The happy couple spent the next few days enjoying each other’s company, helping out with the following Winter Wrapup, tackling any royal duties that reared their ugly heads, that sort of thing. The thing was, now that they were engaged, they had to start thinking about their wedding date. They started working together to get that taken care of, only to find out they were the least qualified people in the world to handle something like that. Every little detail felt like the biggest hurdle to overcome, and there was no way they could keep get this done.
When they realized that, they knew there was only one pony capable of handling this burden. One certain pink alicorn that ruled a kingdom not far from Equestria. Therefore, they sent a letter to her about it. She agreed to the job the first chance she got, and Twilight really shouldn’t have been surprised by the news, yet she was. Maybe it was because she always saw Cadence as her foalsitter, not as her wedding planner.
A few days later, Twilight and Spike found themselves waiting outside their front door, along with a bunch of suitcases and bags to take along with them. He tried passing the time with some whistling, but she was only getting more antsy from the wait.
“Spike, do we really need to jump through all these hoops? It’s a lot of work just to plan a wedding.”
“Just to plan a wedding? Do you know how big of a deal this is?” he responded. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to panic, but this is a big deal for both of us. We only get one chance at something like this, and it’s going to be one of the biggest days of your life.”
“Don’t you mean the biggest? It is our wedding day, after all.”
“Really? Always thought you’d consider your coronation day for that honor.”
“It was pretty awesome, but I think this is gonna be better.” She kissed him on the lips to make it the cherry on top.
Spike found himself kissing her back, and then they returned to their regularly scheduled kissing and cuddling session. They couldn’t help it at this point; it was getting hard to keep their hands off each other with the way things blossomed between them. Still, they couldn’t have picked the worst possible time to get into it, as it was the moment that their ride arrived.
A chariot arrived at their doorstep, carried by four Crystal Pony pegasi guards. They had straps around their waist and arms, and the chariot they brought was rather large. There was plenty of trunk space in the back for their luggage. Twilight managed to pull away from Spike right when the guards unstrapped and bowed before the couple, thankfully not catching them in the middle of making out.
“Welcome, Princess Twilight. You too, Spike, future Prince of Equestria,” the lead guard greeted them.
“Future Prince Spike? What are you talking about?” the dragon balked.
“It’s the title Princess Cadence ordered us to address you by. After all, you are to be wedded to a princess in the coming months. It felt appropriate, given the occasion.”
“Come to think of it, he is right about it,” Twilight thought. “Never really considered it. Wait a minute, does this mean this is going to be a royal wedding?” She slapped her forehead in disgust. “How did I forget something like that? That means it’s going to be a huge hooplah. How are we going to handle that?”
“Let’s just get in the carriage and figure that out later,” Spike offered.
“That’s probably for the best. Don’t want to keep Cadence waiting.”
The soon-to-be royal couple picked up their luggage and threw it in the trunk. Once that was done, they took their seats in the carriage and made themselves comfortable. The guards then strapped themselves back in and took off, setting sail for the Crystal Empire.
The princess felt so stupid about forgetting that one little detail about her marriage. This really was going to be a royal wedding, and as a result, it was going to be a monumental day And here she thought that it would just be a simple thing, marrying Spike and they would get to live their own happily ever after. Nope, life decided to make it more complicated, as it likes to do.
Spike caught Twilight acting flustered, with the way she was scrunching her forehead and fingers. He came over and held her hand in his, giving her a “you know we got this” look. She nodded and took a breath to calm down. He was working on his habit of calming her down when she needed it, given things were about to get a lot more serious between the two of them.
The Crystal Empire was just over the horizon in no time. It was just as glamorous as ever, and just like Ponyville, it hit a bit of a growth spurt. Not by much, but it was enough for Twilight to tell the difference from the past. It still looked like the same old Empire, one of the few reminders of the old days.
The chariot touched down by the castle grounds. As it was custom to do, there were a collection of guards ready to greet them. What really grabbed Twilight’s attention, to the surprise of nopony, was the pink princess, white unicorn, and pink filly waiting for them. Right when the chariot came to a stop, the newly engaged couple piled out and greeted their fellow royalty. Spike brought his attention to Shining and Flurry Heart, while Twilight got to have Cadence to herself.
“I can’t believe you’re finally getting married!” Cadence gleamed. “I always knew there was somepony out there for you, but I didn’t think it would be a dragon.” She caught a good look at the ring on Twilight’s wedding finger and squealed again. “I wouldn’t have guessed Spike would get your attention. Not that I think he’s a bad choice, he’s actually the perfect guy for you. I just didn’t think you’d be interested in him like that.”
