(The dog in this story is basically a small German shepherd, I just couldn't say "German shepherd" in the story because to ponies Germany doesn't exist)
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The surveys weren't turning out to be very helpful.
Hitch set down yet another unremarkable survey onto the already giant pile of reviewed surveys. He and Zipp had spent most of last night and most of this morning going through the surveys but hadn't found anything notable. Nopony else was suddenly able to talk to animals and nopony was reporting anything strange. The only pattern they could find was an uptick in clumsy accidents, but that wasn't magic. Hitch wasn't sure what it was, but definitely not magic.
"I have to say, Hitch," Zipp said, looking up from where she was reading over surveys at the deputy's desk. "It's really looking like earth ponies didn't get any magic. It isn't the type of thing ponies don't notice."
"That just doesn't make sense," Hitch sighed, frustrated. "Why would I be the only one, besides Sunny, to get extra magic? Why would the earth pony crystal have magic in it?"
"Maybe the crystals gave you and Sunny special magic because you are earth ponies," Zipp suggested. "It gave the rest of us our tribe's normal magic but since you two didn't have anything, it gave you unique magic."
"I guess that's possible," Hitch admitted. It didn't feel right though. "I don't think I really did anything the crystals would be especially grateful about though. Sunny, I get. But me?" He shook his head. "Either way, I do still want to finish the investigation. Just to be sure."
"Oh yeah, we definitely want to finish this," Zipp agreed. "Earth pony magic is intriguing. Just… don't be disappointed if it doesn't exist."
"I won't be disappointed," Hitch assured her. He really wouldn't be. "We've always thought we didn't have magic and we've been fine."
Ace barked and Hitch looked over to see the dog pacing underneath the clock. "Hitch," Ace reminded. "Patrol."
Starling, Hitch checked the time. "You're right, Ace. We need to make our rounds." He glanced at Zipp, not wanting to leave her to work alone.
"Go on," Zipp told him. "It's your job. I'll finish going through these while you're gone."
"Thanks, Zipp," Hitch said, slowly walking towards the door, nudged along by Ace. "You've been a huge help with all this."
"No prob," Zipp shrugged. "I actually enjoy all this stuff."
"I'll come back as soon as I've made my rounds," Hitch promised, opening the door.
"No need to rush," Zipp waved, settling back into her seat and picking up the next survey. "I've got this."
It was a bit cloudy today, but not to the point of being gloomy. Plenty of ponies were walking around and hanging out outside.
"Alright Ace," Hitch instructed. "Let's split up to cover more ground. You take sector B, I'll start with sector A. Come get me if you come across any incidents. We'll meet up by the fountain in sector C."
Ace saluted with one ear and took off down the street. Hitch adjusted his badge, then began his patrol.
He greeted ponies as he passed them, pleased to see ponies in high spirits despite all the changes happening. The beginning of his patrol went smoothly. He helped elderly Iris Petals carry her groceries, made the teens in the park turn their music down to legal levels, helped a group of colts get their kite out of a tree, and assisted a group of cutie mark crusaders by pointing out and telling them the names of the different parts of the boat for their boating badge. Hitch was nearly to sector C when he came across a more complicated issue.
"You're supposed to be protecting us, Hitch," Posey Bloom huffed. Hitch had known trouble was coming as soon as he saw the yellow earth pony mare marching up to him. A large percentage of his quarterly complaints always came from Posey.
"Your safety is my top priority, Posey," Hitch vowed. "But pegasi are allowed to be here. You only need to report seeing one now if you see them committing a crime." He knew there would be an adjustment period, but earth ponies would get used to it.
"They shouldn't be allowed here," Posey argued, stomping her hoof. "And he was flying, Hitch. In Maretime Bay. Who knows what he was doing! Spying on ponies from above, messing with the weather, plotting to swoop down and snatch some poor filly. We have children playing out here, Hitch! If we have to let pegasi in the city, for some reason, they shouldn't be allowed to fly!" Hitch knew Posey wasn't the only earth pony with these concerns, she was just the boldest and loudest. There was a good argument to be made about a no flying law but...
"It's just how they get around, Posey," Hitch reasoned. "They're all really excited to be able to fly again. If we ban flying in the city, it will really hurt the new friendship between our tribes, they might stop coming to the city at all." They didn't get many visitors from other tribes already, they didn't need more things to drive them away.
"Good!" Posey snapped, throwing up her hooves. "We don't want them here! If they wanted to come to our home so badly, they should at least follow our rules. If we can walk around on the ground like normal ponies, so can they."
