2 - A Big Step
Just because he had the token didn't ensure he made it to the library that same day. Certainly, he had intended to. He marched through the hallways with royal pride and conviction, only to stop when the guards watching over that locked door came into view. He ducked into a side passage and shook his head. "This is just a passing fancy," he muttered to himself.
"You're letting a dream mislead you..." He waved at the air as if he could banish a thought with a simple gesture.
It was even possible that Luna had brought him that dream. That was a thing she could do, wasn't it? Nevermind that he had such a fancy once before. "I am prince Blueblood! It's right in the name, and a handsome prince am I." Sure, he had also made a pretty princess... "Get control of yourself." He returned to the hall, but turned away from the guards, heading back for more populated portions of the castle.
"Blueblood!" came an excited female voice.
"Prince Blueblood," he sternly corrected, turning to see who was addressing him so brashly. There stood Princess Cadance with a bright smile that was two steps too wide. "What... brings you so far away from your demesne?"
"I've come for you," she explained as she closed the distance at a light trot.
"You're already married," he scoffed with a roll of his eyes.
"Not for that." She snorted softly, her magic grabbing him and causing him to float as she marched right past him. "I have other designs for you, dear cousin."
"Cousin?" He floated along, keeping his hooves held in a proper posture despite the helplessness of the moment.
"We are both... I'm a niece and you are a nephew, both of Celestia. That makes us cousins, cousin." She looked over her shoulder at her captive. "And I'm going to help you today!"
"By what fashion do you intend that?" With a sudden bright flash, he rebuffed her magic, landing on the ground at a stride to follow her, no longer held in the air. "I am perfectly capable of walking on my own, cousin." He didn't argue the family tie, having no particularly good idea how to.
Cadance didn't slow down for his little rebellion, seeming just as happy to have him walking along with her. "I have a few ponies I want you to meet, that I think will be far better than the usual ones you run into."
That got a brow to raise. "Cousin, you have me at a loss. What are the 'usual' ones, and how do these differ?" He knew Cadance was no true royalty, risen from common starts, she had, at least, shown she could walk the walk, and was doing her job reasonably. He had to give her that much. "There is proper etiquette to introducing ponies of our station."
"This is for your own good." She pointed to an open door before striding through it. "Thank you for waiting."
Another female responded, "Oh, it's no problem, Princess Cadance." A demurely smiling mare looked past her to see Blueblood and she gasped, cheeks going red. "Oh my... I wasn't expecting..."
Cadance stepped to the side to make room for Blueblood. "Prince Blueblood, I present Gentle Mare." She gestured to the blushing unicorn mare. "She came because I called her."
Blueblood studied the mare with untrusting eyes. "Entirely your idea, was it, cousin?" The mare smelled of well-upkept peasantry. Not a noble, certainly not of royal upbringing. Was she another hopeful to dip her hooves into what he could provide, should she win his favor?
"N-nice to meet you." Gentle dipped her head, ears spread out in either direction. "You must be terribly busy."
"Indeed." He turned towards Cadance. "What is the meaning of this meeting?"
Cadance gestured at Gentle. "She came because I asked her to. She is as soft as her name implies and would just like to know you. She demands nothing of you but a moment of your time, if you can afford that?"
Gentle's blush grew worse by the moment. "It's alright!" she squeaked. "Sorry, Sir. You must have so many things to do, and I am obviously in the way of them." She rose to her hooves, trembling a little. "I'm sorry."
Blueblood had a routine worked out for pushy mares. But Gentle wasn't pushing. She was ready to fold and get out of the way. "No, no..." He reached to set a hoof on her shoulder. "I'm being rude." That mare didn't seem to be hunting him. "Please, sit yourself. We can speak for a small while?"
Cadance slipped from the room with all the grace of a Neighpon assassin, keeping her giggles to herself until she was well out of hearing distance. "Yes," she whispered to herself, pumping a hoof. They were talking! Surely everything else would fall into place. "I knew it, poor little cousin. You just want a mare that isn't trying to shove herself against you."
Gentle's blush had started to recede as Blueblood sat down across from her and they talked. She nibbled at some of the cookies on the table, as she told him about herself. She was a reasonably successful businessmare with no grand reaching goals beyond running her family's store. "Nothing like you, Sir. What's it like, being a prince?"
