a princess and her sheriff

why not sure I'll marry you part 10

Hitch and Pipp wandered around town, trying to decide what to get for lunch. Each restaurant looked more attractive to Pipp than the last. Half the time, she was distracted by ponies expressing joy to see her in person. When Pipp found Maretime Bay had a trolly, she begged Hitch to ride it together. Her pleas made her look like a spoiled little filly, but Hitch was glad she enjoyed seeing his town.

Eventually, as they rode the trolley, they found a grilled cheese sandwich stand and decided to grab food there. When the owner of the stand, an earth pony, saw them coming, he let out a high-pitched squeal and began rambling about how many times he had listened to Pipp's music since his friend, a pegasus, introduced him to it. Pipp laughed and said yes when the owner asked for a picture. He offered to have their lunch be on the house, but Pipp politely refused, not wanting to keep her fan from earning money for his business.

After Hitch paid, they took their sandwiches and chips bags and headed to the station. The seagulls and the crab were sleeping on the sign, having gotten drowsy from waiting for Hitch to come back. Pipp "awww"ed at the sight of the critters and took a picture on her phone right before the critters woke up. The seagulls chirped, and the crab clapped its claws at the sight of Pipp. The seagulls flew down with one of them carrying the crab and landed in front of Hitch and Pipp. Pipp knelt before the critters, still taking pictures as she smiled at them.

"Hello, little ones. Aren't you just the cutest?" Pipp greeted. "What are their names?"

Hitch's eyes widened and he looked away with a sheepish grin as he said, "You know, now that you mention it, I haven't given them any names."

"What? How could you have these little cuties around when you are at work and don't have names for them?" Pipp asked.

"It just never crossed my mind,'' Hitch said. "Truth be told, they're not my pets or anything like that. There's just something about little creatures that just drives them to want to be around me. I'm practically a magnet."

Pipp tilted her head and rubbed her chin, puzzled.

"Well, I guess that makes sense. I mean, Cloudpuff was immediately taken with you at the wedding, and that doesn't normally happen," Pipp said.

"Cloudpuff? Hitch asked.

"Our family dog. The one who was the ring bearer," Pipp explained. "He's always been such a friendly puppy, but the way he was excited when you got on stage - that's not like him when meeting new ponies. In fact, he seemed rather ecstatic when I talked Mom into making our marriage legal."

"Really?" Hitch asked, earning a nod from Pipp. "Well, then, I guess Cloudpuff makes an excellent example."

"I guess so," Pipp giggled. "Anyway, let's get inside before our sandwiches get cold."

Hitch nodded, and they headed to the station entrance with the critters following. When they went inside, Hitch found Sprout leaning against his chair, snoring with his head facing the ceiling and an empty pizza box on his desk. Hitch huffed and shook his head before he put his food on his desk and looked for a folded chair.

"Is that Sprout?" Pipp asked.

"Yup," Hitch answered with disappointment and his voice.

"Oh. Zipp mentioned something about Zoom needing to keep an eye on a deputy whenever you visit me. I'm guessing this is an example of why?" Pipp asked.

"Yep. If you don't count the critters, it's just Sprout and me upholding the law," Hitch answered. "Sprout, however, tends not to take his job particularly seriously even if you take away his prejudice."

"What do you mean?" Pipp asked.

"He tends to loaf around more than anything," Hitch explained as he set a chair at the side of his desk. "He'll do some paperwork or do assignments when I tell him to, but he'll be very reluctant."