sunny heard a dink sound behind her, shortly followed by Zipp grunting, and turning around, she saw Zipp rubbing her head with the dented can on the ground next to her.

Sunny, Izzy, and Hitch all started chuckling before Izzy said “It looks like it teleported right where I wanted it to!” which caused them all to break out in laughter. After the laughter broke down, they all went back to practicing the item teleportation spell. It ended up taking most of the evening for Izzy to get it down consistently. By the time they were done, they were all tired, so they called it a night.

Sunny, Hitch, Izzy, and Zipp all went back to Hitch’s place to spend the night. They still needed to go through more of Sunny’s stuff, so Hitch offered to let them all stay at his place so they could come back tomorrow. Hitch’s place was very clearly crowded though. Hitch had a surprisingly small house for his job, and while it could fit Hitch and Sunny, it was definitely not made for 4 ponies. Sunny had already been staying at Hitch’s place for the past week after her house was destroyed, but Hitch only had 1 bed in his house, so Sunny had been sleeping on the couch.

Sunny worked on dinner while the rest of them sat at the kitchen table chatting. Sunny was making Pizza. After taking it out of the oven, Sunny sliced it up and made plates for each of them with 2 slices each. “Dinner’s ready!” Sunny said. Hitch, Zipp, and Izzy all came up and grabbed their plates and brought them to the table.

Upon sitting down, Sunny decided to ask about sleeping arrangements. “Hey Hitch, so uh… where are we going to sleep tonight?”

Hitch looked up from his Pizza and thought for a second. “Well, I don’t have another bed you guys could use. I do have a sleeping bag and some extra blankets though from when I used to go camping if anyone wants to use that.”

“I can use the sleeping bag! I usually sleep in a hammock anyways, so it’s not all that different!” Izzy explained.

“Eh, just give me a blanket and I can sleep on the chair. I’m used to it. You wouldn’t imagine how many times I’ve passed out while researching at the royal library.” Zipp responded, rubbing a hoof over the back of her head as if she was embarrassed.

“That works for me, how about you Sunny?” Hitch asked.

“I’m fine sleeping on the couch still.” Sunny said.

Hitch looked back down at his Pizza. “Alright then, now that that’s settled… Let’s eat!”

They spent the rest of their meal just eating and chatting, and occasionally giving Sunny compliments on her cooking. After their meal, they all started getting ready for bed. Izzy set up her sleeping bag on the floor near the couch, while Zipp put on one of Hitch’s sleeping caps, and Sunny had to go to take out her hair bands. Once they all finished getting ready, they went to lay down in their chosen spots.

“If any of you girls need me, I’ll be in my bedroom. Have a good night you three!” Hitch said before shutting the door to his room.

Zipp surprisingly passed out pretty quickly, which Sunny thought was impressive. But that just left Izzy and herself to fall asleep.

“Psst, Sunny!” Izzy quietly said to Sunny. Raising her head up, Sunny asked Izzy what she wanted. “Do you think we could spend some more time practicing some Magic tomorrow?”

Sunny thought about it for a moment before saying “I think we can find some time for that. Hitch has to work in the morning, so maybe we could do that then?”

“Sweet.” Izzy said, before her head slammed to the floor and she fell asleep.

Sunny was alone, being the only one left awake. We made some good progress today. Sunny thought to herself. We left most of my stuff in the house, but at least it’s almost all sorted now. Sometime tomorrow we can all go back there and finish sorting things out. Hopefully we can get my dad’s stuff out at the very least... Sunny then laid back down and closed her eyes, willing herself to sleep.

Chapter 2: Teleportation Practice

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Chapter 3: Izzy's Gift

Chapter 3:

Beep, Beep, Beep. Beep, Beep, Beep. Sunny woke up to the noise from Hitch’s spare alarm clock. Sunny rolled over so she could turn off the alarm and… THUD. She rolled off the couch. Another painful reminder that she wasn’t at home anymore. Getting up from the floor, Sunny looked around. Hitch was nowhere to be found. Knowing Hitch, Sunny presumed that he was probably asleep. Sunny decided to take the time to head to the restroom to fix up her hair for the day. Her hair was a bit of a pain to get ready as usual, so Sunny had to grab a brush and brush her mane before trying to put it in the hair bands.

When Sunny finished up, she decided to check in on Hitch to see if he was still sleeping. She didn’t hear any snoring like she usually did whenever she passed Hitch’s room, so she opened the door. Looking around, she saw Hitch in his pajamas doing poses in front of the mirror. Sunny just watched him for a moment while trying to suppress her laughter until Hitch noticed her.

“AAAH! Sunny, what are you doing?” Hitch quickly asked.

Looking at Hitch’s slippers, Sunny responded “I could ask you the same thing, sheriff.”

“I’m just getting ready for our meeting! It’s important that I look good!” Hitch tried to defend himself.

“Y’know, you saying usually means that you’re trying to look professional. What does posing in front of a mirror in your pajamas have to do with it?” Sunny retorted.

Sunny watched as he quickly tried to think of an excuse, but he couldn’t think of one. “It’s alright Hitch, I’m not judging. You should probably start getting ready though, we’re meeting at the Café with Izzy in 15 minutes.”

“I’m on it!” Hitch said as he tossed his slippers and sleeping cap to the side.

Walking out of the room, Sunny decided to go sit on the couch while she waited for Hitch to get ready. They were going to meet up with Izzy again for breakfast like they did every day for the past week or so. Izzy had finally mastered her teleportation spell after a few days of attempts since they found the spell book, so she started joining Hitch and Sunny for their morning breakfast runs.

It was still strange to Sunny that she was waking up at Hitch’s house. She’d been meaning to ask Hitch about when construction on her house would finish up. He’d mentioned a few days ago during their meetings that he’d been making progress on the paperwork for repairs. In fact, there were already Canterlogic workers doing repairs on her home. It was going to be finished soon enough, right? Sunny made a mental note to ask Hitch about the progress later.

Sunny, noticing she got lost in thought, turned her attention back to the room around her. She could hear Hitch talking to himself in the bathroom, likely to his own reflection again, so Sunny decided to turn on the TV and watch a show while she waited for Hitch to finish getting ready.

Sunny and Hitch trotted down main street, headed towards the Café. Izzy usually met with them at the benches near the entrance to the Café. On their way down, Sunny watched as Hitch took every opportunity to give strong glances to any piece of litter he saw on the ground. He wasn’t on duty yet, but Sunny could tell that he was going to have a fun morning. Hitch wouldn’t admit it, but he enjoys giving lectures to people about the town laws.

As they neared the Café, Sunny spotted Izzy on a bench near the cliffside looking out towards the ocean. Sunny called to Izzy. “Hey Izzy, we’re here!”

Izzy’s ears perked up at Sunny’s call, and she turned around and got up. “There you guys are!”

Sunny moved to the side as Izzy ran up to join them.

“Good morning Izzy.” Hitch greeted Izzy as she gave both Sunny and Hitch a hug.

Sunny winced as Izzy squeezed the two. “Woah, not so tight Izzy!”

“Sorry! I was just excited to see both of you!” Izzy explained.

Sunny relaxed as Izzy’s grip on them faltered. “It’s alright. Shall we go get breakfast?”

