//------------------------------// // Visiting // Story: Unicorn Attack! // by milesprower06 //------------------------------// Sunny looked on in the aftermath of Hitch's town meeting, as several members of the audience were now mingling with Izzy, Zipp, and Pipp, while others went back towards downtown to get an early lunch. Some were timid when they came up to introduce themselves, and almost all of them walked away pleasantly surprised, and a few were seemingly astonished at how they could have been so foolish to have gotten in such a panic barely a week ago. Next up was an earth mare with a light pink coat, white belly, and a pale aqua green mane and tail. She had a scarf tied around her neck and a flower in her mane, both a matching red wine color. "Hello there, my name is Dahlia. It's nice to meet both of you," the mare greeted Izzy and Pipp with a smile. "A pleasure, Dahlia. What do you do for a living?" Pipp asked. "Oh, I run a flower kiosk, usually pretty close to where Sunny sets up her smoothie cart," Dahlia answered. Pipp's eyes widened suddenly as an idea dawned on her. "Does your kiosk open up soon? I'd love to have a look. We were actually planning on going to visit Deputy Cloverleaf after this, and I'd love to bring him some flowers as a thank you for what he did last night," Pipp told her. "Ooh, count me in too!" Izzy chimed in. "That was real quick thinking last night, and he needs to know that we care about him." Dahlia's expression brightened considerably when she realized that Hitch was right about the increase in customers if more unicorns and pegasi came to Maretime Bay. "Absolutely. I can take you there whenever you like," the florist replied. The crowds were beginning to thin out as lunchtime quickly approached, with Hitch, Toots, and Sweets putting away the chairs that they had set up for the meeting. "Hey Sunny!" Izzy called, waving their friend over, and she trotted over to them with a smile. "We're going to go check out Dahlia's flower stand, to get something for Sprout. You want to come along?" Sunny put a hoof to her chin in thought as an idea also came over her. "Well, I'd say two ponies is quite enough to get flowers, but you did just give me another idea. I'll meet you there, girls, then after visiting, maybe we can all get together for lunch," Sunny replied. With that, Izzy and Pipp turned back to Dahlia, who immediately waved them to follow her down the shoreline road towards her kiosk. "Right this way!" Sprout couldn't help but be just a little bit worried. He had been conscious in this hospital room for just about four hours, and he was already going stir crazy, and who knew how long he was going to have to stay off of this leg. He was really hoping that once he was able to get it in a sling, that Hitch would at the very least put him back at his desk. "Excuse me, Deputy Cloverleaf?" a nurse announced her presence after walking in to his room. "Your mom has been wanting to know how you're doing. Would you like me to say anything?" Sprout gave it some quick thought. At first, he wanted the nurse to go tell her to piss off, but he knew that that sort of response would only speak more volumes about him than her, especially if her concern was genuine, even after last night's madness. "You can tell her I'm hanging in there, but that I'm not interested in seeing her," Sprout answered, afraid that she'd want to come in here next. "No need to worry about that, Deputy. We're under strict orders to keep her exactly where she is, until she's ready to be transferred to what I can only assume will be the holding cell at the police department," the nurse reassured him before turning and leaving. Sprout sunk his head back into his pillow again, with his train of thought now dwelling on his mom. Without Hitch here for the past week, he was wondering if there was anything he could have done differently to prevent damage to the lighthouse. If Hitch hadn't come to check on him last night, he probably would have stayed there the rest of the evening sipping at his apple whiskey and nibbling at his cold pizza, before his boss and friend had spurred him into action just as everything was about to go down. To be honest, it wasn't just the attack on the lighthouse, and that monstrosity she had built down in R&D; she had wanted him to usurp Hitch's position as Sheriff. If her fearmongering and profiteering had truly pushed her over the edge into megalomania, he was afraid that there might be no rebuilding his relationship with her, and that there would be no other choice than to lock her away for the rest of her life. He was still hoping that it wouldn't be the case, and that Hitch would be able to get some sense back into her head. His stomach began to grumble a bit as the nurse returned to the doorway. "You have some visitors, Deputy. Should I show them in?" She asked. Sprout nodded, and the nurse stepped back. She gestured to ponies that Sprout couldn't see, until the lilac unicorn and light pink pegasus that he last saw at the lighthouse trotted into the room, and the unicorn was balancing a vase of flowers on her head, before coming over to