“I know, right?” Twilight smiled. “I feel like the luckiest mare in Equestria. Is this how you felt when Shining proposed to you? It’s a pretty awesome feeling if it is.”
“I don’t know if it went exactly like it did for you, but it was amazing. We have so much to catch up on. I want to know everything. Don’t leave any details out.”
Meanwiile,, Spike came up and fistbumped Shining Armor. Flurry Heart was there as well, and she was now seven years old. Somehow, she only got more adorable as time went on.
“You’re Spike the Dragon, right?” she asked.
“Yep, that’s me. Saviour of Equestria twice and proud of it.” He flexed an arm muscle to show how courageous and strong he was.
“Oh yeah, you’re that really big dragon. I heard you kicked Sombra’s ass!”
“Flurry Heart! What did we say about language?” Shining Armor told her.
Flurry winced and held her arms behind her back. “Language is really bad, and I shouldn’t do it anymore?”
“That’s right.” Shining then turned his attention to the dragon again. “So I hear you’re marrying my sister. How do you feel about that?”
“Nervous, excited, stressed out, looking forward to it, afraid about it, whatever you can think of,” Spike replied. “Does that sound about right?”
“Oh yeah. Every stallion feels the same way leading up to their big day,” Shining noted, patting Spike on the back. “What you should be feeling like is that you’re the luckiest guy ever, since you’re marrying the best sister in the world. You’re not gonna set the castle on fire, right?”
“What are you talking about? You know me. Besides, the castle is made out of crystal--”
“And you’re not going to go through any sudden growth spurts? I might need to help build a bigger castle for Twily--”
“Daddy, you’re being a dork again,” Flurry Heart piped in.
Spike burst out laughing at the comment. “Is that what she does all the time now? Flurry, are you keeping your dad in check?”
“All the time. Mommy said it helps him stay calm and not go into ‘Dad Mode’. What’s Dad Mode again?”
Shining hid his face with his hands. “It’s when your daddy freaks out over nothing and acts like a big dork. In other words, Twilight’s not the only one that goes through freakouts in this family. Still, we have a lot to talk about.”
After some time had passed, Cadence and Shining came together to address both Twilight and Spike. “We’re happy for both of you, and we wish you nothing but the best,” Cadence began. “And it means a lot that you’re coming to us for help with the wedding plans. While we work on it, we promise we’ll do everything we can to make sure this is the possible wedding for both of you.”
“We’ve been discussing how to handle this for a while, and we think it would be best if Cadence handled things with you, Twilight,” Shining added. “Flurry, you can come with Mommy. You’ve been a big help with stuff like this.”
“Yay! I get to do stuff with my B.A.E.!” cheered Flurry Heart. She went and gave Twilight a big, warm hug.
“Spike, you’re coming with me,” Shining continued. “We’ll handle things together, and once we’re done, we’ll have a better idea of what this wedding will look like.”
“Sounds perfect. Very organized, too,” Twilight noted. “You’ll be okay if I’m not around for a few minutes, Spike?”
“I dunno, that might be really hard,” Spike grinned. “Are you sure you can’t handle things without me being around to sweep you off your feet?”
“I think I can manage for a few seconds, but that’s it,” Twilight chuckled, sticking her tongue out at him. “Let’s get this wedding thingy started!”
With that business in the rearview window, the two groups would go on their own way, with Cadence, Twilight, and Flurry Heart going to the royal library, while Shining and Spike would have their little talk over at the observatory.
------
Speaking of the royal library, Twilight would always find herself in awe of the collection Cadence had built up. It never held a candle to her own library, of course, but there were a few books here that she didn’t have yet. Despite all the Crystal Ponies standing around in the library, in awe of her, the books were the only things that had her attention.
“How did you have Basic Teleportation Spells, Volume 3 by Starswirl before me?” she pondered “I have to get back to work on that. The sooner I get back on expanding my library, the better.”
In the meantime, Cadence was a big ball of energy, eager to get started. “It is an amazing library, but we should get down to business,” Cadence cut in. “Where should we start with the wedding? There’s so much we need to do.”
Twilight stopped in the middle of her thought, right in the middle of smuggling all the Starswirl books she could find. “To be honest, I haven’t thought about it at all. It all happened so fast. We might have gone steady for a year now, but it’s been a blur ever since our first date.since then. A really, really fun blur, but still.”