“Oh yeah! Let’s do that.” Izzy said while stomping her hooves on the ground.

Walking into the Café, the three found a small round table and sat down. Sunny opened up the menu and looked for what she wanted to order. I could go with a Sandwich and Tea. I get that every time though… Maybe I could go for some breadsticks instead?... Nah. Hmmmm… Sunny focused on the menu, but most of the options didn’t really suit her this morning. She rechecked the menu. I guess I could go with a Salad. A Salad and some water, I guess.

Looking up from her menu, she spotted Hitch and Izzy looking at her. “Oh! Sorry for holding us up! I was having trouble figuring out what I wanted. I think I’m going to go with a Salad and some Water.”

Izzy started to rustle out of her seat. “Sounds good! I’m going to go make the order!”

As Izzy walked away, Hitch leaned over to Sunny. “She’s in a good mood today.”

“She’s always in a good mood Hitch, that’s just how she is.” Sunny explained.

Hitch shrugged. “Fair point. She seems happier today than usual though, for Izzy standards at least.”

“We can ask her about it when she gets back. I’m sure she’d like to share whatever it is that’s got her in such high spirits.” Sunny pointed out.

As if on cue, Izzy came back with their food and drinks. Sunny watched as Izzy levitated all their food into place at the same time.

“You’re getting pretty good with your magic Izzy!” Sunny complimented.

Hitch decided to join in on complimenting Izzy. “Yeah, anyone could believe you’ve been using it all your life!”

“Thanks you guys! That spell book Sunny gave me has been helping a lot with my magic! It’s got all sorts of spells, and even some tips on how to improve some of them! I’ve been spending a lot of time working on it at home!” Izzy explained.

Sunny decided to take the opportunity to ask Izzy about her mood. “Say Izzy, besides the magic, what else has you in such a good mood today? You seem happier than usual.”

Izzy’s eyes seemed to widen slightly at the question. “Oh! I almost forgot! I found this really cool crystal in the forest yesterday! I brought it with me to give to you!”

Sunny watched as Izzy shoved her hoof into her mane and pulled out a shiny crystal. The crystal was purple, pointy, and reflective. Izzy placed the crystal into Sunny’s hooves, and Sunny pulled it up to her face to get a look at it. While she looked at it, Izzy started explaining what it was.

“That crystal right there is a Lavender Amethyst! Technically it’s a part of the Quartz family, but that’s not important. What is important is how smooth~ it is! This is one of the smoothest Amethysts I’ve seen! I thought I’d bring it with me so you can have it! I know there’s not a ton of Crystals here in Maretime Bay, so it’s like I’m bringing a piece of Bridlewood to you!”

As Sunny pulled the Amethyst away from her eye, she thanked Izzy for the kind gesture.

“No problem Sunny!” Izzy’s head turned to Hitch, her smile slowly turning into a look of embarrassment. “Oh and uh… Hitch. I kinda forgot to get a crystal for you. I’ll get you one tomorrow though!”

Hitch gave a light smile to Izzy. “It’s alright Izzy, I don’t mind at all. If you wanna get a crystal for me you can, but I’m fine without one too.”

“Oh, I’ll get one for you tomorrow for sure! I’d like all of you to have at least one!”

As Izzy and Hitch were talking, Sunny thought back to something Izzy explained the other day. She mentioned that Crystals were really good at reflecting light and made pretty shapes when held in front of one. Turning to the window next to her, she held it up towards the sun. As she held it up, the light around her turned a light shade of purple.

Sunny gazed at the area around herself. “Woah! That looks really pretty!”

Hitch and Izzy turned their attention to Sunny, and Hitch stared at the light around her with wide eyes, while Izzy just stared at Sunny with a smile on her face.

“The Amethyst is making the light around you look purple!” Izzy explained.

Sunny turned to look at Izzy. “Yeah, I remembered what you said about the light and crystals! This is beautiful!”

“Bridlewood has some of the best crystals for Light Refraction, so that’s why I tend to use them for my arts and crafts projects! I’m glad you like it!” Izzy said with an even bigger smile on her face.

“Yeah, the crystal is really cool! Thanks again Izzy!” Sunny said as she tucked the lavender-colored crystal into her bag.

Sunny started thinking of where she wanted to put the crystal when she remembered something she wanted to ask Hitch about.

“So! Hitch, do you have any updates about how the construction on my house is going?”

Hitch was in the middle of a bite of his doughnut. “Ohm Yeawh! Wit’s gwohing wewl!”

Sunny could barely tell what he was saying. “Could you swallow first?”

Swallowing his doughnut, Hitch repeated what he said. “Oh yeah! It’s going well! I just finished filing the paperwork for it last night, and from what I’ve heard, it sounds like the construction will be done in just a few days!

Hearing that made Sunny feel happier already. “Oh! Great! I can’t wait to move back in. No offense Hitch, but I much prefer sleeping in a bed than a couch.”

“None taken.”

Sunny was really excited to get back to living in her home. While staying at Hitch’s place was fine, she’d much rather be at home with all her stuff… and her bed. At least sprout didn’t do too much damage. Sunny was not keen on the idea of looking for a new home. Sunny was also interested in finding a place to put the crystal Izzy gave her when her home was repaired. Perhaps she could put them on her dresser? Sunny decided that she’d figure that out later.

Turning her thoughts back to the conversation Izzy and Hitch were having, they finished up their food and headed out of the Café. Izzy teleported back to Bridlewood to work on some art, Hitch went to start his patrol, and Sunny went to set up shop at the smoothie cart.

Chapter 4: A Masterpiece of Absence

Chapter 4:

“This gift is going to be perfect!” she whispered to herself as she dipped her brush in paint before adding another stroke to her painting. Izzy had been going out to the Café with Hitch and Sunny for a few weeks now, and Izzy had been bringing the pair gifts everyday. Usually she would bring them pretty crystals she found during her material hunts, but today she wanted to give them both something a little more special. Izzy was working on an art piece of herself, Sunny, Hitch, Zipp, and Pipp to celebrate Sunny’s home finally being finished with repairs. She’d moved back in the day before, and Izzy wanted to make a housewarming gift for her to show her appreciation for Sunny.

Izzy didn’t forget Hitch though, and while she didn’t have time to make a whole art piece for him, she made him a special bracelet. It wasn’t quite a friendship bracelet, but it was a bracelet to celebrate all the work he does for Maretime Bay. Hitch never really seemed like the type to wear bracelets much, but Izzy hoped he would appreciate the gift nonetheless. Izzy put a little extra care into making his bracelet look more professional in hopes that he would wear it on the job from time to time.

Adding another dash of purple to finish up Pipp’s hair, and adding her Golden Tiara on top, Izzy had finished her painting! Standing back, Izzy took a moment to admire her work. Oftentimes, her paintings would be quickly made and hung up around her house since that was her preferred style, but for this one she spent extra time and care to make it look perfect.

Gazing upon her work, Izzy couldn’t help but get excited. Sunny was going to LOVE it! Izzy got up extra early to finish it before their meeting, which was…

Izzy glanced towards her clock. Her face turned to a look of shock when she realized she was a little over 5 minutes late to their breakfast meeting. Quickly turning to her painting and bracelet, she stuffed them in a nearby bag and quickly teleported herself and the bag to Maretime Bay. Normally she would teleport down the gravel road just outside of town so she could walk down and look at the scenery, but there was no time for that today. She instead teleported straight outside of the Café. Looking around, Izzy couldn’t see Sunny or Hitch waiting outside, so she went into the Café to look for them.

