Ms. Glimmer and the Do-Nothing Prince

by scifipony

25 — Royal Duties II: The Running of the Leaves

What a relief!

I trotted confidently up with my escort of guards, including Streak and Citron, to the outdoor temporary stage. I had to wear clothes, naturally, but Celestia had done her research.

I'd earned the gold medal in the unicorn class at the Baltimare Celestial Race (the length from Ponyville to Castle Canterlot) three years ago. I'd come in 100th; unicorns are not the fastest kind of pony! I'd been in the papers—not entirely for winning, but also because I'd declared I was training with the famous fight trainer White Towel. I'd called him Whistlebutt, considering his whistle cutie mark. I'd had to. I mean, duh. Whistlebutt then declared I had the right stuff and was a contender. I'd gone on to dis Cyclone Beaujangles, a psycho beast of a misogynist earth pony prizefighter who also had a chance that year.

We'd ended up beating each other bloody, though not in the ring, but that's another story. The important part is that there were newspaper photos of my race win and Whistlebutt's declaration.

Bite O' Kale grocery had sponsored me in the race. I'd gotten a bonus, hours off to train, and a skimpy uniform to wear. Skimpy and rather standard. That equated to loose and airy.

I now wore a tailored vest and pleated trunks. Both were loose and made of incredibly light and silky technical fabric. They were the same light green as I remembered from Bite O' Kale, which went with the green stripe in my mane and tail, though I'd run the race with the stripe tucked in because I'd still worried somepony might recognize the runaway Aurora Midnight, the Earl of Grin Having.

I'd painted on a book cutie mark back then, and was happy those trunks were opaque. Sweat tends to dissolve makeup, even when lacquered in place. These trunks were semi-transparent and you could see the shadows of my muscles moving in chiaroscuro, as well as my curves. Added to that, gauzy windows exposed my flank just enough that you could decipher my new cutie mark.

Ponies wore clothes for various reasons. Armor and protection from the weather were good ones. Since we have fur that grows out in winter, the favorite reason was status. Clothes enhanced a pony's appearance.

I mounted the steps, and unexpectedly saw Prince Blueblood already there. I smiled, rather greedily if I have to say so myself.

I liked my trunks especially because of the transparency. It enhanced my appearance in a way I desired at the moment. It didn't make me look regal. No. While they emphasized my athletic form, it simply looked sexy. My opinion, anyway. I hoped it worked for the prince.

I trotted up to him. He wore satiny blue trunks and a deeper blue tank top. Sadly, his trunks weren't transparent, but you couldn't hide certain features from me in any case. I was broken: I noticed, or imagined, things automatically. I smiled at him as he stood looking out at the gathering crowd. His limp blond mane blew on the brisk breeze, and sparkled with gold. With his long horn, hefty forequarters but still long legs, and his ever so slightly pink white fur, I again thought how much he resembled his aunt, to whom he could not be related.

With the din of the crowd, and the rustle of the dried autumn leaves still in the trees around us, I decided I could get away with it. "Are you Blue-eyed or Brawler, today?"

He looked at me with a start. He wore a number 3 on his chest.

I gave him a horse grin.

He rolled his eyes. "I am competing. Therefore, 'Brawler' is most applicable!"

"I'm competing, too," I said, brightly. An event official, dressed in white, trotted up, bringing me my race number. "Number 2?" I asked.

He frowned.

Blueblood explained, "Celestia is always number 1."

"Ah..." I nodded, as the unicorn magically clipped the number to my vest. "Sometimes I can be dense."

The stallion huffed. "More often than you appreciate."

My ears twitched. Had I missed something? I took an instant to check the braids I tied my mane into, that I'd wrapped around the top of my head, and stuck my crown into. The earlier updoo wasn't going to cut it. All there. I decided he was teasing me. With a smile, I said, "I acknowledge I'm the student."

His expression turned into an elegantly amused smile. "I look forward to training you."

"To our training together," I corrected... Wait? Had we just exchanged innuendo? I smiled.

His smile grew a bit less refined and more genuine. I liked that. He said, "Indeed, Ms. Glimmer."

"Your Royal Highness," I shot back, grinning again. "About dinner? Should I suggest a place?"

He snorted, looked away, then gave me a look like I was very impertinent and for some reason that amused him. He said, "The cat is away so the mice must come out and play. Please join me in the main palace dining room. I shall instruct the staff to prepare some of my favorite dishes from when I was a foal. Sorry, but we weren't pescatarian. We unicorns didn't eat like pegasi. Will you still join me?"

"You've charmed me, my prince."

His lips went in. I heard a chuckle before it became a snort, followed by slightly pompous "ha ha ha" laughter. He shook his head as he looked away. He wiped away a tear with a fetlock as he tried to control his amusement.

A street full of ponies quieted, making the leaf rustle sound louder and making his waning laughter louder. The Prince of Equestria was definitely not known for his mirth.

He said, "If you keep this up, ponies are going to think we are colt-friend and filly-friend."

"We aren't?" I prodded.

He laughed again, clattering his front hooves on the wooden stage.

In any case, it was too late. Rumors to that effect had already spread. Just because I didn't care if I added to the rumors what-so-ever, I stepped closer and sniffed him for all to see.

I pouted. No cinnamon scent.

Oatmeal soap and horse wasn't half bad, however.

To compound the stories, he jumped back. Looking a bit flustered, he offered to help me stretch. I reciprocated with glee and gusto. Bits to biscotti, the talk of Canterlot tonight would be how the prince and crown princess had had hooves all over each other and had smiled companionably at one another in full public display. Didn't matter that it was what team athletes of mixed or same gender did all over the world.

Author's Note:

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Comments

[Danger Noodle]

Starlight seems to repeat herself a whole lot.