"We don't have any rules against flying," Hitch pointed out.
'We've never needed one!" Posey fumed, pacing. "Ugh, I can't believe you, of all ponies, aren't taking this seriously!"
"I am-" he started to defend, but she cut him off.
"No, I'm not wasting any more time with you," Posey scoffed, jabbing a hoof at his chest. "There are plenty of other ponies in Maretime Bay that haven't lost their sense. They'll help me protect this city." With that, she stormed off.
"Posey, wait!" Hitch called, trotting after her. "Annnd she's already gone. Great." She'd disappeared around the corner and he wasn't chasing her through the streets over this. He let out a sigh. "Could have been worse…" They'd all known letting the other tribes into the city wouldn't be an overwhelmingly popular decision. This was the first step to mending relations, it was going to be rocky at the start.
A couple seagulls flew down and landed next to him. "Wow, she seemed mad," the smaller one chirped.
Hitch let out another sigh. "She'll get over it. I think…" The seagulls flapped away when Ace came charging up.
"Hitch," the dog reported. "Incident in sector C! The flower cart's been vandalized!"
Hitch gasped. "Dahlia's flower cart? What fiend would do such a thing? Quickly, Ace, to the scene!" Ace barked and they both took off racing down the street. "It's so great that I can understand you now, Ace. The enhanced communication makes our job easier." He'd always been able to roughly understand what Ace was trying to tell him, but this was a whole new level.
The damage was obvious as soon as they arrived. Somepony had knocked over the rack next to the cart, spilling flowers all over the sidewalk. Petals littered the pavement like fallen confetti. But this was no party. This, was a crime.
"Dahlia," Hitch greeted, skidding to a halt. The mare seemed frazzled as she gathered up her lost flowers. "What happened here?"
"I'm not sure," Dahlia told him, flustered. "It happened so fast. My back was turned. I was in my stall, and I heard a crash, then I turned around to see my stand knocked over. My flowers scattering in the wind."
Hitch took out his notebook to begin documentation. "Were there any witnesses?"
"None," Dahlia shook her head sorrowfully. "A colt was here, but he didn't see anything either." Two ponies in the area, but neither had seen anything? Hmm…
So if Dahlia was in her stall with her back turned- "Where was the colt standing?" he asked.
"By the stand," Dahlia said, nodding in that direction as she placed an armful of pink flowers into a basket. "Nearly crushed him. Thank Stella it missed him. Poor kid was really shaken up. Practically wobbled away."
"And the colt didn't knock it over?" Hitch checked. It was the most logical option so far.
"Oh no," Dahlia reassured immediately. "Far too heavy. Maybe if he'd made a running charge at it, but I would've seen that." Hitch nodded, experimentally lifting the stand. She was right, it was too heavy for a colt to reasonably knock over. Heaving the stand fully upright, he searched the stand but didn't see any suspicious damage.
"Vandalism, child endangerment, and fleeing the crime?" Hitch contemplated. "We're dealing with a real hooligan here, Ace." Ace let out an angry bark of agreement. This blatant disregard for the law and basic decency was sickening. Shameful. "Got any scents, boy?"
"Lots," Ace answered. "No way to distinguish the perpetrator."
"Darn," Hitch cursed, but he'd been expecting as much. Tons of ponies passed by here every day, and they had no idea of who they were looking for. They did still have a potential lead though. "Who was the colt?" he asked Dahlia. "I'd like to talk to him about this."
"Um," Dahlia tilted her head as she tried to remember. "I think his name is Starstruck?"
"Blue and yellow mane? Camera cutie mark? Probably holding a camera? One of those, not phone cameras, whatever those are called." Dahlia nodded. "That's him alright." Hitch knew all the kids in Maretime Bay. The adults too. He need to have good relations with the citizens to sheriff properly. "I'll talk to him, try to dig up some more clues. Don't worry Dahlia, I'll get to the bottom of this."
"Could it have been a unicorn?" Dahlia asked fearfully, eyes darting around nervously.
"What?!" Hitch startled. "Why would you think that?"
"Nopony was nearby," Dahlia reasoned. "And nothing physically hit it. So could it have been magic? I've seen a few unicorns around the city."
"I doubt it," Hitch assured her, though he wouldn't rule it out entirely just yet. "No motive. And the unicorn's magic is still very weak." Izzy could only manage a pencil so far. No unicorn would be able to lift a huge metal stand. "They wouldn't be able to move something that heavy."