Upon entering the Café, Izzy’s eyes darted from table to table. There were a few other ponies in the Café, mostly Earth Ponies, but out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Sunny and Hitch sitting at a table looking at their menus. Relieved, Izzy trotted over to their table and took a seat while using her magic to set her bag under the table next to her.

“Sorry I’m late! I was busy working on something and didn’t see the time.” Izzy explained as she sat down.

Looking up from their menus, Hitch and Sunny turned to look at Izzy. Sunny was the first to speak. “There you are Izzy! We were worried you weren’t going to show up!” Sunny said with a worried look on her face.

Hitch had a similar look on his face, but it looked like something else was troubling him. “We didn’t know if you were going to be here today when we didn’t see you outside waiting at the benches like you usually do. It’s a good thing you are here though…”

Confused, Izzy decided to ask about what was troubling them. “You two look upset, is something wrong?”

Sunny turned to look at Hitch, as if asking if she should explain, and Hitch gave her a nod. “Well, the thing is… Hitch might not be able to make it to breakfast anymore.”

Upon hearing the news, Izzy’s face turned from relief back to a look of worry. “Why? What happened?”

Hitch glanced at Sunny to let her know that he would explain. “Well… As you know, Sprout is currently going through a community service program to try to prove that he is still Deputy-material. The court has ordered that he has to work supervised in the mornings, which is when I would generally have time for these meetings. I’m the only one qualified to look after him, so I’m going to have to spend some extra time in the morning watching over him to make sure he’s doing his job properly.”

Izzy couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed at the news. She rather enjoyed having these breakfast meetings with him and Sunny. Izzy also got a little concerned. If Hitch wasn’t going to be able to make it anymore, would they still have their breakfast meetings?

Turning to Sunny, Izzy asked what was on her mind. “If Hitch isn’t going to be able to make it, are we still going to have our morning meetings?”

Izzy watched as Sunny thought for a moment. “I mean, we can if you still want to. It would probably just be the two of us going, unless Zipp is able to make it.”

Hitch heard what Izzy asked and decided to add a note to what he said. “It won’t be a permanent change. It’s only going to be for the next two or three weeks. After that, Sprout is going to be going through a reassessment program to see if he still qualifies for the position. Once that’s over with, I’ll be able to meet up with you two again. If you want, you can still meet up until I’m able to make it again.”

Taking a moment to think it over, Izzy decided that meeting with just Sunny couldn’t really hurt. “I suppose we can do that. Are you up to meeting with me in the morning for breakfast Sunny?”

“I don’t see why not.” Sunny responded.

Izzy was definitely a bit saddened by the news, but it hurt less hearing that it wasn’t a permanent change. Izzy was perfectly fine meeting with only Sunny for a little while. Izzy really enjoyed spending time with Sunny anyways, so why not?

Wanting to help soothe the mood a little bit, Izzy decided that now was the perfect time to give Sunny and Hitch her gifts.

“While we’re all here, I’ve got some gifts for you!” Izzy exclaimed.

Sunny and Hitch looked at her with intrigue. Hitch decided to ask a question. “Oh, did you bring us some more crystals?”

“Nope! I’ve got something a little more special for you today!” Izzy explained as she pulled out the bracelet. She wanted to start with Hitch’s gift before she showed off her masterpiece.

“For Hitch, I made you a bracelet to celebrate the work you do for Maretime Bay! I tried to make it less flashy so that you could wear it on the job if you’d like!”

Hitch watched as Izzy levitated the bracelet around his front-left hoof and clicked it into place. “Why thank you Izzy. I like it!”

Hitch gave Izzy a hug as he complimented her work. Moving her gaze onto Sunny, Izzy decided to make a bit of a spectacle around the reveal of her painting.

“For Sunny, I made you something a little extra. I wanted to congratulate you on finally being able to move back into your house! So, I made you something that you can put inside your house! Think of it as a housewarming gift.” Izzy said as she set the bag on the table in front of Sunny.

Izzy started slowly pulling the painting out of the bag while stomping her hooves on the table to act as a drum roll. After a few seconds, she used her magic to swiftly remove the painting from the bag and floated it down to Sunny.

“Ta-da!” Izzy shouted as she set the painting in Sunny’s hooves.

Izzy watched in anticipation as Sunny looked over her art. What was only a second or two felt like a minute to Izzy. She was waiting to hear Sunny’s reaction to her painting. Izzy was proud of her painting, but she suddenly wasn’t sure if Sunny would like it. Anxiously, Izzy waited for Sunny’s answer.

“Izzy, I love it! It’s beautiful!” Sunny exclaimed.

Izzy let out a quiet sigh of relief. She liked it after all. Izzy watched as Sunny turned the painting to show Hitch.

Hitch took another moment to look at it before he shared a similar reaction. “Izzy, this looks great! You really captured my mane, and you even have my sash and badge!”

Sunny turned to give him a smug look.

“a-and the rest looks great too.” Hitch said with an embarrassed look.

“Thanks you two! I really appreciate it!” Izzy replied with a beaming smile.

“And thank you for the gift Izzy! It’ll look lovely on my wall!” Sunny said while setting down the painting and giving Izzy a hug.

Izzy was happy that Sunny appreciated her art. She spent most of the night before and a lot of the morning working on it. Feeling a happy tingle of joy from their compliments, Izzy started to let go of her hug with Sunny. While it was a shame that Hitch wouldn’t be able to make it to another meeting for a little while, she was still excited to spend time with Sunny.

Turning back to the table, Izzy heard Hitch’s stomach growl. “It sounds like someone’s a bit hungry?” Izzy said while giving a small smirk to Hitch.

Hitch gave a little embarrassed nod. “Yeah, we have kinda been talking for a little bit. Maybe we should order something before I have to go to work…”

Sunny glanced up after setting the painting in the bag Izzy left her. “I’m thinking of having the same thing as yesterday. Izzy, could you go make the order?”

“Sure!” Izzy replied. She waited to hear what Hitch was going to order before getting up and going to the line up front.

Chapter 5: The Sunstone Sorbet

Chapter 5:

Bag? Check. Braids? Check. Sunny was getting ready for her morning trip to the Café with Izzy. It was still a little strange to Sunny to be back in her home after staying at Hitch’s place for about a month. Not that Sunny was complaining though since the house was repaired really nicely. In fact, Sunny felt like the lighthouse was in the best shape it’s been in years! They even went and repainted some walls and redid some of the furniture! Izzy’s painting was just the icing on the cake as it hung up next to the bean bag chair in the living room.

Heading down the elevator, Sunny took a moment to open up the curtains near where all of her dad’s old stuff lay. Looking out the window, Sunny could see the waves on the ocean and the birds flying over. It was a sight she loved to see every morning. Taking a deep breath to take in the fresh air, Sunny turned around and headed towards the doorway. Sunny had a breakfast meeting to attend.