“You haven’t done anything with your wedding?” Flurry gasped. “Oh no. I think Mommy is in wedding planner mode…”
“Wedding what now?”
The gears in Cadence’s brain started to whirl. She couldn’t help but think of all the possibilities that were in front of her, now that she knew this wedding would be a blank canvas for her to work with. It was her version of being a filly in a candy store.
“You have no idea how happy I am to hear that,” she replied. “You know the best place to begin? A wedding location, of course I can draw up a whole list of places to hold the wedding.” She levitated a huge list, big enough to match Twilight’s own checklists, over to the Princess of Friendship. “Winsome Falls is a classic, but I heard Rarity is having her wedding there, so that’s not happening. Oooh, what about somewhere Canterlot? There are so many good wedding spots there. Or, if you don’t mind the tackiness, Las Pegasus is a goldmine for this.”
“Actually, I had some place in mind. That’s the one thing we could agree on. It’s a really special place to me.”
Cadence couldn’t wait to hear it, while Flurry was just happy to hear that her mother didn’t have to do everything for Twilight. She knew how carried away the Princess of Love could get.
“It’s the Golden Oaks Memorial Garden. You know, where the Golden Oaks Library used to be.”
“That garden? To be honest, I didn’t count on that,” Cadence admitted. “Then again, I know how much that old treehouse meant to you. Good thing the town of Ponyville put a garden where it used to stand, rather than just let the remains rot after a while. It was the least they could do for you, given how you left your mark there.”
“I know. I miss that treehouse more than anything, but the garden was the perfect idea for it. It should be gorgeous in the summer. Since we were living there together for a while Spike and I thought it would be a perfect place for our wedding.”
“Excellent. I will make a note of that right now.” Cadence went to the very bottom of the list for places to consider, wrote in a box with the name “Golden Oaks Memorial Garden”, and checked it off. She started to sniffle once she was done, and she found herself doing it again already. Then she couldn’t stop at all.
“Are you okay?” Flurry asked. “You look really sad.”
“It’s fine, sweetie. It’s just that…” She had to sniff again, bringing a tissue to blow her nose into. “Your aunt is all grown up now, and she’s having her big wedding day. You know how big of a deal that is?”
“You’ve told me all about it,” Flurry replied. “You said your wedding day was the second best day of your life, and the best day was my first birthday. That’s what it was, right?”
“Yeah. You got it down perfectly. That’s why it’s a big deal for me.” Cadence patted her daughter on the head lovingly. She then looked over at Twilight with a big smile. “I honestly don’t know where I’d be without you. How else would we have taken care of Chrysalis and Sombra?”
Twilight nodded and gave her former foalsitter a big hug. “Well, we have to give Spike some credit with Sombra. You know how brave he was that day.”
“Yeah, he kicked Sombra’s--” Flurry stopped herself from dropping another cuss word. “--flank!”
“Exactly.. You couldn’t have been luckier with your choice if you tried. I just hope my husband doesn’t get carried away with this like I have,” Cadence noted.
------
“How long have you been dating my sister?” Shining demanded.
“A little over a year now. Why are we doing this again?” Spike asked. His collar was starting to get sweaty again.
“I have my reasons. Where do you plan to move after you get married?”
“The same castle we’ve been living in? It’s a great castle. We’d never move out of that place. Why does this feel like an interrogation?”
As it turned out, Shining had Spike sitting down at a table in the middle of the observatory, with the prince walking around the table in bad cop mode. To say it was awkward was a very accurate statement, actually.
“I can’t leave any detail unchecked,” Shining explained. “If my sister is going to marry somepony, or in your case, somedragon, I need to make sure she’s marrying the best. That’s just what I’m going to make sure of.”
“But you already know me so well! Come on, I have a big statue right by the castle. Don’t you remember what I did for you guys when Sombra invaded, and how I saved the Equestria Games from certain doom? And you know how well I’ve treated Twilight over the years.”
“You’re right, you’re right.” Shining rubbed the temples on his forehead. “But I’m not finished asking you questions. When was the last time you had a growth spurt?”
“I don’t know. There was that time I grew into a giant right when my greed got the best of me, but that was years ago. Hasn’t happened since. I did get these babies since then, however.” Spike extended his wings out for Shining to see.
“I feel like the only person in the family without wings,” Shining groaned. “But...what was the next question...maybe it was...I got nothing. Huh. I thought you would crack under the pressure.”
“Okay, what are you trying to do here? You should now how much I love Twilight by now. It’s been that way even before I realized I like-liked her, if that makes any sense. If you’re worried that I’m going to treat her badly, it’s not going to happen.”
