Chapter Text
2 years later
Tubbo bounced on the balls of his heels, playing with a horn. They had finally made their first full rotation, something he was very proud about and excited to show them off. His circlet rested comfortably around his head, not brushing into his horns anymore which, since he had realized, was such a relief. He could not understand how his brother or father had dealt with that annoyance when they were younger.
Maids and other staff worked around the bouncing prince, making sure the last minute cleaning was finished before Tubbo’s guest would finally arrive in roughly an hour if the trip had gone without a hitch.
“You’re acting worse than me when I had a crush,” Dream’s voice startled a yelp out of him, and he spun around with a hand clutching his chest. The new - Tubbo still teased that he was new, even if the coronation happened just over a year ago and Dream had really settled into his role - king laughed at him, ruffling his hair that practically covered the circlet entirely. “Relax, Tubbo. You’ve hung out with him here tons of times. Why do you keep doing this every time?”
Tubbo pushed him away, grumbling as he tried and failed to fix his hair, glaring at his brother. “I just want things to go well. Can’t I worry over little things, Your Majesty?” He asked sarcastically.
“No, you’ll get more gray hairs than father before you’re half his age,” Dream shot back with a roll of his eyes. “Seriously, it’s just Ranboo, not someone you plan on marrying.”
Tubbo’s face went up in flames and he fidgeted, looking away, causing Dream to pause his teasing to really look at his little brother. “Tubbo,” he said slowly, crossing his arms over his chest. “Do you plan on marrying Ranboo?”
“Oh would you look at the time, gotta go, bye Dream!” Tubbo tried to scurry off but a hand on his shoulder stopped him cold. He glanced at his brother with wide, pleading eyes.
“Tubbo…” He sighed, but not in disappointment or anything, just a tired sigh. He looked closely at Tubbo before looking around, his expression changing from a neutral, no-nonsense one to content. “I trust you to know what your heart wants, but I want to hear what your intentions are with your friend.”
He would have rather had this conversation a bit less out in the open, with Ranboo there to help him figure out the words, but he guessed they could have two conversations once he got to the castle. His face was so warm he was certain if anyone held some parchment close, it would catch fire from the proximity.
Tubbo sighed and nodded, fiddling with his hands, an action he copied from Tommy over time. “I… I really care for him, Dream,” he said quietly, glancing around to ensure none of the staff working were close enough to hear, even the hybrids with keen hearing. “I… love him, I guess, but, but!” He interrupted the surprised look on Dream’s face, speeding his words up before his brother could say something. “But! It’s not like what you think. I don’t… I don’t love him the same way Dad and Mum loved each other, not in that way.” He made a face, remembering how sickeningly loving they had been when he had been a young child. “I like him more than a friend, but not like that, you know?”
Dream raised an eyebrow and shook his head. “I think you lost me, Tub.”
Tubbo groaned. “Can we have this conversation later? When Ranboo’s here? He’s better at explaining this than I am!”
His brother looked like he wanted to say no, but he sighed and nodded, letting go of his shoulder. “Sure. Before dinner, we’ll three talk about what your intentions are.”
He smiled gratefully, nodding once and turning tail, if only to escape from being in the same room as his brother after that conversation.
Tubbo spent the rest of the hour before Ranboo finally arrived staying away from his brother, being called by a messenger that the carriage was just about to reach the gates of the castle, and he all but barrelled into the working staff on his way to the entrance, physically vibrating as he waved to the slowing carriage, Ranboo coming out in a hurry.
It had been several months since they had last seen each other face-to-face, and both looked elated at the sight of the other, Ranboo popping out of existence by the open carriage door to vwoop-pop directly in front of Tubbo in a puff of particles and picking him up with a laugh, twirling his friend once before simply embracing him.
“It’s so good to see you!” Ranboo said excitedly.
“It’s been too long, Ranboo!” Tubbo wrapped his arms around the ridiculously tall enderman hybrid’s neck, pressing a quick peck on his cheek before pulling away, Ranboo letting him back on his feet. “Letters take too fucking long.”