Triple checking to make sure she had everything she needed, Sunny headed out the door, not before opening it back up to tilt the half-broken picture frame of her and her dad. Typically, Sunny would rollerskate down to the town, but for the past few days, she had a different routine. Sunny walked down the path to the split in the road where she saw Izzy chasing around a butterfly. Sunny couldn’t help but giggle a little bit watching Izzy get distracted so easily.

As Sunny walked up, Izzy’s attentioned snapped to her. “Hey Sunny! Are you ready to head down to the Café?”

Sunny thought for a moment before bringing up a new idea to Izzy. “Sure, but first I kinda wanna head down to the smoothie cart. I was thinking of trying out a new smoothie recipe. Would you like to come try it with me?”

“Sure thing! I love trying out new recipes! Alphabittle sometimes lets me try out his new menu options before he starts serving them. I don’t know why he does it, but I don’t mind!” Izzy replied with a grin.

With the decision made, Sunny and Izzy started walking down to the entrance to Maretime Bay. While they walked down, Sunny watched as Izzy stopped to look at the scenery around them. Izzy would occasionally stop to get a good look at flowers and rocks, chase some butterflies, and look in the trees and bushes. Sunny didn’t mind though since she didn’t have anywhere to be today. Izzy had told Sunny about how she loves to look at nature because it inspires her art, and Sunny didn’t wanna take that from her.

Sunny took the time to just focus on her thoughts while Izzy took in the views around them. It was nice to finally be free of all the harmful feelings towards unicorns and pegasi. Now she could walk down the road with Izzy and no one would bat an eye, when only a few months ago ponies would be screaming and panicking at the mere mention of a Unicorn. She finally broke through to everypony, and now things were better than ever before!

Sunny couldn’t help but appreciate Izzy. If it wasn’t for her arrival in Maretime Bay, none of this would’ve ever happened. Now Izzy was taking time out of her morning to have breakfast with her. It’s everything Young Sunny would’ve ever dreamed of!

“Hey Sunny, we’re almost to town! Are you there?” Izzy asked, snapping Sunny out of her thoughts.

“Yeah, I’m here. I was just… thinking. Anyways, I’ll show you the way to the smoothie cart.” Sunny replied, slightly embarrassed about getting lost in thought.

As the pair entered Maretime Bay, Sunny and Izzy made their way to the smoothie cart. Sunny’s boss hadn’t set up shop yet, so she had to spend a few minutes setting up the cart. Once she was done though, Sunny took out her journal from her bag to look at her notes for her new “Unicorn Sorbet'' smoothie. Turning on the machines, she got to work making two cups of the drink for her and Izzy to try.

Sunny grabbed the ingredients and put them into the machine. Turning the dials, Sunny adjusted the settings for the drinks. Grabbing some cups, Sunny poured the mixture in, added some whipped cream, and topped them with a lid and one straw each. After checking to make sure they looked right, Sunny turned to Izzy who was leaning over the counter watching as Sunny prepared the drinks.

“They’re done Izz!” Sunny exclaimed as she set the drinks on the counter.

“They look so good!” Izzy said while staring at the drinks in awe. Izzy sniffed at the drinks. “They smell great too!”

“Now that we have the drinks, let’s head over to the café to get some food.” Sunny replied while partially setting up shop.

Izzy waited for Sunny to finish setting up shop before the pair started trotting down to the Café, with two new smoothies in tow.

Since they had their smoothies, Sunny and Izzy settled for just ordering food. Sunny went with her usual Sandwich while Izzy went with a Muffin and a Bagel. Since it was just the pair, they went to a smaller table for two. Izzy went to get the order while Sunny sat at the table looking out the window. She could see the ocean from here, and it looked just as beautiful as it did earlier in the morning. Sunny was mesmerized watching the waves of the ocean swish around that she barely noticed Izzy’s return with their food.

“Here you go Sunny!” Izzy said as she levitated Sunny’s order down in front of her.

Hearing Izzy, Sunny turned to look at her. “Thanks Izz! Now that we have our food, would you like to try out the smoothies?”

Sitting down, Izzy gave a reply. “Yeah, we can do that!”

Sunny and Izzy grabbed their smoothies and decided to do a countdown so they could both try it at the same time. “Three, Two, One, go!”

Both mares took a big sip of the smoothie. Sunny had tried the recipe a few times before, but it never really tasted right, but today it actually tasted pretty good! Sunny glanced over to Izzy to see how she felt about the drink.

Licking her lips, Izzy gave Sunny a smile. “It tastes great Sunny! Thank you!”

Sunny was relieved that Izzy liked her Unicorn Sorbet. She’d been working on the recipe for months, and now that Unicorns weren’t banned from Maretime Bay, she was able to start making them for real. Sunny still felt like there could be a little improvement to her drink though, so she decided to ask Izzy if she had any suggestions.

“So Izzy, do you have any ideas on how I could make the smoothie a little better?

Sunny watched as Izzy thought for a moment. “Well… It was a little bit… How do I put it? Sour? No… Well, what I’m trying to say is that I think you could add a little more Sugar to it to make it taste a little bit sweeter. I’m thinking that adding some more sugar could make it taste a little more like Cotton Candy.” Izzy said with a thoughtful look on her face.

Sunny pulled out her journal and put down a note. Make it sweeter. Add more Sugar. Like Cotton Candy.

Looking towards Izzy, Sunny asked if there was anything else she felt needed some changes.

“Nope, I think that’s all! Either way, this is still really good!” Izzy chirped with a smile.

Locking her journal back up, Sunny put it in her bag and continued to drink her smoothie with Izzy. Now that she had feedback from Izzy, she could focus on the flavor of the drink. She could see why Izzy was thinking of cotton candy. It tasted almost like it! It could definitely use a little more sugar to really bring out the flavor though. Finishing up her smoothie, Sunny turned to chat with Izzy.

“So Izzy, do you have any crystals to show me today?” Sunny asked with a smile.

“Oh! I have a special one for you today!” Izzy replied while digging through her mane. A moment later, Izzy pulled out a round Orange and White Crystal. After she got it out of her hair, the mare proceeded to levitate the rock into Sunny’s hooves.

“This one is a Sunstone! I got it for you because it reminds me of you! I mean, there’s obviously the name resemblance, but when I was young I read about it in a book about crystals! In the book it said that Sunstones were a symbol of leadership and openness! Those bearing the stone would be open and benevolent and they would have a good nature and enjoyment of life!” Izzy explained.

As Izzy explained the meaning of the Sunstone, Sunny couldn’t help but appreciate the kind words Izzy was giving to her. Her, a leader? Izzy was being too kind surely!

“Thank you Izzy! That’s so thoughtful of you! I love it!”

Setting the stone down and getting out of her chair, Sunny trotted over to Izzy and gave her a big hug.

Sunny really appreciated all of the gifts Izzy has given her. Sure, they were usually crystals, but it’s the thought that counted, and Izzy put a lot of thought into her gifts. How strange it was to be sitting here hugging a Unicorn when only a few months ago she would’ve been working on a plan to try and unite all the pony races. None of it would’ve been possible without Izzy’s help. The only reason Sunny was able to reunite everyone was because of Izzy’s visit to Maretime Bay.

Before breaking their hug, Sunny wanted to thank Izzy for all she’s done.