“That wasn’t what I was worried about,” admitted Shining. He gazed around the room to make sure they were alone, which they were. Not many ponies came to the observatory unless they were using the telescope. “Keep this a secret between us, but I’m actually terrified about this wedding.”
Spike blinked his eyes in surprise. “That’s it? I thought it was over something a lot worse than that. Still, your sister’s getting married soon. Pretty sure every brother freaks out when that happens.”
“Well, that too. You have to understand, I still see her as the little foal that Cadence came over to foal sit when I was younger, and the same one that hatched your egg. It’s really hard to match that Twilight with the princess that’s about to marry you. It’s a lot to take in.”
The dragon sighed and nodded. “Yeah. It all went so fast with us, but I was in a relationship for the first time in my life. It was the best feeling I ever had, especially with the way things ended up with Rarity. It just felt right, but I should have considered how you and Cadence would feel about it. Did feel like you were part of my family for a while there.”
“Don’t worry about Cadence. She’s fine, and you’re still a part of the family, Spike,” Shining replied. “I really shouldn’t be freaking out about this, but I’m still doing it. I’ll try to work on that in the future. There is one thing I wanted to know, and it’s something you’ll have to consider when you marry her.”
“Let’s hear it. I’m all ears.”
“Spike, are you ready to be an Equestrian Prince?”
Now that was the last thing Spike expected to hear. “Huh? Why are you asking?”
“You realize that since you’re marrying a Princess of Equestria, you’ll be a Prince through this union? It’s just like how I was a prince the moment when I married Cadence.”
The dragon nodded again, but he didn’t look happy with himself. “I realize that now. Oh my goodness, what did I get myself into?”
“I hate to dump that on you, but you’ll have to consider that the second after you make your vows,” Shining piled on. “That means there’s going to be a lot more responsibilities for you in the future. Now that I think about it, this could really help pony-dragon relations. You know, since one of the princesses will be married to a dragon.”
“That’s...actually a good point,” Spike thought. Sweat started to pour down his face when it dawned on him that Shining was right. He was going to be a prince, and having seen Twilight’s royal duties firsthand, he had a good idea of what that would look like. He was going to deal with a lot of royal duties, and he would have to keep his eye on the other kingdoms every day.. Suddenly, this wedding started to feel like the most stressful day of his life, rather than the greatest day he first imagined.
It didn’t take long for Shining to pick up on things. “Look, I don’t want you to be scared from things, but you need to know what you’re in for. I loved Cadence and I couldn’t imagine marrying anypony else, but it took a while to adjust to my new title as Prince of the Crystal Empire.”
“Do you think I have what it takes to be a good prince?” Spike asked bluntly.
“Yes,” Shining answered. “You were her #1 assistant for years, and you know how to organize things as a result. You’ve made it possible for Equestria to connect with the dragons for the first time in centuries. And from what I’ve heard, you’ve done a good as the official Equestrian Ambassador to the Dragon Lands. I say you’ve got what it takes to do your job the right way.”
That took the edge off things for Spike, and he started to calm down. “Whew, thank Celestia. You have no idea how good it feels to know I don’t always screw things up. You can forget about the good stuff you’ve done every now and then.”
“We all have days like that. I almost did it to you just now,” Shining confessed, wincing at his brainfart. “Just take good care of my sister, okay? I don’t want anything bad to happen to her.”
“You don’t have to worry about that,” Spike swore. “I love her more than anypony in the world. I want her to be happy with me as her husband, and I’ll do everything I can to make sure she’s happy. You have my word.
“Just what I wanted to hear. I wanted to ask one more question, though. It’s nothing serious, but I was curious about the answer.”
“What is it?”
“Are you looking forward to the wedding? Like, once you get past the nerves, is this something you want to do?”
“Have to admit, I’ve never been more nervous in my life. It is a big day, after all, being a royal wedding and stuff.” However, he couldn’t stop grinning at the thought in his head. “I still think it’s going to be the best day of my life when it comes time.”
“Trust me, it will be. At the very worst, it will the second best day of your life.”
“Second best? What could be better than your big marriage day?”
Shining’s thoughts started to turn to his beloved daughter, and what it was like when she came into the world. “I think you’ll know what it is when it happens.”
“I don’t know. It’s going to be hard to top something like that.”
“Oh yeah, it is. You’re going to remember your wedding day for the rest of your life.”
“That just gives me more reason to look forward to it, then.”