“I never understood upper class ponies fascination for this stuff,” Prince Blueblood found himself mumbling under his breath. He was shifting his weight on the hardwood floor surrounded by nothing but polished wood and bottles on every shelf. In his hooves he held a bottle with a green so dark it matched the grass under a moonlit sky. The bottle was large and swishing with a liquid that Blueblood assumed was white by the way it gave off no color.
The floorboards in the dusty old shop seemed to creak with new life the more the white unicorn slowly moved around. The window out into the street of Canterlot was the only reminder for the prince that he was indeed still in his rich kingdom and not some far off land with shops made of wood over newer materials such as marble. The sky was an orange and red quickly darkening twilight. The place didn’t exactly feel run down exactly, more vintage and respect for times past.
“You don’t understand the fascination of drinking?” A light suave voice said in front of Blueblood. Blueblood’s eyes glanced up and over the shelf before him to see a white stallion with a blue mane and monocle. He was wearing a black coat on top of a white dress shirt with a large purple bow-tie. Their eyes met and the white furred prince could feel his cheeks grow warm when he saw the older unicorn throw him a sly grin. “I still have yet to see what kind of drunk you are. I’m not sure what will be cuter, snappy or grabby. Which is it?”
Blueblood looked down at his own body with a frown. He pulled on his bright red bowtie and examined it briefly before he let a quiet whinny past his lips. “That’s not what I meant and you know it, Fancy,” Blueblood grumbled under his breath. He put the bottle back into it’s rightful place and moved his eyes away from Fancy Pants, who was currently using his magic to examine several bottles at once, to stare at the rest of the shop. The ceiling was low and the stallion at the counter seemed even older than Fancy Pants. His fur was tan and he wore thick rimmed black glasses that seemed awfully thick. He was currently counting money by hoof and mumbling some words under his breath. “I don’t see the point in it socially. It makes you act so… so…” Blueblood swatted his hoof through the air as if attempting to grasp at the word. “Flabbergasted.”
“Flabbergasted?” Fancy Pants lifted his brow and glanced away from the bottles, which he put back without looking using his magic. “How is that any different from normal? You get like that if I say you’re cute, do you not?”
“Oh shut up.” Blueblood rolled his eyes and took a step away from Fancy Pants and down the aisle. Fancy Pants followed on the other side with a teasing grin on his lips.
“Why Sweetheart, have you been drinking?” Fancy Pants must have been struggling with all his might not to giggle. His hooves creaked on the floorboards when he walked. “Your cheeks are awfully red. Almost as much as that cute little bow-tie.”
“Your mouth is awfully big,” Blueblood snapped back in a hushed hiss. Fancy Pants didn’t seem phased in the slightest by the Prince’s words when he continued forward and simply smiled at the sight of a bright red bottle that he soon pulled down off the shelf. Blueblood looked around the small empty shop briefly before he wandered over to Fancy Pants on the other side of the shelf. He was adjusting his monocle and running his hooves over the bottle like it was some precious material he would use on a dress later that evening.
“I would assume you’ve been to plenty of places with wine tasting,” Fancy Pants glanced to Blueblood and continued to grin. “There’s an awful lot of hard work that goes into it, you know? There’s a popular orchard just on the mountains that I’ve visited a few times. Those ponies can work from sunrise to sunset if they have too.”
“It always tastes so… bitter though,” Blueblood bit on his tongue and shook his head.
“I like it bitter.” Fancy Pants licked at his lips as if he could taste the drink already. “Coffee’s bitter too, and we both enjoy that.”
“That’s different…” Blueblood mumbled and looked down to his hooves.
“Are you telling me you never went out on your birthday and had a few drinks with Shining Armor?” Fancy Pants lifted his brow at Blueblood. “I’d figure the two of you would enjoy going out to bars.”
“S-Shining only drinks with his guards… I told him I never wanted to go.” Blueblood began to kick at the floorboards under his hooves. They creaked the more he shifted.
“I’ve always just enjoyed some wine on my dates. Though not until I trust them a bit of course,” Fancy Pants giggled under his breath and lifted a free hoof to scratch his cheek. “You know how much of a lightweight I am… I do have a bad habit of making quite a few bad decisions with this stuff, don’t I?”
Blueblood saw Fancy Pants’ smile falter for just a moment. His eyes looked to Blueblood’s for a mere second and then back to the bottle. He tightened his grip for a brief moment. The Prince blinked and sighed before he craned his neck out to press his lips lightly against Fancy Pants’ cheek. It was soft and warm and the way Fancy involuntarily squirmed in what Blueblood could only describe as delight made Blueblood’s heart pound.