Sunny pulled away from Izzy slightly, still holding their hug. “Hey Izzy? I just wanted to say thank you for coming to Maretime Bay. It’s really changed my life.” Sunny said while looking Izzy in the eyes.

Izzy looked back at her. “It’s really no problem! Thank you for being here Sunny.”

Breaking the hug, Sunny went back to her seat and sat back down. Picking up the Sunstone and setting it in her bag, Sunny smiled and turned to give a glance at Izzy while she was distracted by her Muffin. After a moment, Sunny looked back at her own plate, her Sandwich still fully intact. Pulling her thoughts away from Izzy, Sunny got to work on finishing her breakfast. Her sandwich wasn’t going to eat itself.

Chapter 6: Late Night Cocoa

Chapter 6:

Thank you for coming to Maretime Bay. It’s really changed my life. Sunny’s words from earlier that day repeated in her head over and over. Izzy was having trouble sleeping. She just couldn’t get the thought of Sunny out of her head! Izzy tried to focus on the ambient noises of the forest. The sounds of the wind swishing through her home’s leafy cover, the sound of crickets singing their songs to the tune of the night, the soft chirps of the crows as they scout the starry sky. Star scout. Sunny Starscout.

No matter what Izzy did, she couldn’t get Sunny out of her mind. Izzy couldn’t figure out why either. Why can’t I stop thinking of Sunny? Izzy laid still in her hammock. Did that Sunstone I gave her have anything to do with it? Izzy had given Sunny a Sunstone earlier that day, but it was just another crystal she’d found in the forest. It had meaning to it sure, but Izzy couldn’t figure out why that would change anything. Why did she start giving Sunny crystals in the first place? She’d given Hitch a few too, but why did she always make sure Sunny got one?

Izzy had heard stories in her past about magical crystals that made ponies change and feel different, but as far as Izzy was aware, Sunstones didn’t have any sort of magical properties. Even if they did, surely Izzy would’ve noticed it earlier? The Sunstone definitely isn’t it. But why can’t I stop thinking about her? It’s not like Izzy minded thinking about Sunny though. In fact, thinking about Sunny made her feel happy. Izzy laid there in silence, ruminating on that thought. After a minute, Izzy sat up in her hammock. I can’t sleep. Maybe a cup of Hot Cocoa will help me think.

Izzy stretched out her hooves for a moment before rolling out of her hammock. Giving a quick glance back to her bed, Izzy turned and made her way to the stairs. As Izzy slowly trot down her stairs, she looked at the paintings on her wall. She’d made all of them to pass the time in Bridlewood. Given the formerly droopy nature of the town, Izzy never really had anything to do. Izzy was never really the most popular pony in town, so she’d spend most of her time working on art pieces for herself and the occasional piece for Alphabittle’s shop. Now I have friends I can make art for. The thought made Izzy happy.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Izzy headed towards the back of the room where she kept her mechanical flower tea set. This old thing may be for Tea, but surely I could use it for some Hot Chocolate? Pulling the surprisingly light machine close to a chair in the lounge, Izzy walked around to the other end of the machine and pressed the button to unfurl the petals. Izzy watched as the petals fell flat, revealing 6 cups of various sizes and a kettle. Grabbing the Kettle and a Pink and Teal cup, Izzy turned and trotted over to her Kitchen.

Izzy’s kitchen wasn’t much to write home about. All Izzy really had was a mini fridge, a sink, and an oven with a stove, but it was enough to get the job done. Reaching into her fridge, Izzy pulled out a carton of Milk and set it on the counter. Setting the Tea Cup and Kettle on the counter, Izzy poured the milk into the Kettle and set it on top of the stove. Turning the dial, Izzy let the Kettle of milk sit on the stove for a minute. While Izzy waited for the Milk to heat up, Izzy thought back to her time earlier that day with Sunny.

As Sunny turned on the smoothie machines, Izzy leaned over the counter. Sunny was swift in her work, taking ingredients out and dropping them into the machine. Izzy watched as Sunny pulled out some cups and poured the mixtures in, adding whipped cream and topping them with lids and straws. Izzy admired the orange pony’s work. Watching as the orange earth pony turned around to face her, she heard a voice.

“They’re done Izz!” Izzy heard Sunny say as her attention snapped back onto the drinks now sitting on the counter in front of her. Peaking into the top of the closest cup, Izzy saw the rainbow-colored mixture with a coat of white cream on top. It looked absolutely delicious!
“It looks so good!” Izzy replied, mesmerized by the drinks. If they looked so good, then how did they smell? Leaning closer to the drink closest to her, Izzy sniffed the lid. It smelled like Strawberries and Bananas. “They smell great too!”
“Now that we have the drinks, let’s head over to the café to get some food.” Sunny said as she turned around and started turning the dials on the machines. Sunny had to turn them off for when her boss would come in for their shift later.

Izzy watched as Sunny started shutting off the machines. If cutie marks were meant to represent their special talents, then why was Sunny working at a smoothie stand? Izzy couldn’t help but wonder about what Sunny was good at. Smoothie making was definitely one of her talents based on the look and smell of the drinks in front of her, but what does the shooting star represent? As Sunny finished shutting down the machines, Izzy backed away as Sunny dropped the shutter and walked out. That question would have to wait.

Here Izzy was, making a drink for herself. It wasn’t a smoothie, but it was a drink to call her own. Taking the Milk off of the stove, Izzy poured it into the glass. Opening her jar of Cocoa Mix, Izzy took a spoon and carefully sprinkled 3 spoonfuls of Cocoa into the mug. Stirring it to perfection, Izzy had finished making her glass of Hot Cocoa. Gently levitating the cup, Izzy walked back to the tea set and sat down. Taking a sip of Hot Cocoa, Izzy tried to focus on the noises around her again.

Izzy could still hear the leaves and crickets, and she could hear the light caws from the birds, though quieter now that she was downstairs. Izzy could hear the gentle rattling noises of the mechanical tea set as the springs held it in place. The tea set. I remember when I finally got to use the tea set with my friends when they first visited. It was only a brief time that she got to use it before Sunny had asked her to make fake horns. At least Sunny appreciated my talents.

Not many ponies in Bridlewood really cared for Izzy’s art. For most of them, all they wanted to do was sulk around waiting for magic to return. Izzy couldn’t blame them though, because the loss of magic devastated the unicorns. Izzy didn’t grow up with magic though. She was one of the first generations of Unicorns to do so, so not having magic never really bothered her. The gloomy nature of the village was never really her cup of tea though. Cup of tea. Izzy chuckled to herself at the accidental pun.

But because of the loss of magic, most unicorns fell into a depression. Nopony really wanted to do anything, or found joy in stuff like art and crafts. Izzy would sometimes try and show other ponies her art, but oftentimes, they would just tell her to go talk to someone else or to go away. The only pony who seemed to care about her art was Alphabittle, the owner of the Crystal Tea Room. He would sometimes even commission her to make art for his café, her most notable commission being the now ruined sign that once hung out front.

The only ponies who ever really cared for my art were Alphabittle and Sunny. Izzy felt a pang of happiness as she thought about Sunny. It was nice to feel loved and appreciated by somepony. Sunny had stuck up for her when no one else had. She saved her from a mob of scared and angry earth ponies during her first visit to Maretime Bay. She had encouraged her to go to Zephyr Heights where she got to see a stunning view of the sky and watch a musical performance. She had saved Izzy’s life when she was dangling off the edge of the Lighthouse when Sprout’s mech was trying to destroy them. Sunny was perfect.