So few of the mares that bothered him really cared what it was like from his side, other than imagining themselves having it. "The life of a royal is one of countless responsibilities," he stated proudly. "Many subtle, some deadly overt." He turned a hoof over slowly. "Such as making time to meet with those introduced by their family. Tell me, your clothing."
Her eyes fell to what she was covered in. "What about them?"
"They are... serviceable." He inclined his head. "But lacking in refinement. If I were to appear dressed in similar, they would speak scandals in harsh whispers behind my back. That is one burden of many of a royal. We are judged constantly."
Gentle looked perplexed a moment, her ears falling. "Am I dressed... badly?"
"No, no no no. For a common pony, your clothing is just fine," he assured in perhaps not an entirely assuring way. "But we royals are held to different standards. Were I a mare, even this level of care would be insufficient." He raised a hoof to gesture over himself. "I would need an attendant to get it just right."
"Oh my." Gentle blinked owlishly at him. "That sounds like quite an ordeal. I don't think I'd want that." Her glowing horn plucked a cookie to nibble on. "You groom yourself then?"
"I do," he stated with pride. "As do you, I assume?"
"Oh, yes." She bobbed her head quickly. "But my mane isn't nearly... as... How do you get it to stay just like that?" She reached for him and he shied back at first. When her hoof froze with obvious worry on her face, he relaxed and soon she could feel his mane. "It's soft too..."
"The secret is in how you apply the shampoo," he advised with a little smile. They spent some time going over grooming advice, even if he was sure she wouldn't be able to comport herself as a proper pony of such breeding as himself.
"You're so much nicer than I expected," she inclined her head. "That came out so wrong! Of course you'd be a perfectly lovely pony, but I never expected to be able to swap mane-care techniques with a prince!"
Blueblood frowned at that, raising a hoof to his chest. "You did ask, and we were already speaking."
"But you're so good at it," she complimented. "I felt like I was with my marefriend, getting advice, instead of sitting in a really fancy place talking to a prince." Gentle stood up with a soft nod. "It has been a complete delight. If you ever have time again, maybe we could... No, you must be so busy." She glanced away. "Sorry."
"It's no trouble," he muttered, allowing her to flee. Was exchanging mane care advise unusual for a prince? He marched from the room, back to his own. His magic grabbed a receiver right off the wall even as he began pressing buttons rapidly.
It began ringing.
Another ring. He sighed. "Be there. Or at least have the courtesy to have a butler do--"
"Hello?" asked a female voice.
He recognized it. "Fleur, is Fancy Pants there? This is Prince Blueblood."
"Bluey," sang out Fleur, sounding happy enough. "I'll check, one moment." There was a click of the receiver being set down on a table and clip-clops receding away.
Blueblood tapped slowly and impatiently as his eyes wandered over his own room. "How untidy." He plucked up a few books that had been left out and floated them to his book shelf. "Diversions don't need to be strewn about."
"Blueblood, ole chap," came a voice from the phone. Fancy Pants had arrived. "I wasn't expecting this pleasure. What can I do for you?"
He almost dropped the last book in surprise. "Fancy! How nice to hear you." Well, hearing him on the average day was a bit of a wildcard. Sometimes it was perfectly lovely, other times, a bit trying. Ponies that lived near the upper crust of life were like that. He could respect that. "I have a little question, a tiny thing, really."
"If I have the answer, you know I'd be delighted to provide. What's on your mind?"
Blueblood smiled. Fancy was good for that, being straight forward. There were so rarely subtle plays behind his words, rare for someone so elevated. "Mane care. Mare thing, stallion thing, or something equally suited to any pony?"
"Oh ho, a fashion question," he crooned as if pleased for the question.
"Not exactly," demurred Blueblood. "I more mean, who would you approach for mane care advice, a stallion, a mare, or would either suffice?"
"That is a different question. Pardon me, chap, misread you. Now, in my experience, while stallions and mares can both enjoy a quality mane style, many stallions simply find the one they prefer and keep it there, mares are more likely to experiment with a multitude of styles. This capriciousness of fashion causes them, by necessity, to be more skilled on average in how to go about it."
Blueblood opened his mouth to reply, but Fancy Pants kept right on going.
"Now, don't get me wrong, a skilled manedresser can be a stallion or a mare. I wouldn't dream of turning away a talented hoof for such a silly reason. I'm just talking about the average pony and what you would expect."
"Yes, of course." He raised a hoof to run through his own mane, letting the soft locks roll across it. "So a stallion who wasn't a manedresser, but gave advice on mane care, would be..."