"If you say so, Hitch," Dahlia nodded, not sounding convinced. "If you find the pony who did it, I'm not mad so long as it was an accident. I just want an apology."
"Don't worry, I'll do my best to find them," Hitch promised.
He and Ace began their search. No school today, so it would be a bit trickier to track Starstruck down. He had some good guesses though.
A few minutes later, as they passed the old antique shop, he spotted a blue unicorn using her magic to lift up a shop sign. That was impressive. Maybe some unicorns were further along than he thought. Noting the butterfly cutie mark on her flank, he realized this must be Misty, Sunny's new friend. He should go introduce himself.
"The old antique shop's being turned into a bakery," Hitch told Ace. "Looks like they've already started reservations." The cottage style building stood apart from the surrounding structures, even having a nice island of grass and trees to itself. He'd been happy to hear the new owner was keeping the building's exterior the same, it was a charming spot. The sign Misty had just hung read 'Cozy Cakes' in swirling letters. Underneath it was a paper saying, 'coming soon'. A caramel earth pony mare came out of the shop and started talking to Misty. "Let's stop by and introduce ourselves real quick, welcome them to the neighborhood."
"Alright," Ace agreed, sniffing the air. "Think they have any cakes for dogs?"
"I don't think they'll have the kitchens set up yet," Hitch pointed out, changing course to trot up to the two mares.
The two turned to him as he approached. "Hello," he greeted. "So, this is the new bakery in town, huh?"
"Yes, it is," the earth pony confirmed cheerfully. She had a cake cutie mark, very likely the owner. "I'm Sugar Spice, owner and head pastry chef of Cozy Cakes. Nice to meet you. Are you a local?"
"I am indeed," Hitch nodded. "Name's Hitch. And this is Ace." Ace let out a bark. "I'm the sheriff in town." He adjusted his badge to draw attention to it. "Just wanted to say hi and introduce myself. Welcome to Maretime Bay, you'll really like it here. It's a great city. Pretty quite place, but if you do ever run into any problems, just let me know."
"Oh, how sweet!" Sugar gasped. "Gosh, the ponies here are so friendly! I was so excited to get a shop here. It'll be a bit before we're ready to open, but I hope you'll stop by when we do." The curtains were closed so Hitch couldn't see inside, but he imagined a lot of work was being done in there.
"Are you Misty?" Hitch asked the unicorn. No need to bring up the false thievery accusations. That would be both awkward and unnecessary.
"What?" Misty startled, eyes widening. "Who? Why?"
Sugar giggled, sliding to stand closer to Misty. "Aw, Misty, already making new friends?"
"I'm a friend of Izzy and Sunny and the others," Hitch explained, realizing how odd it would seem to her that the earth pony sheriff knew her name.
"Oh, right, yes," Misty stammered, brushing at her bangs. "Hitch. Sunny mentioned you."
"Really?" Hitch asked. "What did she say?" Then he realized how that sounded and blushed briefly before hurriedly correcting, "Er, wait, never mind. You don't have to answer that."
"What's your favorite cake flavor, Hitch?" Sugar inquired.
"Oh, I'm a fan of carrot myself," Hitch answered. Was this a question bakers asked new ponies? Like asking favorite colors? "Apple is a real competitor though. It could flip between the two depending on the day."
"Ooh, both great choices," Sugar clapped. "Hey, Misty." The earth pony gestured back at the shop and Misty seemed to understand. The unicorn headed into the shop and Sugar took out her phone and fired off a quick text before pocketing it again.
Now that Misty wasn't here to hear, Hitch felt comfortable saying, "I think it's really cool that you've hired a unicorn. A lot of earth ponies are still a bit paranoid about them."
"Pssh," Sugar waved off. "Misty's an absolute sweetheart. Not even a little scary. Couldn't hurt a fly. Most of that anti-unicorn hoopla is superstitious nonsense. We didn't get into all that in the town where I grew up. We really didn't think about pegasi or unicorns at all day to day."
"Really?" Hitch blinked, surprised. He'd always assumed every earth pony settlement was the same in that aspect. "It's always been a big deal here until now. They didn't worry about unicorn attacks?"
"Oh, well, you have Canterlogic headquarters here," Sugar reasoned, glancing towards the towering Canterlogic building in the distance. "I'm sure they- advertised a lot. All that other tribe stuff was probably more top of mind for you. We barely got any of their protection devices over there."