Sunny was perfect. The thought replayed in Izzys head. Sunny was perfect? Izzy sat there in confusion. Sure, Sunny was great and all, but perfect? What was she thinking! Flustered, Izzy tried to shake off the thought, but to no avail. Sunny was perfect. What does that even mean?... oh. Izzy realized the feeling she felt when she thought about the phrase. It was love.

A crush on Sunny? Nonono, that can’t be it! It can’t be! There’s no WAY I’d have a crush on Sunny! I’m just tired, that’s all! Izzy tried to convince herself. What would other ponies think if I had a crush on Sunny? They’d think I was losing it! Izzy winced at the thought. While Izzy appreciated Sunny, she didn’t want to believe that she had a crush on her. I’m just tired. After I get some sleep, I’ll feel better. I gotta.

Chugging the rest of her Hot Chocolate, Izzy levitated the glass into the sink and put away the tea set. Flustered, Izzy went back upstairs and got into her hammock. Everything will be better when you wake up Izzy. You don’t have a crush on Sunny, you’re just tired.

Chapter 7: A Sheriff's Advice

Chapter 7:

As she sat there slowly eating her sandwich, Sunny couldn’t help but feel like something was a little off today. Izzy has been acting pretty strange today. Sunny glanced towards the purple mare. She looked like was slightly trembling in her seat. She hasn’t said much today. I wonder what’s up with her? Sunny looked back towards her sandwich. Her appetite wasn’t quite there this morning. Sunny was too concerned with Izzy to really be hungry.

All you have to do is ask her what’s wrong. How hard is that? Sunny thought to herself as she picked at her sandwich. For some reason though, Sunny couldn’t muster up the courage to ask Izzy what was wrong. And it’s not like Sunny didn’t care for Izzy, far from it. But for some strange reason, Sunny couldn’t find the words. It felt like something, like some part of her was stopping the words from coming out. Maybe she’ll just tell you what’s wrong if you wait.

Sunny watched as Izzy quickly finished up her Bagel. The other mare looked as if she was going to burst from panic.

“Well it was nice seeing you Sunny, but I’ve gotta go! I’ll cya tomorrow.” Izzy said before teleporting away. A few seconds later, a small blue crystal appeared in front of Sunny.

That was odd. Sunny thought to herself as she looked at the small Sapphire that was left on the table. I wish I’d gotten to ask her what was wrong.

Even though Izzy had been pretty jumpy today, Sunny still enjoyed her company. Sunny still thought it was great to just be able to talk to Izzy. Only a few months ago, she’d be arrested for even attempting to talk to a Unicorn. Now that magic was back and there was peace between the races, she could talk to anyone she wanted, even Pegasi! None of this would’ve happened if not for Izzy’s visit to Maretime Bay all that time ago.

While it had only been a month or two since Izzy came to town, it felt like a lifetime to Sunny. If it hadn’t been for Izzy, Sunny would’ve never dared to leave Maretime Bay. She would’ve never gotten to see the city of Zephyr Heights, seen the humble Bridlewood Village. She would’ve never been able to meet her new friends and work with them to restore magic across Equestria. If it wasn’t for Izzy’s visit, she would still be making endless plans to try and convince the citizens of Maretime Bay to give Unicorns and Pegasi a chance!

The journey with Izzy and the rest of them had been one of the best times of her life! While it wasn’t easy, it felt like an adventure! Being able to see the sights and discover history with her new friends has been the highlight of her life so far! And meeting the Unicorn who ended up getting her childhood letter was incredible! It brought Sunny a lot of joy to know that her and her father’s work had finally paid off, and none of it would’ve happened without Izzy’s help.

Izzy. I wonder if she’s doing alright? Snapping back to reality, Sunny realized she’d been daydreaming again. Glancing back down at her half-eaten sandwich, Sunny decided to just throw it away. She wasn’t hungry anymore. Sunny was still too concerned for Izzy. Sunny couldn’t really do anything to help Izzy now that she was gone, but maybe some other pony had some ideas about what might be troubling Izzy. Walking out of the café, Sunny decided to wait by the Sheriff’s Department so she could talk to Hitch.

It felt like forever for Noon to arrive, but she waited at the bench for Hitch’s lunch break. When Noon finally came, Sunny got up and walked towards the building. Standing at the door to the Sheriff’s office, Sunny took a deep breath. Here goes nothing. Moving her hoof to the handle of the door, Sunny entered the Sheriff’s office. As she opened the door, she saw Hitch talking to Sprout. They weren’t talking very loudly, but Sunny could make out what they were saying.

“You did good today, Sprout. We’ll see in a week or so if you’re fit to be deputy again. So far you’re doing pretty well.” Hitch complimented Sprout.

“...Thanks.” Sprout begrudgingly replied as he walked out of the office. Shutting the door behind him.

Noticing Sunny, Hitch turned to face her. “Oh hey Sunny! What brings you here?”

“I just wanted to talk to you about something. Do you mind?” Sunny asked, worried that he might be too busy.

“I don’t mind, it’s lunch break after all! Come have a seat.” Hitch said as he set up a stool across from his desk.

Sitting down, Hitch spoke first. “So, what do you wanna talk about?”

Sunny started lightly rubbing her neck. “It’s about Izzy. She was really jumpy today during our meeting. I thought I’d come ask you if you knew anything about why.”

“I haven’t really spoken to Izzy since we last met up together.” Hitch said with an embarrassed look. “If there’s something up with her, I wouldn’t know. Have you tried asking her yourself?”

“I uh… Haven’t.” Sunny replied.

“Why not?” Hitch tilted his head with a confused look on his face.

Sunny still wasn’t sure why she didn’t ask. Izzy was a friend right? What was stopping her from asking? Sunny tried to think back to the morning. I wanted to ask her, but the words felt heavy on my chest. Still though, I should’ve been able to ask her what was wrong. Why couldn’t I? Sunny tried to think of a good reason that she couldn’t ask Izzy, but nothing came to her. The feeling she felt was hard to describe, maybe even indescribable.

“I’m… not sure actually. Don’t get me wrong, I wanted to ask Izzy what was wrong, but for some reason I just couldn’t make out the words. It’s like they just weren’t there!” Sunny tried to explain.

Sunny’s response just made Hitch look even more confused. “Do you know why you weren’t able to ask her?”

After a moment of thought, Sunny replied. “Well… I guess if I had to describe it, it felt like there was a lot of pressure on my chest. I wanted to ask her, but for some reason I just felt like I couldn’t. It’s… kinda hard to describe” Sunny said, looking slightly flustered.

Hitch’s look of confusion turned to a look of suspicion. “Sunny, are you sure this is about Izzy? I mean, I don’t doubt that something might be up with Izzy, but it sounds like there’s something going on with you as well…”

Surprised, Sunny stared at Hitch. “What do you mean?”

Hitch leaned back in his chair. “Well, first you mentioned that you had trouble finding the words to say to Izzy when she was acting strange. Then you mention that you felt pressure on your chest when trying to talk to her. Clearly you care a lot about her if you’re coming to me to ask if I knew why she was acting strange. Part of me thinks that you might like Izzy a little more than you think you do.”

