Crushing in College

by Freybli

Roommates

Draco took a deep breath and, with a great effort, forced himself to open the door to his home. His living quarters weren’t flashy or extravagant, as he didn’t like to openly flaunt his status as the adopted brother of the Two Sisters, but here and there you could see the signs of his nobility, such as the beautiful handcrafted vases and his personal favorite - the picture of him, Celestia, and Luna somehow fitting into a photo booth in order to get a souvenir from their trip to Haytona Beach. Of course, he could have chosen to live in the castle, but he didn’t exactly enjoy the close proximity in which the castle brought him to the Canterlot nobles; they weren’t his favorite group of ponies to be around.

Following him into the house was Qibli, who had no trouble entering thanks to the enlarged door frame he had added in order to allow his sisters to walk through the doors instead of teleporting in like they used to. The dragon looked around in open curiosity at the charming living arrangements that his host had set up, noting the different entryways and openings to different rooms that he could see from the front door. After a moment, he turned to look at Draco, the cheery light in his eyes not dimming even for a second.

“What a lovely home you have, Draco!” Qibli exclaimed in amazement. “I simply adore what you’ve done with the place. Artisan pottery, a charming and rustic kitchen, real hardwood tables, the somewhat disconcerting arcane glow coming from the basement… You just have it all, don’t you?” Qibli paused for a moment and brought his claw to his chin in consideration. “You wouldn’t happen to have any wine, would you?”

“Wine?” Draco shook his head to make sure he was hearing the dragon correctly. “Yes, I do have some imported wines in the wine cellar, but if you don’t mind me asking, why do you all of a sudden have the taste for wine?” It never occurred to him that Qibli might drink every so often, but the dragon’s sudden request for a drink took Draco by surprise.

Responding to Draco’s question, Qibli displayed his pearly white teeth in a somewhat mischievous, if not charming, smile. “My dear, sweet, Draco, have you ever heard the term ‘alcohol loosens the tongue?’ Qibli asked innocently.

“Well, of course I have,” replied Draco, looking more than a little bit uncomfortable at the dragon’s choice for his nickname. He tried to look past it and answer his question. “It’s hard to pick and choose what you want to say when you’re inebriated,” he said as he shot a mock glare at the still-grinning dragon. “And that goes doubly for smooth-tongued dragons.”

“I think I’ll keep that in mind.” Qibli glanced at the wooden clock that was mounted on the wall in the living room. The beautifully crafted hands of the clock showed that it was about ten minutes until seven o’clock. Just outside, the radiant glow of the impending sunset lit up the streets of Canterlot’s residential district. Qibli strode over to one of the windows by the doorway to get a better look.

“Oh, wow…” Qibli breathed in amazement as he turned to look at Draco, curiosity showing clearly on his expression. “Does the sunset always look this lovely in Canterlot?”

Draco took a moment to ponder the question, thinking back on all of the sunsets that he’s seen Celestia bring forth. “Unless she isn’t feeling well, Celestia tries her best to make every sunset just as magnificent as the last one. Luna does the same for the moon. If you feel like waiting for a bit, she should be raising it in about an hour or so.”

“Speaking of your sister…” Qibli began. “How come I didn’t see her at all today? I know that it’s Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, but don’t you think that Princess Luna would have made an appearance as well?”

Draco laughed at the innocent question. The dragon’s confused stare made it even more enjoyable. “Well, you see, Qibli, Princess Luna wasn’t awake back when we were at the school. In fact, she wasn’t awake at all for most of today.”

Draco thought that Qibli’s jaw was going to hit the floor at that. The dragon’s eyes were as wide as saucers, and he kept opening and closing his mouth, trying and failing to comprehend how a leader of the country could get away with staying in bed all day.

“So, you mean to say… She’s allowed to sleep all day?” Qibli asked in shock. “B-but! She’s the princess! Surely she does something, right?”

Draco dismissed his concern with a wave of his hoof. “Of course she does, Qibli. She just doesn’t do it during the day. Princess Luna is the Princess of the Night. Dreams, nightmares, and most things that happen under the moonlight are what she has domain over.” Draco walked over to one of the windows and pointed a hoof towards Luna’s tower. “The reason why she’s been sleeping all day is because she’s nocturnal” he explained.