"A tad unusual," admitted Fancy Pants. "But not terribly so. We all have our hobbies, do we not? I can think of several worse than that." He laughed softly, a laugh Blueblood forced himself to join for its brief duration. "Now, anything else I can help with today?"
"No, just that little question. I'll see you in a fortnight, will I not?" He forced a smile that couldn't be seen.
"Ah, yes, the Spring-time Butterfly Buffet! Jolly good. I'll look forward to it. See you there." There was a click of the phone being set down.
Blueblood set his own receiver down, releasing it from his magic. "So I am an unusual stallion..." He turned away from the phone. "But still a stallion, am I not?" He flipped his mane and looked awkwardly in the mirror a moment after, wondering at the legitimacy of what he had just done. "He doesn't understand royal demands. Why, I should imagine even Celestia with her many attendants, must know how to tend her own mane. We simply must." He clopped a hoof down and trotted off, shoving the thought aside for the moment.
Cadance sat down at a large table. Celestia was also there, and she was smiling at her auntie. "You can relax now. I have it all well in hoof."
"While I am ever gladdened to have you visit me, dear Niece." Celestia's horn glowed as she took up a teacup and sipped gently from it. "This is quite the sudden visit. How is the Crystal Empire minding itself?"
"This is why it pays at times to have a husband." Cadance inclined her head at Celestia. "Are you certain you don't want me to hunt for one for you? A nice stallion would make your life so much easier." When Celestia's expression changed even slightly, Cadance rolled a hoof. "Or a mare. We're not here to judge."
"Cadance!" blurted Celestia, setting her teacup down. "Now, what is it you mean that I can relax? What is it you have handled, and how? This is about Blueblood, is it not? Surely you haven't--"
"--but I have," she cut in, looking so self-pleased. "Introduced him to a lovely little mare and ducked out while they were chatting it up. He was being perfectly polite and she was thrilled and I'm certain they'll become fast friends, and maybe..." Her brows began to waggle. "A little more."
"It was never that Blueblood was incapable of a polite conversation." She raised a hoof to her chest. "Were that the case, I would have ceased inviting him to events."
Cadance rolled a hoof. "But, with a mare?"
Celestia looked slightly less certain. "Not as often there."
"So admit I did well." She turned up her nose, but her smile was quick to return. "I'm keeping an eye on him. One little chat isn't the all clear, but I feel like I'm on the right track to getting him in the right place. If they see each other again, maybe I'll give them a little nudge." A heart began to float over her horn, her power visibly manifesting. "See where it leads."
Celestia raised a hoof. "Take a soft touch. Now, tell me how the Crystal Empire is doing. Shining Armor is leading it right now?"
"He's a lovable soul," she sighed. "And yes, he's taking the reigns while I see to this matter. He'll send word if things get too trying for him. He has help too. We've made friends, much like you have. Don't look at me that way. I've seen you vanish for a few days at a time without the country combusting."
Celestia coughed softly into a hoof. "I've had many years to get it right."
"And I've had you as a tutor." Cadance smiled warmly. "I was paying attention. Now enjoy your food before it gets cold."
"That goes just as well in your direction, Cadance." Celestia stuck out her tongue faintly, and they got back to eating.
"You're so nice to be around, like one of my mare friends," gushed Gentle even as she faded away.
"Not proper behavior of a stallion," noted Fancy Pants, even if that wasn't what he had said exactly.
"I always knew you were a sissy," taunted an old unfriendly acquaintance from many years prior. "Now it's proven." He laughed as he joined the others, fading away.
But they were all back, laughing, and surrounding him. Blueblood scrambled to get away, but no distance was made. No matter how hard he galloped, they were always just right there, laughing.
"Blueblood." The laughing stopped, and a large figure dropped to the ground in front of him. "What manner of nightmare is this?" She looked to the frozen faces of mid-laugh ponies. "Is that Fancy Pants?"
Blueblood cleared his throat, composing himself quickly. "Nothing! Nothing."
"This is a lot of nothing." She reached to tap his nose with a metal-clad hoof. "I am the princess of the night, Blueblood. Your nightmare called me, and here I am. I would lend a hoof, but only if you will take it."
He glanced away from her, silent a moment before he let out his breath. "May I be frank?"
"You may. I would prefer it." She inclined her head faintly, glancing at the frozen figures. "Is the magic too difficult?"