“You’ve always just been a gigantic flirt when you get drunk.” Blueblood jabbed his hoof into Fancy Pants’ belly and couldn’t help but smile when he watched the older unicorn over dramatically flinch in response. “Besides, that’s the only light-weight thing about you, Big Bear.”
Fancy Pants giggled more than flinched when Blueblood jabbed his belly. The light pink shade that colored his face brought a smile to Blueblood’s own lips. Fancy Pants only smiled like that if he truly enjoying himself. It was a smile that made Blueblood blush.
“There’s always something to be appreciated about hard work though, don’t you agree?” Fancy Pants placed the wine back slowly and began to trot slowly down the row. Blueblood followed close behind and kept his eyes focused on the unicorn instead of the bottles.
“You put a lot of work into your outfits,” Blueblood reminded the stallion and bumped into him gently. He saw the pony at the counter give the two a strange glance but he tried to ignore it. Getting used to stares in public was one of the more… difficult obstacles in his path. Fancy Pants threw him another grin and it became easy to ignore the tightening of his chest. “I suppose if you’re gonna buy something to drink as a Canterlot pony here would be the place… Luna these prices are expensive.”
“I don’t think the prince is allowed to complain about the cost of anything.” Fancy Pants rolled his eyes at Blueblood’s comments while the prince scanned the prices.
“I am when I didn’t bring any bits because I thought we were staying at your place,” Blueblood mumbled. Fancy Pants giggled again, yet this time Blueblood felt a prick of irritation.
“Why, that may have som-” Fancy Pants stopped dead in his tracks. It was so sudden that Blueblood ended up bumping into him. A grumble of annoyance passed the prince’s lips when his muzzle mushed up until Fancy’s neck and he pulled away rubbing it, however he saw Fancy’s eyes lock onto something sitting on the shelf. When Blueblood saw his lover’s face, he watched Fancy try to stifle a grin… his cheeks were blushing red.
“Fancy?” Blueblood asked. Fancy covered his face with his hoof and looked away from Blueblood before he quickly snatched up a bottle with his hoof. Blueblood let his eyes run over the price listed right under the place it had previously sat and took into account it was at least half of the average price he had seen.
“I haven’t seen this brand in years,” Fancy Pants said with his cheeks still blushing. He looked as though he was a bit embarrassed by the blush, for he kept covering up either cheek with his free hoof while he examined the bottle.
“What’s so special about that cheap stuff?” Blueblood questioned. He frowned when he once again read the price. It was awfully inexpensive, only twenty bits. Fancy Pants sat down gently in the middle of the isle to hold the bottle with both hooves. It was red like crimson and the liquid inside looked the same. “I’m sure we could find something better than that.”
“Oh, it always tasted awful,” Fancy Pants laughed loud enough for Blueblood to see out of the corner of his eye the cashier glance to them. Fancy tapped his hoof down against the bottle and showed the front to Blueblood.
Grapevine Express Red Wine
“I drank this stuff every day when I first came to Canterlot… I drank it on my first date here, actually,” Fancy giggled when he brought it back to examine it. He sounded very nostalgic. There was a light on his face mixed in with his blush that Blueblood hadn’t seen before. “Everypony drank wine… this was all I could afford before my clothing line began to pick up.”
“First date?” Blueblood asked. He attempted his best to hide the uncertainty in his tone, but the awkward way he shifted back and forth in place may not have been the best approach. “Was it uh… memorable?”
“Honestly I’m blushing like a lovestruck foal, aren’t I?” Fancy Pants tried to laugh though it sounded mildly forced. “I swear it wasn’t anything special, Sweetheart. I just remember me and him used to drink this wine nearly every night…. I didn’t realize how awful it was until I got into my first business party and was offered some. I looked so… ratty back then.”
Blueblood hesitantly sat down in front of Fancy Pants. He used his tail to brush away any dirt and dust before he sat down and tried to keep himself from squirming around too much. He looked over and saw several bottles of wine all lines up with prices that were much more shocking to Blueblood than the sight of an old brand.
“Ratty’s a hard word to picture you as,” Blueblood admitted with a grin shot at his lover. “Dirty might have fit better. But that’s never really changed about you, now has it?”
“I seem to recall you like me being so dirty after last night,” Fancy Pants returned Blueblood’s slap with a whip that nearly made the prince flinch with how fast his cheeks blushed pink. “You squirm an awful lot when you have to keep quiet, you know that.”
Blueblood made a strange noise and was thankful the cashier didn’t seem to hear that. Or at least if he did he didn’t throw the two another glance. Blueblood began to fiddle with his hooves and flick his ear every few moments to avoid Fancy’s squirm inducing smile.