“What do you mean by that?!” Sunny asked, a blush appearing across her face.

Learning forward again, Hitch replied. “I don’t know about you, but I think you might have a crush on Izzy.”

A crush on Izzy? No, definitely not! Sunny started blushing even harder. There’s no way I have a crush on Izzy. I’m just concerned for her, that’s all! Anyone would be concerned about their friend if they looked like they were having some trouble! Sunny fought herself on Hitch’s words. That couldn’t be right. Surely Sunny would know if she had a crush on Izzy?

“I definitely don’thave a crush on Izzy! I’m just concerned about her, that’s all!” Sunny defended herself.

Hitch looked Sunny in the eyes. “Look Sunny, I don’t know if you have a crush on Izzy or not, but it sounds like there’s at least something up there you’ve gotta work out. If you’re worried about it, how about you wait and see if Izzy feels better tomorrow, alright?”

Sighing in defeat, Sunny nodded. “Alright Hitch, I’ll think about it. Maybe you’re right and Izzy will feel better tomorrow. Thanks for talking with me.”

“Any time Sunny. My doors are always open.” Hitch said as he got up to open the door for Sunny.

Walking out the door and saying goodbye, Sunny started her trek back to the lighthouse.

I think you might have a crush on Izzy. The words repeated in her mind. Surely she didn’t have feelings for Izzy, right? Sure Izzy was a great pony and all, but did Hitch really think she was in love with her? More importantly… Could he be right? Sunny started to question herself. Sunny never really knew how she felt about stallions, but she never really found them attractive or anything. Izzy on the other hand… The thought of her made Sunny feel a little happier.

Maybe I do have a crush on her… I’ll have to think about it some more. I hope Izzy is doing alright. Sunny’s concern for Izzy was still there. While she had talked to Hitch, he didn’t have any ideas as to why Izzy might be acting the way she was. I’ll see how she’s doing tomorrow. Maybe she just had a bad morning. Pushing the thought of Izzy aside, Sunny walked under the arch marking the edge of town. She had a lot of thinking to do tonight.

Chapter 8: Royal Guidance

Chapter 8:

Poof! The purple mare appeared inside of her wooden cottage. Her meeting with Sunny had gone worse than expected. I’m home. Finally. Izzy felt like she was going to burst from panic. The previous night, she had trouble sleeping because of her thoughts. She just couldn’t stop thinking of Sunny! She’d hoped that it would end when she woke up, but when she woke up, she still felt those strange feelings towards the mare. Okay, maybe I do have a crush on Sunny…

Thinking of Sunny, Izzy realized she forgot to give her the Sapphire she picked out! She was so busy panicking, she forgot to give it to her! Sticking her hoof in her hair, Izzy ruffled around until she found the Sapphire. I’ll just teleport it to the table we were at. She's probably still there. Focusing her mind on the Sapphire, Poof! She teleported it to the table she and Sunny were at.

Sunny. Izzy hoped she didn’t worry Sunny too much. Izzy tried to hide her panic from Sunny, but admittedly she didn’t do a very good job. It was one thing to think about Sunny, but suddenly being around her felt scary, and she felt like her heart was going to explode out of her chest and Izzy didn’t know why. I need to lay down. Teleporting to her hammock, Izzy took a few deep breaths to calm herself down.

Once she was able to calm herself down, Izzy got to thinking. Why does being around Sunny suddenly scare me so much? There’s nothing to be scared of, it’s just Sunny! Even though Izzy had panicked around Sunny, the thought of her still made her feel happy. So why couldn’t Izzy keep her cool around Sunny now? There’s gotta be something, some reason that I’m like this.

In her own head, Izzy already knew the answer, but she tried to reason with herself. There’s nothing scary about Sunny, it’s not like Sunny is going to eat you or anything. Izzy thought back to the nightmare with the blue pegasus that wanted to eat her. Sunny seemed to be familiar with that pony, though Izzy couldn’t recall what she said about it. Sunny isn’t like that at all! So why am I so jumpy around her? It’s not like she hates me or anything!... But what if she doesn’t like me like that?

Izzy was scared of rejection. She wasn’t against the idea of being in a relationship with Sunny, not anymore, but she wasn’t sure if Sunny felt the same way. Would Sunny hate her if she found out about her crush? I don’t know if Sunny likes me back. I mean, she likes me as a friend, sure, but would she think I was weird for liking her more than that? Izzy was terrified of the thought of Sunny’s rejection. I don’t know what to do! I don’t wanna risk messing things up with Sunny. I need some advice.

Izzy couldn’t possibly figure this out alone. She’d never been in a relationship with someone, and she was never the most subtle when it came to her feelings. Sunny would see through her immediately. She needed to find somepony who could help. Somepony who was knowledgeable with relationships. Do I know anypony who is good with relationships? Izzy thought about it for a moment.

Hitch is a sheriff, so he’s probably good at handling situations. He’s too close to Sunny though… Zipp and Pipp are princesses, and they talk to a lot of people. Pipp especially with her livestreams and stuff. Maybe they could help? Her mind made up, Izzy decided that she’d head to the royal castle in Zephyr Heights to ask the princesses for advice. Focusing her thoughts on the castle, Izzy teleported herself.

Appearing in front of the castle, Izzy greeted the guards. The guards typically didn’t let anypony in, but Pipp requested the guards make a special exception for Izzy, Sunny, and Hitch since they were friends of theirs. Izzy had been here a few times since her first visit, so she got in with little trouble. Once inside, Izzy followed the maze-like corridors to Zipp and Pipp’s rooms. She figured that this was the most likely place for the two princesses to be.

Izzy stopped in front of the parallel doors, one marking Zipp’s room, the other marking Pipp’s. She needed to decide who she was going to talk to first. Zipp is probably studying, and Pipp is probably laying down scrolling through her phone, though she could be doing a livestream. Zipp is probably the better option here. Taking a deep breath, Izzy knocked on the door to Zipp’s room. Please be here!

After a moment, Izzy heard a voice, unmistakably Zipp’s. “What do you want, I’m doing research!” an annoyed Zipp replied.

Izzy took a step closer to the door. “Hey Zipp, it’s Izzy. Could I talk to you for a moment?”

Izzy waited for a response, but none came. Instead, she heard the sound of a chair moving and hoofsteps getting closer to her until the door in front of her opened up.

“Hey Izzy! Fancy seeing you here tonight. What’s up?” Zipp asked, her frustration gone.

Izzy didn’t want to talk about this in the open. “Do you mind if we talk about this in your room? It’s a bit personal…”

“Sure thing. Come on in.” Zipp said while beckoning Izzy inside.

Zipp’s room was surprisingly small for being a princess. Zipp clearly liked decorating it though since there were gadgets and gizmos all over the place, and she had more than a few posters on the wall. Izzy wondered how much of her stuff was intentionally placed and how much of it was Zipp forgetting to clean up. Finding a bean bag chair in the corner, Izzy took a seat. Zipp flew over to her bed and took a seat there.

“So, what do you wanna talk about?” Zipp asked.

Izzy needed to make sure Zipp would keep a secret. “Do you promise not to tell anypony?”