“They do, they do. You look well!” He said as Tubbo brought him into the castle, the staff working to bring in Ranboo’s things for the visit. He saw Puffy for a moment and waved, happy to see she stuck with Ranboo after he returned to his hometown once given his inheritance, since he came of-age, finally.
“You look taller, which is unfair, I should add. I look like a child compared to you,” Tubbo teased playfully, smiling brightly as Ranboo laughed.
“You are a child compared to me, though,” he teased back, vwoop-ing out of the way when Tubbo went to swat at him. “Hey, I’m just being truthful, Your Highness!”
“I’m older than you!”
“Well, you don’t look like it,” the two laughed before Ranboo paused for a moment. “Hey, your horns grew.”
“They have!” He twisted his head around to show Ranboo better. “They’ve finally curled completely.”
“That’s awesome, Tubbo! They look good.”
“Thanks,” he smiled, his face feeling warm. He ignored it. “How was the trip?”
“Oh, same as always,” Ranboo shrugged. “With the lack of wars, the borders are a lot more peaceful, so I’ve heard. Rather than focusing on enemy lines, warriors are focusing on highwaymen. Went a lot easier than the last time I made the trip.”
Tubbo nodded, before the conversation with his brother came back to mind. “Oh, before dinner, Dream wants to talk with us.”
“About what?” Ranboo looked down at him with a tilted head.
If his face hadn’t already been warm, it would have been now, and he rubbed his horn as he put his thoughts in order. “He, uh, wants to know my intentions. With you.”
Ranboo’s face quickly coloured and he spluttered for several seconds, but Tubbo spoke over him.
“He made a joke that I didn’t think would really be a joke, and then he wanted me to tell him, like, everything, and, well, I’m bad with speaking about this kinda stuff.”
“Oh Ender… Do you think he’ll give me a shovel talk, even though we’re not courting romantically?” Ranboo chuckled, and Tubbo groaned, his face way too warm.
“He might! He just might, if my father doesn’t beat him to it,” he rubbed his face with his hands.
“Wait, does your father know?” The enderman hybrid stopped walking to look at Tubbo.
“I don’t know, and at this point, I’m much too afraid to ask,” he shook his head, dropping his hands to his sides with a weak shrug. “We’ll just, I guess we’ll have to cross that bridge when we get to it.”
It was Ranboo’s turn to groan, but they soon continued walking, heading for the garden. Summer was on its way, with the flowers blooming and the bees and butterflies fluttering around, the gardeners hard at work keeping the invasive weeds out. Since the Egg’s crimson vines, there had been a higher alert for any invasive, unnatural plants to make sure it wasn’t about to come back.
“Do we really have to talk tonight?” Ranboo asked after a long but comfortable silence between them.
“Yes,” Tubbo sighed as he spoke, shaking his head. “But, I think it’ll go well. You’re better at your words than I am. He’ll understand if you explain it to him simply.”
“Fine, okay. Better to get it out of the way now, I guess.”
“That’s the spirit, Ranboo! Now," he clapped his hands together, "as we wait for time to pass and our inevitable demise, want to help me check on the hives to see if we can collect honey anytime soon?” There was a spring back in Tubbo’s step as he headed for the nearby bee boxes. It was a recent hobby of Tubbo’s, beekeeping, and something he was proud to do when he had free time.
“Oh? Sure. Sounds like fun.”
The two set off for the bees, shrugging off the upcoming conversation with Dream for the time being as they caught up and chatted about everything since the last letter, sometimes one of them idly reaching over to hold the other’s hand. It was pleasant to spend time with one another, and something that Tubbo could say without a doubt was the single one good thing that came out of the Egg invading the Badlands and the Essempi, if only because it led to the actual conclusion of the blood feud between his family and the royal family of the Empire, as well as letting him become strong friends with Prince Tommy and the now-former ward of the Empire, Ranboo. He would not trade either for the world.