"It is not that." He sat on his haunches and crossed his arms. "You. Did you make me dream that?"
"Make you dream what?" She raised a brow. "Making dreams is not my usual habit."
He thrust a hoof at her violently, though not making contact. "What your normal behaviors are concerns me not, Auntie. Did you or did you not thrust that dream on me?"
"Which dream? You being a mare?" she asked incredulously before it dawned on her. "Oh..."
"Yes, 'oh'." He frowned at her. "You did, didn't you?"
"I had not intended it that way!" she hastily defended.
"What way!" he shouted at her, the other ponies fading away, unimportant. It was just Luna and him in an otherwise void. "You did this..."
"I was trying to punish you, you self-righteous stallion," she huffed out, raising to her full height. "I envisioned you would learn a thing, having to take a few steps in the horseshoes of a mare! Imagine my surprise when, instead of shock, your face lit up with such satisfaction."
His face went as red as a lobster as he began stepping towards her, the world trembling with each step of its god. "You're trying to make a mare of me," he yelled in outrage. "You're taking away the masculinity in me. Have I been that terrible, auntie? Is this your revenge." He just as suddenly crashed to his haunches, eyes rimming with tears. "I thought you were a kind and personal pony. How could you be so cruel?"
Luna's angry look of defiance faltered as he fell apart. "I was not trying to be cruel... Nephew, this is why I was lending a hoof. You have been long denied even looking--"
"You look at me and you see a mare." He stood up, shaking, but regaining some measure of composure. "A pretty princess, better than what I was."
"You see that," she countered. "And I would help you find that princess, if you wish. If you do not, then we can set it aside." She looked around the void. "I saw ponies making light of your manekeeping, but surely that alone isn't enough to cast such doubts in you, nephew. By what means do you feel improper?"
The world around them changed as he thought of it. They were at a polo track. There were ponies on other ponies. The ones on the bottom tended towards the larger varieties, most often big stallions that could easily support the weight of their as often mare as stallion riders.
"You're on the blue team, old chap," spoke Fancy Pants as he trotted into view, Fleur mounted on his back, a mallet grasped firmly in her magic grip and a smile on her face, clearly eager to play.
But Blueblood didn't want to step onto the field. It was a noble sport, there was no doubting it, but mussing his hooves on the muddy terrain, or having another pony on top of him? He shivered in revulsion. But he was expected to play, and he was a stallion of moderate build, not all suited to riding.
"Come on." There was Jet Set, also male, but much more slender. "You're not my first choice either, but we're both on blue and everypony else has a team. You're larger, I'll be the rider."
Luna waved and the scene stopped. "Were you jealous of that mare?" She pointed to where the hazy form of Fancy Pants and Fleur were, her right in the middle of striking a ball with her floating mallet.
"They look like they're having such fun," sighed out Blueblood. "Far more than I had that day." He indicated the vision of himself under Jet Set, the two looking to be caught mid-argument, Blueblood at a precarious angle that would likely result in them both being thrown into the mud moments later.
Luna waved a hoof, things changed. Blueblood was suddenly mounted atop Fancy Pants. "And you would be alright, being astride a stallion?" asked Luna as she approached at a light walk.
He looked down, but realized quickly he wasn't a he. Blue Belle was back, her tail giving a nervous little swish. "It's hardly improper for a male to allow a friendly mare atop him to play this noble sport." She swung the mallet and caught the ball that hadn't been there until it needed to be. With the satisfying crack of connection, the game was on, and Blue Belle was carried off by Fancy Pants, the game back on.
Luna looked to the left, where Blueblood sat. "Were there other times?"
Blueblood blinked, yanked so suddenly out of that dreamy frame of reference. "Mares expect so much from stallions," he suddenly huffed and the world changed around them.
They were at the Grand Galloping Gala. A gussied-up white mare was smiling so brightly at him. "Look at her." There was Rarity, hopeful look on her face. "She had a list of demands in her head before she ever met me. She wanted me to love her, sight unseen." Blueblood scowled at her frozen image before reaching up and casually shoving her aside. "Ha, dreams are lovely things. I wanted to do that for the longest time. Improper wench. You don't know me. You deserve everything you received!"
Luna's magic glowed around the toppled mare, casually setting her right as if she were an un-moving statue, which she was for the time being. "And stallions do not have similar expectations?"
