Blueblood looked over to the pinball machine for what might have been the twenty-fourth-hundred time at Spike. Ever since Prince Twilight had spared his life, the little drake didn’t say much or looked at him. It was as The Prince found it odd that although his “Consort” had promised that he would “help” him, he hasn’t done much but turned his attention towards the steel ball in the machine.
Eventually, that said ball had fallen through, ended the match much to Spike’s frustration. Spike groaned and tried to reach for another bit when he found his wrist was stuck in midair. Looking over, it didn’t take long to figure out who was using magic in the room.
“Spike, I think something is bothering you,” the Royal Unicorn said as a matter of fact. “You haven’t looked at me for the past five minutes. Would you please tell me what’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing,” the young dragon tried to pull away from the aura but was lifted up, forced to face the prince.
“I know that look anywhere,” Blueblood said, “Or rather, that behavior to be precise. You are trying to shut out everything because something is bothering you only you believe that nopony will listen.”
Spike’s eyes widen, “How did-”
“One of the benefits to dealing with foreign ambassadors, dignitaries, and leaders, is that with enough time and practice, you can read somepony’s body language. With what I’ve seen for the past five minutes, I have seen this before with myself.” When Spike didn’t respond, the Prince sighed, “Look, you said that you wanted to help me in some way. But after looking at you… I’d say that you need my help just as much. So please tell me, what is wrong?”
Spike looked away as his cheeks turned pink, his eyes turned towards the door of the expansive game room. “Blueblood… how well can you keep a secret?”
“I will take it to the grave if I must, my love.”
“But what about your guards? I know they’re standing right outside from the entrance of your nerd cave.”
“They’ve sworn an oath that no matter what they hear or see shall not leave outside of the palace. So please, speak freely.”
After letting go of his claw, Spike rubbed the sleeve of his suite with it. “It was that kiss you gave me back there.”
Blueblood grimaced, “Really? Did I have garlic breath?”
Spike laughed uneasily. “No, it’s not tha-”
“Was I too forceful?”
There was a pause before the baby dragon responded, “That’s not it either, rather, it’s that I…” he shook his head, his blush deepened. “Don’t make me say it.”
“What?” the prince raised an eyebrow, “What has the kiss gotten you so nervous about? It wasn’t the breath nor was it a surprise. So what has gotten you so…” then he trailed off as he realized something. “Sir Spike, did I give you your first kiss?”
Spike hesitated before he nodded, “My first real one.”
In the back of Blueblood’s brain, he could hear a voice of a goalie screaming 'GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL!' However before he could congratulate himself being his beloved’s first kiss, he still noticed that his “Consort’s” face still had a look of concern on it. “So is that it?” he asked, “Is it because I was your first kiss? Oh come now Sir Spike, I’m the best stallion to have their-”
“It’s not that either!” Spike snapped, “It’s just gotten me scared that I liked it!”
This took the Prince completely by surprise, “Wait, what?”
The young drake sighed, “I mean… I had kissed before from mares. Only up until now, they were on the cheek. Even when it wasn’t on the lips, but it was nice. But when I got it from a mare that I have a crush on… it was even better.” He then looked up at Blueblood, “But when you did it… on the lips… I wouldn’t lie in saying that I thought it would have been weird… only it wasn’t, and that’s what scares me. So what does this mean anyway? I mean, I know I like mares, there’s no doubt, but…”
“You’re questioning if you like stallions too, is that right?” Blueblood asked, his heart was swelling with joy on the one hoof but worry in the other. He added, “And I would assume you might be wondering how your peers will see you? Just like me with the nobility?”
Spike nodded, “And you forcing me to dance with you isn’t gonna help either of us. I’m sure there are rumors spreading about us by now… I was gonna say that if I know Celestia as well as I do, that regardless what the rest of the nobles will think or say about ya, she would at least have your back.”
Blueblood chuckled as he wrapped his foreleg around Spike, again. “Before this wonderful night, I would have disagreed. Tell me Spike, how much knowledge of world history do you know concerning any royal family?”
The little dragon rolled his eyes, “Twilight practically reads them as a bedtime story to me.”
“I see, so tell me this, when was the last Prince do you know that preferred the company of stallions, and let the whole court know about it when he was alive?”
“Oh that’s easy, there’s…” Spike’s mind went blank. “Uh… What about- no… Well, there’s… Wait, nopony knew until after he died… Uh…” he shrugged, “Okay, I give up.”
