a princess and her sheriff

why not sure I'll marry you part 13

Thunder's morning started off uncomfortable as he carried two heavy duffle bags on his back. He and Zoom had only been running Maritime Bay for less than ten minutes, and already Zoom had found a reason to rebuke Thunder for his incompetence. He hoped to grab a smoothie from Sunny and a muffin from another stand on the way to Hitch's house, but neither place was open for another hour. There were fewer ponies on Main Street than when Zoom and Thunder came in to meet Hitch in front of the sheriff's station because many followed Hitch to the end of the borders of Maretime Bay to wish him luck on his first trip visiting Pipp, thus making him feel alone in the seaside town.

If all that wasn't enough, Thunder did not remember how to get to Hitch's house.

Thunder himself couldn't believe he was that absent-minded. He had been to Hitch's house when he, Zipp, and Zoom came there to pick up Pipp during their previous trip, but it didn't occur to him that he might need to go there again by himself. One would think that he and Zoom would go over where precisely Hitch lives during their 2-day journey to Maretime Bay, but it had never crossed poor Thunder's mind until this point. He dared not ask Zoom for directions for fear of being further rebuked, so he was stuck in the middle of Main Street with two duffle bags on his back.

"Aw, pony feathers," Thunder said to himself.

He looked around the area, thinking of which way to go, but his only options were to go east toward the lighthouse, north to a narrow street that went uphill, or back west, where he'd be passing the sheriff's station. He thought of going to the lighthouse and asking Sunny and Izzy for help, but he decided against it, thinking he should try to figure it out alone. Finally, Thunder decided to take the narrow street, thinking he could look for Hitch's house and technically be on patrol by wandering around town.

So, Thunder took a second to force the pain of carrying the duffle bags into the back of his mind and began going uphill on the narrow street. He scanned the houses as he walked by, but none looked familiar. Eventually, Thunder got to the top of the hill, where he could only take a left turn, leading him downhill till he was close to the Canterlogic Factory. Thunder grew uneasy as he realized he could only go in two directions. Either go right in the direction of the factory or go left and risk passing the sheriff's station. He decided to risk it and return to the fountain where he started. If Zoom spotted Thunder, he would say that he decided to do his rounds before going to Hitch's house and keep the duffel bags on his back to exercise while at it. Zoom would never buy any of that, but that never stopped Thunder from fibbing before.

As Thunder walked through the plaza, he saw ponies opening their stores and food stands. Some noticed him passing by as they set up and gave him friendly greetings. Thunder smiled and nodded to hide his struggle with the duffle bags. While greeting the citizens of Maretime Bay, he did not notice Periwinkle Pi walking toward him in the opposite direction, holding folders and papers with one hoof and greeting her fellow citizens. With their heads turned away, Thunder and Periwinkle collided, and Periwinkle dropped her folders and papers, spreading them across the ground. Thunder tried to keep the duffel bags balanced before they fell off his back and landed on the street, one landing on his left side and the other on his right.

Thunder and Periwinkle looked down at their possessions, then looked up, and their eyes widened, instantly recognizing each other. They stared at each other for a moment before they looked away, with Thunder rubbing the back of his neck and Periwinkle rubbing her front hoof. After an awkward silence, Thunder knelt down and gathered Periwrinkle's papers. Periwinkle smiled before kneeling down to help him. Their hooves touched as they reached out to a paper simultaneously and looked at each other again before turning away bashfully, with Periwinkle taking the paper. With the papers and folders gathered, they stood back up, and Thunder gave Periwrinkle the papers he gathered.