Sprout, a red earth pony stallion walked out a store with a newspaper in his hoof. It was early in the morning. The sun had just risen, but there was no excuse to be late! This was his chance to finally prove himself as a proper deputy. Sure, Hitch was cool but just because a sheriff is cool does not mean he's any better than his deputy.
Sprout looked round, making sure he was on time. Nearby was a clock that read 7:00am. His target was usually just waking up at this time. But he still felt he was late. He needed to hurry!
So he hurried to the bayside with the newspaper. Ignoring the chatting ponies and the squawking seagulls. They were not important at the moment.
Hitch asked him specifically to keep an eye on Sunny, so that’s what he needed to do. He looked around him as he approached a table near the smoothie stand. Sunny was going to pass by here. She had smoothies to deliver to the Canterlogic event. So sitting here, pretending to read a newspaper was the perfect plan!
Sunny won’t see him so he can catch her! Easy!
So he sat down, reading the newspaper. Well, maybe more focusing on his surrounds, keeping an eye and ear out for that familiar sunny mare he had to check for. Today was an important day after all… He couldn’t let her selfish deeds ruin it.
Even the emotion fairies in his mind were anticipating such an important event as Canterlogic…
”Alright folks! If we planned this right, Sunny should be heading around the corner any moment!” Exclaimed a glowing yellow earth pony mare. She wore a green scarf with sparks the same blue as her eyes. Her light blue mane was slicked back but messy.
”Of course, Joy!” Shouted a green earth pony stallion who was wearing a darker green wide brim hat and a pink scarf. “I mean, how could I forget to be dressed for the occasion?” He asked as he approached the console. It was a large flat table-like surface with many buttons and handles of many shapes and colours. Behind it was what appeared to be a screen. Showing the crew the newspaper page. Just borning basic news like normal. But that’s what Sprout was looking at. Whatever Sprout sees shows up on that screen.
There was suddenly a sound of a mug shattering on the ground. Followed by a yelp.
”I swear! If Sunny escapes out sight and gets into that dang building. I’m gonna rip off her legs!” He exclaimed, revealing himself to be the one that smashed a mug on the ground. His bright red fur was nearly the same as Sprout himself. But his mane was a lighter shide of red and his socks were closer to brown.
”Oh Anger! Stop destroying the mugs and making a mess!” Groaned Disgust as he gazed at him. Seeing the coffee puddle on the ground as he moved a hoof to avoid it. Looking as Fear also backed away.
”Oh close it!” Anger snared as he approached the console. Fear, a purple stallion, backing away from him. He was shaking a little. “Why you dressed in all that fancy nonsense anyway? Real, it’s not like they can see us”
Finally, the fifth emotion climbed down the stairs. Her body was a light blue. She was a little on the pudge side. When sitting, her form almost resembled a rain deop.
”Oh Sadness!” Perked up Joy as Disgust and Anger argued. “You’re just in time! Sunny should be coming past anytime now! Today we will catch her and finally prove ourselves to Hitch! We’ll finally be the best deputy the bay has ever seen and get the respect and love we deserve!”
”Exactly…” Smirked Anger as he glanced at the screen. Keeping a stern eye out. Wanting to catch that orange mare red hoofed!
“Wh-what if it doesn’t work?” Sadness asked, wearing her oversized light blue sweater as she sat next to Joy. On her own seat.
“Then we rip off her le-“
”No one’s ripping off any legs!” Disgust exclaimed. “That will be way to much blood, ugh!” he rolled his eyes at Anger.
Everyone gazed at Anger. Nodding in agreement as Disgust explained to Anger why they should not do that. He scoffed as he sat on his red wheelie chair.
“Not to mention…” Fear shuddered. “Won’t that get us into trouble?”
“Oh quiet, you!” Anger said, shoving down Fear who scurried backwards onto the floor. “Come back when you have something useful to say!”
Anger snarled as Fear put himself behind a chair, shaking a bit as he watched Anger and back at the screen. He felt bad for making them angry, but he had a feeling this would not end well. After a pause and a sigh he slowly approached the console, keeping his distance from Anger.
”Does any-emotion hear… Simging?” Asked Disgust as he gazed at the screen. After filing his hooves.
”Singing?” Asked Joy as she gazed at the screen, hearing a familiar voice. Her eyes widening as a large smile formed, listening to the lyrics. It sounded familiar. She liked the tune, too. But that’s not important. It was who was singing.
“There’s something inside, burns bigger than pride”
”Shines out of me, lighting the way!”
“It’s Sunny! After her!”Commanded Joy as Anger grabbed the handle on the console and pushed it. Sprout threw down the newspaper galloping after the target pony. Who was skating all happily with a cart of smoothies following her.