the bedside table and setting them down. "Good morning, Deputy Sprout," Pipp said. "Morning. I'm... I'm really sorry, with how crazy last night was, I don't remember your names," Sprout confessed. "No worries, Sprout. I'm Izzy. Izzy Moonbow," the unicorn answered. "Pipp Petals," the pegasus followed. "Pipp, it's great to meet you. Izzy, nice to see you again. I wish it was under better circumstances," Sprout replied. "We just wanted to see how you were doing, and bring you these to thank you for what you did last night," Pipp told him. "I'm looking forward to getting to know you once you're on your hooves again. You stopped a bad situation from getting monumentally worse, and you most likely saved our lives. Thank you, Sprout." Sprout smiled at them again. "Just doing my job, girls. I wish it didn't come to that. I'm hoping the lighthouse can be saved," he said. "The jury is still out on that. Hitch is having Sweets put a team together to see if that's possible," Izzy told him. "Well, here's hoping for the best," Sprout said. He saw the nurse peek in the doorway again. "Are you ready for lunch, Deputy?" she asked. Sprout's stomach answered for him as it grumbled again. "Sure sounds like he is," came another familiar voice, before Sunny came in, carrying a pizza box and paper plates. She walked around his bed and set it on the other bedside table, so it could be reached with his good leg, before opening it, revealing a steaming, bubbly supreme pizza with stuffed crust. "Alright, that settles it, I know what I want for lunch," Izzy said, licking her lips along with Sprout. 'Well, we can head there as soon as I'm done here. Can I get a minute alone?" Sunny asked her friends. They immediately nodded. "Thanks again, Sprout. See you soon!" Izzy said, before she and Pipp left the two alone. "They seem nice," Sprout said as he reached for the first slice of pizza and a plate. "I wanted to thank you for what you did last night, Sprout, and... Also I wanted to apologize," Sunny said. Sprout swallowed his first bite of the absolutely delicious pizza. "Apologize for what?" The red stallion asked. "When Hitch caught up to us that first night, and told us that he had left you in charge, I thought he was absolutely crazy. I didn't think you were possibly up to the task. Clearly, you deserve more credit than I've given you. I'm sorry, and thank you again for saving my friends last night," Sunny told him, smiling softly. Sprout set his piece of pizza down on the plate that rested on his stomach. "Sunny... I haven't exactly been the best role model when it comes to being a deputy. I had been drinking up all those tall tales about unicorns and pegasi along with everypony else in town. When I saw what mom had been building, I froze. I locked up. I had no idea what to do, and if Hitch didn't come back into town to check on me, I don't know what would have happened. She probably would have demolished the lighthouse, and who knows how many of you would have been hurt, or worse," Sprout said. "Still, I've been focusing too much on your flaws, Sprout, and not enough on the strengths that Hitch saw in you. I'm going to try my best to change that from now on." Sprout smiled at her and continued eating. "Well, the populace of Maretime Bay hasn't exactly been giving you a lot of reasons to look for anything besides flaws. But you persevered, and now if I heard Hitch's broadcast correctly, things are going to be changing very quickly around here, thanks to you." Sunny nodded softly. "I hope so," she offered. "Sunny, what's wrong? No, wait, that's a stupid question. There's a gigantic hole in the front of your house," Sprout muttered as he took another big bite of pizza so he had the opportunity to think before another stupid thing came out of his mouth. "It's not just that, honestly. The crystals I told you about right before the craziness last night? The ones that are supposed to play a part in unifying the races again? We found the last one, and... I don't know what to do next. I'm honestly feeling a little lost right now. But don't worry about me. You enjoy your lunch. Thanks again, and get better, okay?" Sunny told him, before walking back around his bed towards the door. "Hey Sunny?" Sprout called as she reached the doorway. "Yeah, Sprout?" She asked, turning to him. "Just a thought... In the past week, you traveled all across the region, and fulfilled one of your lifelong dreams; you made friends with a unicorn and two pegasi; something that hasn't happened in Maretime Bay in generations. Next to an accomplishment like that, honestly Sunny, who cares about some stupid crystals?" Sunny's eyes widened for a moment before she giggled lightly. "Thanks, Sprout. I gotta go catch my friends before they eat without me." With that, she left the doorway and headed back down the hall towards reception, and her smile only widened, as Sprout's voice played in her head. 'You made your unicorn and pegasus friends, doofus. Be happy.' She laughed again at the weight that had just been lifted from her shoulders, and at the fact that Sprout Cloverleaf of all ponies was the one to lift it off of her.