“There’s never been one in all of history where a royal was gay, and the whole kingdom knew about it. Do you know why?” The young dragon shook his head. “Because, we Royals tend to think traditionally, meaning that we’re expected to wed a prince or princess for the purpose to reproduce so that there’s a possible heir. In other words, if the public finds out that you’re not straight, you could risk losing the throne. Up until tonight, no Prince or Princess that I know has ever done such a thing. It’s also the same reason why I had built this chamber in secret. As a Prince, I must appear straight, and mature that I have no need in chasing stallions, or playing childish games and reading comics.” He smiled, “But with you, I no longer care for what anypony thinks. I don’t care if Equestria demands that I should step down from the throne, I have never had this kind of freedom to love who I want. And what I want, is to be with you.”
“That’s somewhat untrue, Your Highness,” both Spike and Blueblood looked over to the door of the nerd cave.
“Who said that?” the Royal Unicorn questioned. His answer came when Curved Dagger stepped into the room.
“Forgive me for speaking out of turn, Your Grace, but you are wrong on the part of the nobility. If you did come out, I could imagine that they won’t react as harshly as you’re making it out to me.”
After being let go, Spike raised an eyebrow, “And how do you about this?”
“While you and His Majesty were… dancing, we’ve overheard one of the nobles saying that he was impressed that Blueblood was brave for doing so. Of course, it may be from one stallion, but considering that some ponies at the gala downstairs had seen it if there’s one, there’s another. Perhaps the Nobility is a little more open minded then you give them credit for.”
Blueblood was stunned when he heard this so he called out for his other guard, asking if this is true. “I defiantly can confirm this. I too was also there when we’ve heard the noble saying that. Although come morning, they might be talking more about Sir Spike’s age than anything else.”
“Yeah…” Spike grimaced. “Still… I was also gonna say that you should really open up because telling Equestria that you’re a bit of a nerd, will make you a whole lot more relatable then you’ll realize. I mean, apart from Shining Armor, stuff like this like collecting action figures, to playing RPG, even with your love of comic books won’t make you look lame but surprisingly cool. Heck, I mean, this is basically what I do with Big Mac and Discord for guys night in a nutshell! If we knew, I would be glad to invite you along.”
The Prince’s eyes were watering as he hugged him tightly, “You really mean it, Spike?” When he didn’t respond, he looked down to see that the Dragon’s face was turning blue. “I’m sorry, what are you saying?”
“Oxygen!” the baby dragon croaked.
After letting his grip loosen up, Blueblood looked down with him in pure joy, “Oh Spike, do you honestly mean all of that?”
“Because it’s true,” he replied. “Twilight told me that it’s not good to hide when there’s a world of ponies that can relate to you. ‘Sometimes the thing you think will cause to lose friends and feel left out can actually be the very thing that can make your closets friends. And realize how special you are.’”
“Wise words indeed,” the Prince said, “after all, I think even you could benefit from such wisdom yourself. Oh, Spike, with you by my side, now all that fear is gone and I am happy now than I ever have been. So…” Blueblood’s cheeks redden, “I know perfectly well that you’re still young, but until the right time… Sir Spike, Veux-tu m'épouser?”
“Yeah, now that’s the…” Spike blinked, “Wait, what did you just say?”
Thus Blueblood rejoiced while his guards looked at each other nervously. “Now?” Dagger murmured.
Without a word, Cloak lit up his horn, taking Spike away from Blueblood and the three of them quickly got out of the room to slam the door shut.
“Cloak! Dagger! What are you doing! Bring my Spike back! I need to tell everypony of our engagement!”
“What!” Spike screamed.
“He basically proposed to you in Prench,” the Unicorn Guard told him. “So for his sake, we’re gonna make sure he doesn’t leave that room for an hour.”
“Wait! Waitwaitwaitwaitwait!” the young drake waved his arms, “Back up. Why?”
“Well other than the fact that it’s illegal to purpose to a minor,” the Pegasus said, “long story short, we may or may not have something to do with it.”
By now, the Prince was banging on the secret door, to which the Guards ushered him not only out of the closet but out of Blueblood’s room.
“For the record,” Cloak said, “We are sorry for all of this.”
Spike sharply turned around, “You mean you two had something to do with why he just purposed to me?”
“Uh…” the unicorn guard looked at his comrade who was glaring daggers at him. “You should probably get back to the party, goodnight!” with that, the door was slammed shut.
“Hey!” Spike banged on the doors. “What’s going on! What did you two do!”
Inside the Prince’s chambers, both guards had their attention at the closet and at the double doors. One demanded Spike’s return while the other demanded answers.
The Pegasus looked at Cloak, “How long do you think we can keep this up before one of them breaks down the doors?”
“Dagger, we’re Solar Guards, we can take on anything.” He said before they noticed that there was a green light coming underneath the gilded doors. They also saw that the lock and doorknobs were turning hot red. “I think,” he added.