“Oh, I see!” Qibli nodded, a triumphant smile displaying his blade-like teeth. “Of course, I knew that. I was only checking to make sure you knew your princesses’ habits as well as you should.” Qibli was too busy attempting to cover up his lack of knowledge of Equestrian culture to notice the deadpan glare that Draco was sending his way.

Draco sighed, giving up any attempt to stop the celebrating dragon. “Well, I’ve told you a bit about Equestria-”

“You mean you were enlightened on the sleeping habits of Equestrian royalty by your devilishly handsome assistant teacher?”

Draco glared at the smug dragon as he tried to recall what he was about to say before he was interrupted. “Like I was saying, since I've given you a little bit of insight into the workings of Equestria, why don’t you tell me how things work from where you come from?”

In an instant, the cheery smile disappeared from Qibli’s face, replaced by a nervous grin and shifty eyes. “Uh, why would you want to know anything about where I’m from?” he asked, trying to keep his voice from shaking. “There’s nothing special about Pyrrh- I mean, uh…”

“What was that?” Draco brought himself closer to Qibli to try and make out what the reluctant dragon had said just a second ago. “It sounded like you said Pyre… Celestia didn’t find you burning at the stake, did she?”

“Uh, yes! She did, actually!” Qibli kept fidgeting in his spot, refusing to meet Draco’s eyes for anything in the world. “You know us dragons, heh. We love to just… light ourselves on fire. It’s very good for the scales if done regularly.” Qibli finally met Draco’s intense gaze, trying to cover up his discomfort with a fake smile.

Yeah, I don’t believe this for a second. No dragon that I’ve ever known has said anything about burning their own scales for comfort. Draco observed the uneasy dragon, watching as kept fidgeting in his spot. He’s definitely trying to hide something, but what? What reason does he have for covering up his past?

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Draco backed away from the nervous dragon. “Well, if you say so, I guess.” He shrugged, letting the issue drop for the moment. Qibli seemed to visibly relax at that, sighing in genuine relief.

“In any occasion,” Draco began, “I should show you to where you’ll be sleeping. Luckily, I always have two Alicorn-sized guestrooms available in case Celestia or Luna decide to spend the night, or day as it is with Luna.” Draco walked down one of the hallways that led further into the house, Qibli following in his footsteps. They quickly reached two matching doors, one on either side of the hallway. Draco opened the one on the left and ushered Qibli inside.

“This is the room that Celestia typically uses, but I don’t think that she would mind if you borrow it until I can get you a more permanent accommodation” Draco explained. The room was rather lavishly furnished, complete with a queen-sized bed made of polished wood a variety of shelves, dressers, and wardrobes for storing clothes and other accessories. A portion of the ceiling was made of glass, allowing the pale moonlight to trickle into the room.

As Qibli took in all there was to see, he noticed an entryway at the eastern end of the guestroom. “Hey, Draco,” he said, pointing at the doorway to get the pony’s attention. “Where does that lead?”

“Oh, that’s just the bathroom,” Draco replied. “There’s also a large-sized bath in there, so feel free to take a moment to relax if you ever get the chance. We might not get that opportunity now that we have to get a lesson plan worked out. Hmm…” Draco stuck his tongue out in concentration. “Today is Saturday, so I think if we take a bit of time out of Sunday we can get most of it figured out. Sounds good to you?”

“I guess it’s a date then!” Qibli replied. Draco stood completely still as he stared at the smiling dragon, eyes wide open as he processed what Qibli had said.

“Did… did you just say… ‘a date?’” Draco asked in disbelief.

“Yeah, a teacher planning date,” Qibli said nonchalantly. “You know, those kinds of dates where you and your cute teacher friend go and plot all of the different ways you can confuse your students with strange and difficult lessons… that sort of thing. Sounds fun, right?”

“Uh, yeah… why not.” Draco turned around and headed for the door. “Anyways, I’ll see you in the morning Qibli. We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us tomorrow, so make sure to get plenty rest.”

“Yes, mother,” Qibli sighed. “I’ll be good tonight…”

Although he shook his head at the dragon’s antics, Draco had to admit that they did make him laugh. He bade Qibli good night once more and headed to his own room for some well-deserved rest.