Sirius was near his breaking point. All these noisy nobles, bothering him because they were too scared to even attempt to talk to his aunt. She wasn’t as polite as Sirius and would outright tell them to stick their head up their ass and stop trying to weasel more grants out of her.
 
Sirius, unfortunately, wasn’t that candid and listened as they droned on about how if they just had a bit more money, they could do so much more. His smile remained steady as he inwardly yearned for some wine.
 
Then like an angel, their conversation was interrupted as something seemed caught everypony’s eye. Somepony had burst in, calling out.  
“Babe?!”
 
Sirius’ ears perked, a sigh echoing through him as he felt some semblance of calm return to him. Finally! Somepony he could talk to! He excused himself, briskly trotting over to greet his friend- no, marefriend, he reminded himself as she nuzzled close to him.
 
“Dearest.”
 
“Sorry, I’m late. I had a gig.
 
“I noticed.” He chuckled, his eyes drifting over her tattered jacket and slightly dirty hooves. She had clearly just come from a bar.
 
“Ah!” Epic blushed, realizing how she must look. “A-am I underdressed?”
 
“It’s fine.” He assured her, restraining her with his magic before she ran out of the room. “Besides, at the very least, we match. Is that not a couple thing?”
 
“R-right!” She was gently placed back on the floor, staring up at the taller stallion for a second. She could see the buried annoyance deep in his eyes. “But first, how about you hit the bar. You look like you could use a couple of stiff ones.”
 
“Stars above, yes!” He groaned, eliciting a laugh from the small mare. It was only with her that he could let loose a little. “You have no clue how… talkative these ponies can be when begging for more funds. It’s infuriating.”
 
“Well reward yourself for your restraint with some hard liquor.” She nudged him, her small body doing nothing against him. “Don’t worry about a thing, babe. If you get drunk, I’ll carry you home.”
 
“I beg you to stop me if I get that far, dearest.”
 
Epic was left alone, watching her coltfriend walk over to the bar. Knowing him, he’d use her as a cover to get the hardest drink he could. As a prince, it would be unbecoming for him to order such a thing. It was mostly the reason she bothered to come to any of theses stuffy parties at all. After hours of talking to noble ponies, she knew he’d need that drink.
 
“Ahem!” Epic jumped, turning to see some annoyed looking older mare. “Who are you?”
 
“Oh, me?” She mumbled, feeling a bit nervous. She hadn’t expected anyone to talk to her. “Hi there, the names Epic Rhyme. Rock star.”
 
“A musician?” She sneered, looking more annoyed than before. She pointed over to the band on the other side of the room. “Shouldn’t you be over there with the other servants?”
 
“I-I’m not a servant. I’m a guest.”
 
“Oh?” Her brow was cocked, amused. “Dressed like that?”
 
“I~~”
 
“And yet you presume to stand next to his highness, the prince, dressed like you dragged yourself out of some dive bar.” She circled Epic, much like a predator. “Don’t you have any pity for his highness?”
 
“But I~~”
 
“Truly, his highness is too kind, slumming it with dirty ponies like you.” She spat, trotting away with her head held high. Epic was left standing there, a lot less comfortable where she was than before. Now, she could feel ponies around her staring.
 
Maybe she should leave. She turned, intending to escape but bumping into Sirius Veil. The stallion smiled down at her.
 
 
“Dearest, I found some juice for you at the bar. They didn’t have any grape but I got you…” He said, holding up the glass before stopping. His smile fell. “Epic, what is the matter?”
 
“N-nothing! I’m fine.” She tried, her eyes darting about the room.
 
“…Did somepony say something to you?” The stallion’s aura cooled, his standard calm facade springing up.
 
“No! No no, it’s fine. I just… I feel I must have embarrassed you, arriving at a ball dressed like… this.”
 
“I believe I already told you my feelings about your attire.”
 
“Yeah, but you are so nice and~~” Her words were cut off by him snorting. Anyone else would be shocked by the prince’s behavior but Epic knew him better than that.
 
“You’ve dated me for this long and still call me nice?”
 
No, Sirius Veil wasn’t nice, he was patient. Tolerant if one were to push it further. But Epic knew the things he said about other ponies behind closed doors. How vindictive he could be when his veiled words and threats. He truly lived up to his name.
 
“Okay, yeah you’re not ‘nice’ nice but you are nice enough to pity me~~”
 
“Dearest, I will not repeat myself.” He said, lifting her chin with his hoof. “You look lovely tonight. There’s nothing prettier than a hard-working mare.”
 
“Thanks, babe.”
 
Sirius smiled, watching the mare carry their drinks on her back to their table. Just as he slipped from sight, his smile fell and cold eyes drifted over to a nearby mare. He’d seen her talking to Epic just before he’d returned and he knew she’d said something.
 
Perhaps he too should say a couple of things.
 

 
It’s been a while since I drew these two together. Epic and Sirius only dated for a couple of months but were super close. In truth, she was his only friend and needed her to keep himself calm. That and with her around, he had the perfect cover to drink to his heart’s content. While he might not get drunk, the stress of the day always seemed to drift away when he was pouring back some cold ones.
 
On this day, the prince invited his marefreind to a socialite party because: 1, he’d need a drink later and 2, it would technically count as a date. Yet the buck can’t even leave his marefriends alone for a minute without somepony making her feel worthless.