“Faster, Faster! She’s on skates!” Fear exclaimed.
”What do you expect me to do!? She’s a cheater!” Anger growled, his head starting to gain a bit of a firey glow. “She knows exactly what she’s doing!” Screamed Anger. A red orb rolled down the tracks just besides the screen, heading towards where some other orbs were currently stored. Some yellow or red, a few purple and a few green but only couple were blue “D-don’t you think we should calm down a little?” Asked fear, hiding behind Sadness who was watching, expecting another failure.
”We’ve failed enough times. Now let me focus!” Screamed Anger, his head getting hotter as Sprout galloped.
Sprout galloped down the path, ponies were gathered around, chatting about stuff. As Sunny did a loop around the gazebo, Sprout quickly slurped a drink from a green stallion’s smoothie and took his cookie before galloping off again. A green emotion being rather unamused. “Was that really necessary?” Disgust groaned as he rolled his eyes, sitting down next to Sadness who felt bad for the stallion.
“Oh… I hope he gets another cookie.” Sadness said as Anger rolled his eyes. Obviously feeling the moment, his hooves clenched the handles as if he was going to drop them. Sprouts’s thundering hooves were heard all around the headquarters as he sprinted as fast as his hooves could carry him.
“No Sunny, it’s gonna be my day!” Anger exclaimed, getting annoyed her her singing.
It didn’t take long before a familiar bridge came into view. Nearby a certain smoothie stand in particular. A yellow bridge that created an archway.
”Hold on…” Disgust noticed. “Weren’t we already past this point?” She asked, remembering that that were sitting a few feet away from the stand itself, waiting for Sunny. Everyone glared at him and just shrugged, Sadness gasping and tearing up as Sprout stole a colt’s skateboard. “Really?” Asked Disgust.
”We’ll give it back…” Anger said, rolling his eyes, trying to keep his eyes on Sunny as she singingly skated along.
“Look out!” Cried Fear screamed, tripping over his own feet and on the console just as a manhole lid went up. Sending the skateboard in the air, Sprout went flying as his emotions screamed in fear. The console purple as Fear laid on a button, too scared to move. Joy and Disgust held their breath as they watched it. Knowing they cannot do anything to save him.
Luckily, Sprout only landed in a bunch of cardboard boxes filled with plant pots. Okay, maybe that did hurt a bit. As he laid there, hurt, the emotions took a moment to breath.
“Get off you wimp!” Anger angrily shouted, shoving Fear off the console who slumped on the ground. Breathing heavily as he shakingly got up to look at the screen.
”We are safe?” He asked, looking at the screen that showed Sprout looking at himself. No injuries. “We are safe!” Fear cried out to inform the others.
“No thanks to you!” Spat Anger. “Look at us, we crashed!” He exclaimed, slamming bis hooves on the console.
”Oh hey!” Squealed Joy. Getting the attention of the rest. Distracting Fear and Anger from each other. They never really got along, which was a shame.
”What is it, Joy?” Sadness asked in a sad voice and expression. Besides the fact that her eyes showed a little awe.
”Flying off a manhole and through the air into cardboard boxes isn’t something you get a memory of everyday!” She smiled, picking up the purple orb that just spawned. Showing the sequence mentioned.
“I hope that’s not distracting you from our actual duty!” Scolded Anger.
”Oh yeah, right!” Joy exclaimed, eagerly racing to the console. “We got so close! We just much get her this time!”
“That’s what you say every time.” Disgust said, rolling his eyes and scoffing as he went to sit on his chair. Feeling as if he wasn’t going to be much use for the time being. Anger was very determined with the console, no sign of him giving it up anytime soon.
“But where did she go?” Asked Sadness. “I can't see her or hear her. I think we failed again.” Sadness sighed as Sprout started to walk again. “It’ll just be another failure and Hitch will be disappointed again…”
”Or!” Joy exclaimed, picking her up. “We succeed and Hitch is so proud that he makes us a… Co-sherrif!?” She asked.
”Is that a thing?”
”Let’s find out!” She said before dancing to Anger’s side. “Sunny! Come out wherever you are!” She sung out happily.
”You know she can’t hear us, right?” Disgust asked, glaring at her, disgusted.
”Yeah yeah…” Joy brushed her aside before Anger slapped his hoof on her mouth.
“Quiet! I think I hear something…” Said Anger. Acting much like a hunter sneaking up to his prey.
Everyone looked towards the screen as they heard distant singing. No pony would just skate around singing like Sunny, right? So that must be her! They all nodded in agreement as Sprout slowly walked along, tired from the impact. Keeping an eye out for any sign of Sunny.
Until he spotted it!