"Where are you from?" Hitch asked, intrigued. What would growing up like that even be like? To not have a lingering fear in the back of your mind. Everypony had had Canterlogic protection products when he was growing up, minus Sunny and her dad. They'd had unicorn and pegasus drills every few weeks at school. What had it been like to just- not worry about it? He supposed everypony would be able to experience that now. That was a nice thought.
"Oh, further up west," Sugar answered, a bit vaguely. "We're pretty close to New Dodge City."
Misty came back outside before Hitch could ask more questions. To his surprise, she was carrying a see-through container with a small cake inside and a brown paper bag. The cake had white frosting with little frosting carrots all over it and those swirly icing things around the top. The container was held closed by a bow that had a fork underneath it as well. The whole thing looked very professional.
"Are your kitchens already set up?!" he gasped.
"Oh no," Sugar shook her head. "I've been using my personal kitchen to make sample cakes."
"Here Hitch," Misty offered, passing him the cake container. Then she pulled a bone shaped cake from the paper bag. "And this is for you, Ace." She patted the dog's head then placed the treat on the ground. "Pupcake." Ace's tail wagged wildly as he launched at the gift.
"On the house, of course," Sugar added.
"Really?" Hitch jerked his head back to the earth pony. "A whole cake?" That was very generous.
"A mini cake," Sugar shrugged. "And who could be more deserving than our hardworking and very sweet sheriff?" She smiled brightly and Hitch's chest swelled at the compliment. Always nice to be appreciated. "And I have plenty to spare right now, I've been experimenting and practicing the menu. If you do enjoy the cake though, feel free to spread the word about Cozy Cakes."
"I will," Hitch promised, taking the lid off the cake. If it tasted as good as it looked, it would be amazing. And he had to taste it while they were watching, it would be rude not to.
"This thing's delicious," Ace mumbled around his treat.
Hitch used the fork to scoop up a bite. His eyes widened as soon as it hit his tongue. "This is incredible!" he exclaimed, shoveling the cake into his mouth faster. The texture was perfect. Somehow dense and fluffy all at once. Sweet without being overwhelmingly sweet. The flavors mixed together in a way that none overpowered the other. It was the best carrot cake he'd ever had.
"Aw, thanks," Sugar beamed. "I'm very good at what I do."
"I'll definitely tell everypony about your cakes," Hitch told her earnestly. "I'm sure you'll be incredibly popular if all your cakes are as good as this." Hm. "Er, I don't suppose you have a wildberry cake ready? I'll pay you for it."
"Oh?" Sugar tilted her head. "I in fact do. You must have been terribly busy today if you're that hungry."
"I can eat two cakes no problem," Misty commented. "The little ones at least."
"It isn't for me," Hitch clarified. "My friend Zipp's been helping me out a lot lately and I want to give her a thank you gift. Wildberry's her favorite." He had to do something to show his appreciation.
"Oh," Sugar said, eyes lighting up. "I see." She turned to Misty. "Zipp is one of your friends too, right, Misty?"
Misty's ears drooped. "I hope so," she sighed gloomily. Hitch felt awful for her. Zipp had made a rookie mistake, not even questioning the suspect before making accusations. Not good. And Misty seemed shy too, she'd clearly taken it badly.
He was so focused on Misty, he missed the flash of annoyance on Sugar's face. "Oh, Misty," Sugar giggled, pushing between them. "You're such a worrier. You've already made up." The earth pony darted inside and was back out seconds later. She handed Hitch a cake with swirling blue and dark pink frosting. "Just take it. No need to pay. This is all good promotion anyways."
"That's very kind of you," Hitch said, taking the cake. What great new neighbors. "I'm sure I'll be one of your regulars." He glanced up at the sun. "Well, it was nice meeting both of you. I need to get going, I'm in the middle of an investigation. Saw you as I was passing and wanted to say hi. Thanks so much for the cakes."
"Oh, it's no big deal," Sugar waved off. "I'm sure we'll see you around quite a lot. Good luck with your investigation."
"Yeah," Misty nodded. "See you later."
Hitch and Ace walked off, giving one final wave before leaving the street. "We can drop off Zipp's cake as we pass the office," Hitch told Ace, mood considerably lifted.
"They were really nice," Ace yipped, licking his lips. "You think they'll have treats there all the time?"
"Hey, no using your cuteness to sucker ponies for treats," Hitch scolded. "Especially when you're on duty. It's unprofessional. But yes, they were both very nice. I'm glad to see Misty's settling in well. I'll have to tell Sunny about Sugar and the shop, she'll want to stop by. I have feeling she'll really hit it off with Sugar Spice." Hitch let out a breath. "Now, let's get back to work."