"I have never approached a mare expecting her love," he huffed out. "Or that she obey my specific plans outside of her performing specific duties. I will not call demanding a maid comply with her tasks to be in line with expecting a stallion to fall in love."
Luna inclined her head faintly. "Have you not ever felt the touch of love?"
He never got to answer that question, as he woke up.
"Mmm what?" he mumbled as he kicked at his blankets. Something had woken him up.
"Cousin," sang a voice from the other side of his door. "Are you awake in there?"
"Cadance?" He frowned at the door and the timing of the mare behind it. "I endured your surprise visit, to what do I owe this?" He rolled to his hooves and began making himself presentable. "This is far outside my usual hours, you understand."
"I'm sorry about that. If this is a bad time, I can come back later." He heard her thump lightly, leaning against his door.
"I'm already awake," he grumped as he gussied up his mane as best he could on such short notice. "Come in." His horn grabbed the knob and drew it open as lights flickered to life around the room. "What is bothering you, cousin?"
"How did it go?" asked Cadance with that bright smile of hers. "Was she nice?"
"She was fine." He waved it off. "A polite commoner that knew to listen to her betters and learn something. A pleasant enough exchange."
"Oh..." Her smile faded. "Did you... like her?"
Blueblood huffed as he approached his bothersome cousin. "She was a decent enough pony, why?" It suddenly clicked. "She was after me, wasn't she? It was all an act!"
"No! No no no!" Cadance flailed her hooves wildly. "It was my idea! I swear! I just thought you two would get along. She wasn't part of it."
"Good of you to admit your wrongs." He pointed behind her to the door. "I will endeavor to not hold it against her then, as she was also the victim of a scheming mare and her assumptions."
And so Cadance was given the boot from his room.
This ship may be sunk, but will that prompt Cadance to give up?
Luna is trying to understand her nephew/niece. Best aunt? By the way, the patron wants to thump this faster, so we're up to twice a month at 4k updates!
Posted early for patrons. Want to get updates early, and/or get your own story here at 
atreon!
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10387902
I don't mean to be rude, but this sounds like spam and has a link to an error page.
Nice.
Yeah, I guess this was never going to be an easy path for Blue.
I feel for Candace, she was doing what she thought would help Blueblood in a new type of happiness in his life. Unfortunately, it's not the type of help that he "needs"! His self doubt starting to manifest and with it, the questioning of his state of being.
Great work so far, keep it up!
You started off the chapter writing Blueblood then at some point switched to Blue Blood. I believe the former is correct.
10388147
And then at least one problem was fixed.
Ace/Aro Blueblood/belle??????????????👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀
if yes, OH YES, GOOD STUFF
if not still good stuff, this story it's amazing
also, big mood with BB for like the entirety of this chapter.
10388704
I do hope the flow of the dream world felt right and proper for a dream.
I'm really enjoying the story, but I have to point out that some of the scene transitions are absurdly short.
Da boot
10388963
How would it look, ideally?
Despite everything he makes a lot of sense. Rarity (by cannon) was a bit of a gold digger for the episode. A shame he wasn't given more characterization in the show...
10389372
She was, then she got better, yay character development!
Now it's Blueblood's turn!
10388704
Judging by his dream about shining armor in a previous chapter I’m pretty sure he’s gay
10390567
Are you gay if you are a female that likes males?
10390907
Only if you are female. He is not. Perhaps one day.
10390907
That has a certain sexuality word thing, and it's too complicated for me to actually find out what the proper thing is.
But answer is Yes and No.
Somehow.
Sexuality gets confusing in these sort of things.
10392058
Not even a hint of doubt.
10392058
It all depends on whether you define gender as the essential part in sexuality or biological sex, personally I go with biological sex
Well this is the point where I can officially say this story has my interest. I was expecting a simple genderswap story but instead I've found something with much more nuance then I was expecting. Very well done so far.
It certainly appears that Blueblood is suffering from some manner of 'social gender dysphoria'. Hopefully he'll come to see that mares have their own burdens and struggles as stallions do. Grass is always greener as they say.
Do hope Gentle Mare (Not sure if her name is terribly brilliant or incredibly lazy but that is the nature of pun based names) continues to spend time with him. A relationship founded on the premise of being someone you can simply talk to is probably the healthiest foundation anyone could ask for, regardless of romantic interest.
10443166
This guy said it better than I would
I absolutely love how you're writing Cadence.
10887183
She is a big dangerous love muffin.