Anger clenched his teeth as he gazed at the fresh red marker creating hearts on a poster. A Canterlogic poster, one of the most important events of the season, defaced! It used to be a scary, dark, dangerous pegasus preying upon an innocent earth pony. That’s how it should be. A beautiful poster, chosen by his mother herself! But no! Sunny and her sick, dangerous ideas had to draw hearts around it and happy faces on the ponies. Looking as if they were smiling at eachother.
“I mean… She’s not a bad artist.” Joy sneaked a small smile. “And I do like that stubborn optimism of hers.”
”Which is being used dangerously!” Disgust reminded her. Making sure his hooves were clean.
”She…” Anger grumbled, his head turning hot again. “Did not!” He shouted, making the console red once more. Sprout running after the singing. Hoping to catch Sunny before she got in, once and for all.
”Where’d she go?” Wondered Joy. Putting a hoof on Anger to try and pull him from the controls, he had enough of a turn at the console. Sprout was tired, they didn’t want to emotionally, or physically exhaust him. If that were even possible with what Anger was doing. He was pretty tired after all the oopsies and running, anyway.
“I hate the power of song montages…” Grumbled Anger under his breath.
Sprout slowly along the tram tracks, towards the Canterlogic building. The big, large building on the hill. It even had his mother’s glasses on it. You could not miss it! He was out of breath from all that running. He groaned as he looked out at the distance.
Again. Hitch was the one to stop Sunny from getting in. He growled a bit as he approached them, thinking of an excuse on how he managed to get far behind her this time. All the loops around the town, the skates, the turns! It was so hard! He panted a but as he approached them.
”I did what you asked for, Hitch!" He panted before taking a breath. “She never left my sight… Not even… Once…” He said, seemingly accepting defeat but still rather annoyed at the outcome.
“Oh hey, Sprout.” Asked Sunny in her annoying voice. “You okay, you seem kina weezy?” She asked acting like she was innocent. Acting as if she wasn’t going to attempt a massive crime.
Upon hearing this, Sprout got rather annoyed at this non-formal greeting. “That’s Deputy Sprout to you.” He corrected after catching his breath. Only for Sunny to accept this an answer and turn around, planning to head into the building. Only for Hitch to stop her.
”Hey, wait up. I’m not finished!” He exclaimed, leaving behind Sprout who only watched.
“Of course he gets to show himself as better!”
Anger screamed angrily. About to smash his hooves on the console, only for Joy to yank his wheelie stool back. Making him almost fall off.
“I think you need to take a break, Anger.”
“Good job guys. She made it here!” Anger grumbled as Joy softy pushed aside his wheelie stool.
Sadness looked at the screen, subconsciously touching the panel, making it turn blue as she watched on. Making a blue memory. Watching as Hitch explain to Sunny how she tries to sneak every year. Only for him to stop her. It was true, Sprout never successfully stopped her. It was always Hitch in someway or another. How does he even do that?
”Hey hey…” Joy said with a smile on our voice. “Sure it didn’t end as planned, but Hitch isn’t our enemy. He’s basically our team mate, right?”
“Oh yeah…” Sadness said, getting up, but still looking rather sad.
Disgust blinked in confusion before looking at her. “So, what you are saying is that we actually won, by not stopping her?”
There was a pause as Joy made sure Anger would not reach the controls. She smiled a bit as she walked over, kicking her mostly unsued yellow stool aside.
“Well… Yeah! Becouse that means she was successfully stopped, right?” Joy asked, getting no response as Disgust and Fear seemingly agreed. Or had no argument.
“Did this mare not get the news!” Disgust groaned as she put her hooves on the console as Sunny spoke.
“I’ll just go into the factory, deliver my smoothies-“
”Nah uh!” Sprout responded with a like smirk. “My mom had you banned!”
”But!” Sunny tried to speak again as Joy eagerly jumped forward, soon to create a yellow memory orb next to the new green one. “I am keen that this time, she is not getting in. Like the last few years, actually. I don’t remember her being there.” She said as Hitch explained something else to Sunny. Which seemingly made her sad as she looked defeated.
“O-okay. I’ll try…” She said, giving up the smoothie cart on Hitch’s request.
“Buh Bye!” Sprout happily exclaimed in Sunny’s face before she sadly skated away and he ran off after somepony.
”And… There we go!” Joy exclaimed. “Victory for us. Victory for everyone! See that? Sunny isn’t getting in!”
“Yeah… But once again, Hitch proved us… Useless!” Disgust said with his disgusted expression. His remark caused tears to appear in Sadness's eyes. Making Joy a little annoyed at him.
“Now, Disgust. Hitch didn’t say that, right?”
”He didn't exactly thank us, either!” Anger shouted at her.
“Hey, watch it!” Sprouted shouted as an excited foal sprinted past him, almost knocking into him.
