Lavender Café

by IzzyLovesYou

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.

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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’t have 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.