Zipp’s head tilted a little. “I mean, if it’s that important, I can keep my lips sealed.”

“Good.” Izzy thought on how to phrase what she’d say next. “I uh- maybe need a little bit of advice. You see, I think I have a crush on somepony, but I don’t know how to handle it. Whenever I’m around them, I start to panic and worry, and my heart starts beating like it’s going to fly out of my chest. You know I’m not the best at hiding my feelings, so I wanted to know if you had any advice for how to handle my emotions?”

Zipp thought for a moment. “So you say you have a crush on somepony, and you need advice on how to handle your emotions? Hmmm…”

Izzy waited patiently as Zipp thought. “Well Izzy, I can’t really help all that much when it comes to relationships. I’ve never really thought about finding a special somepony myself. It’s probably better if you talk to Pipp about that. She’s got way more experience with relationships than I do. I can still try to help you when it comes to handling your emotions though. I’ve had to do it a lot around other ponies when we were all still lying about our flight. We’re lucky they accepted us back after that stunt…” Zipp finished with a slightly annoyed look.

Izzy was hopeful. Maybe Zipp could help her with her emotions, and Pipp could give her advice on how to talk to Sunny! “That sounds great! Do you know if Pipp’s busy right now?”

Zipp glanced over at her clock. “I’m not sure actually, but I can go check.”

Izzy watched as Zipp took off towards the door and out into the hallways. She could faintly hear Zipp’s voice as she went into the other room to check on Pipp. I hope that Pipp is able to help. After a moment or two, Zipp returned with Pipp trailing behind her.

“So, what’s all this about?” Pipp asked as she took a seat on the bed next to Zipp.

Zipp flung Izzy a glance, as if asking if she should explain it. Izzy decided that she'd rather say it herself. “I uh… need some advice on how to handle a crush.”

Upon hearing that, Pipp’s eyes went wide. “A crush?! Izzy, why didn’t you tell me sooner?! Who’s the lucky stallion?”

Flustered and shocked by how suddenly Pipp’s mood changed, Izzy stared at Pipp. “i-it’s… uh… sunny.” Izzy whispered.

Pipp leaned closer. “What was that? I didn’t hear you.”

Izzy took a deep breath. “I-It’s Sunny.” Izzy’s voice trembled as she spoke her name.

Izzy stared at Pipp and Zipp as they gave each other a seemingly cold stare. Izzy guessed that neither of them were expecting her to say that she had a crush on Sunny. Izzy started shrinking in the bean bag a little with a look of embarrassment. She was expecting them to start making fun of her now that she’s said it. They probably thought she’d lost her mind! Why did I say it?! They didn’t need to know!

Instead of the harsh reaction Izzy expected, Zipp and Pipp just looked at her with gentle eyes. They watched as Izzy put her hooves in front of her eyes and started gently sobbing. Zipp and Pipp flew over to Izzy and put their hooves on her back.

Pipp tried to look Izzy in the eyes, but settled for looking at her hooves. “It’s alright Izzy. We aren’t judging you. It’s kinda cute actually! You and Sunny would be great together!”

“Pipp’s right. While I can’t say I expected that, know that we aren’t judging you. We’re here to help. Just try to calm down.”

Izzy wanted to move her hooves from her face to look at them, but the tears wouldn’t stop coming. She appreciated their support, but right now she had a flood of emotions bearing down on her. It was hard to admit her feelings about Sunny out loud to somepony, and even though they didn’t react the way she expected, she still felt a pang of worry as if they did say that. Izzy wanted to calm down, but at the moment it was easier said than done.

As Izzy cried, Zipp and Pipp kept holding her and trying to comfort her. After a little bit, Izzy’s emotions started to die down, and she was able to look at them again.

“I-I’m sorry. It’s just r-really hard for me to t-talk about this right now.” Izzy said with a stutter.

Pipp held her tighter. “It’s alright Izzy. We’ll talk about it when you’re ready. Take all the time you need.”

Izzy sat there, gently hugged by her friends. She started to feel a bit better. Her friends didn’t judge her, and they still wanted to help. Everything would be okay.

Izzy watched as Pipp marched in the center of the bedroom, her earlier feelings calmed down. Pipp was trying to think of how to handle the situation. “So you have a crush on Sunny, and you want to figure out how she feels, right?”

Izzy nodded her head. “Yeah, that sounds about right. What do you think I should do?”

Pipp turned to look at Izzy. “First you have to spend some time with her. You need to keep an eye on her and try to get a grasp for how she feels about you. If you sense that she maybe shares similar feelings, that’s when you are going to ask her out!” Pipp instructed.

Zipp flew over to Izzy. “In order to do that, I’m going to try and help you contain your emotions! The more you panic, the harder it is for you to pay attention to Sunny.”

Izzy listened as the two sisters described their plan.

Zipp beckoned over to her Whiteboard. “So this is you.” She said, pointing to a doodle of Izzy.

“When you’re around Sunny, you tend to panic, right? Well, when I was trying to hide the lie, I’d try to focus the conversation on the other ponies. The less they knew about me, the better. While you should still share the conversation with Sunny, you’re going to try and focus on her. That should help you keep your cool since you’re going to be spending time trying to focus on what she’s saying, and she will be spending time focusing on talking to you! Hopefully it should take the pressure off of you.”

Izzy was a little confused on how that would work, but she went along with it.

Pipp reached her hoof around Izzy’s neck. “Think about it this way Izzy, it’s a chance for you and Sunny to get to know each other better! As long as you focus on her instead of your fear, it should go well!”

Izzy was starting to understand where they were coming from, but she was still concerned. “What do I do if that stops working? What if I can’t hold my emotions back?”

Zipp and Pipp looked at each other for a moment. Zipp then turned to look at Izzy. “You can do what I always did when my anxiety got the best of me. I’d usually just try to get out of the situation and hide for a little bit to calm down. Then I’d come back when I’ve calmed down and can handle it again.”

Izzy thought for a moment. The idea seemed to make sense. Sunny usually never asked when Izzy excused herself before, so she probably wouldn’t question it. “That makes sense. Is there anything else I should do?”

Pipp set her hoof on Izzy’s back. “Besides keeping your cool, the only other advice I have for you is to be honest with her if and when the time comes. If she likes you back, then she’d probably appreciate it if you told her how you truly feel. I’m sure you’ll do great!”

Izzy looked towards both Zipp and Pipp, thankful to have such nice friends. “Thanks you two! I feel a lot better now. I’ll try my best with Sunny to see how she feels. You two will keep it a secret, won’t you?” Izzy asked.

“For sure! It’s best for her to know when the time is right.” Pipp chirped.

“My lips are sealed.” Zipp replied, motioning to her lips as if they were a zipper.
Looking at the clock, Izzy realized how late it was getting. “I should probably be getting home now. I’ve got a meeting to get up for in the morning. Thank you both for the help!”

As Izzy left the castle, she reflected on the advice she was given. Focus on Sunny and it’ll be easier to keep your cool. If things go wrong, get out of the situation and take a break. Keep an eye out for any hints that Sunny may like you back. That seems do-able enough. Once the plan was settled in her mind, Izzy teleported back home to prepare for tomorrow. She couldn’t risk messing this up.