“Wine is a very romantic drink,” Fancy Pants held the bottle up before his eyes and examined it under the light above. “It’s so sweet and bitter all at once. It hardly burns at all like whisky or vodka do. Ponies change when they drink it.”
“I still don’t see the appeal,” Blueblood argued and twisted his lips the more Fancy Pants rolled the bottle in his hooves. “Acting like a fool because you drink something just feels as though it would be… degrading.” Blueblood shivered at the thought. “Presses already have enough of a field day with us… have you been reading the papers lately?”
“I thought I told you to stop reading those,” Fancy Pants’ flirtatious smile turned instantly into a frown of concern. He placed the wine down between them gently and reached out his hoof to grasp at Blueblood’s chin. “There’s nothing to gain from reading such… childish things.”
“Bu-”
“No,” Fancy Pants simply had to shake his head to keep Blueblood from continuing. The prince looked down to the hardwood floor and bit into his lip. “We’re forgetting about that tonight. Tonight is just about us, alright?”
“What’s so romantic about it, anyway?”
“Oh that only depends how deeply you love them,” Fancy Pants seemed to know just how to make Blueblood’s mind lose all worry. “Ponies loosen up when they drink. At social gatherings ponies who are strangers are usually so tense… wine helps them relax and show their true feelings. It’s a gamble if they’ll turn into a lifelong friend or an instant enemy. Though most turn into nothing more than ponies who act a bit silly. Most ponies turn quite cute when they relax, I find. Especially on dates where they’re already quite adorable.”
“And what am I?” Blueblood asked. He wasn’t sure why, but the way Fancy Pant’s described the effects made his heart beat a little faster. Fancy Pants wiggled his eyebrows at Blueblood and the prince was caught between annoyance and amusement. He pressed his hoof over his heart and tugged at his dress shirt and rose red bow-tie.
“You’re my beautiful boyfriend,” Fancy Pants grabbed at Blueblood’s hoof and pulled it to his lips. His moustache tickled and his lips were warm. A sensation of heat was sent throughout Blueblood’s body. “And I think it’s very romantic if you’re underneath me in three feet of hot water in my tub later this evening. Does that sound nice?”
“I uh… y-yeah…” Blueblood closed his eyes for a few seconds to try and regain some composure. “That sounds… nhnn… You’re such a dirty old man.”
“See the attraction of drinking now?” Fancy Pants licked his lips. “I know how much you enjoy my body over you dripping wet and steamy.”
“O-Only as much as you enjoy seeing me the same way.” Blueblood wasn’t positive if his retort was meant to be flirtatious or annoyed.
“Oh, Sweetheart you flatter me so,” Fancy Pants purred and inched himself closer to Blueblood. His hoof grasped the prince’s chin and held it gently. “Because I enjoy that more than you can imagine.... You’re quite adorable, were you aware of that?”
Apparently Fancy decided on flirtatious.
The older unicorn craned out his neck and for a few moments their lips met. Fancy stroked the underside of Blueblood’s chin with his hoof and Blueblood was forced to giggle through the kiss. Fancy always was able to warm his thoughts with so little effort. The unicorn’s hooves began to drift down onto Blueblood’s chest and rub in small circles. Just one movement of his hoof and the top button on Blueblood’s dress shirt had become undone.
“Ahem!” Was the slap back to reality the two stallions seemed to need. The warm fluffy insides of Blueblood’s mind were soon replaced with Fancy falling back onto his previous seating position and coughing into his hoof. Apparently he had gone just a bit further than he intended. Blueblood watched the tan stallion at the register go back to counting his money. Blueblood quickly re-buttoned his dress shirt.
“Shop’s closing up in five minutes, boys!” The older unicorn called out. “I don't’ stay open for nopony, not even princes!” Blueblood looked to the window he had been ignoring for some time now and realized that indeed the moon was up in the sky and shining as bright as any light in the shop.
“Fiddlesticks,” Fancy Pants grumbled.
“That was an awfully old thing to say,” Blueblood mubmled softly under his breath. Fancy Pants didn’t seem to hear him. His comment was ignored by the older unicorn looking around the shelves with darting eyes.
“We still didn’t pick out what wine we wanted to drink.” Fancy Pants got to his hooves in a single hop and brought the end of his hoof to hips teeth to bite down gently.
“Couldn’t we just take this one?” Blueblood grabbed the bottle from the floor with his hoof and held it up to Fancy Pants’ line of sight. The red seemed to glimmer between the two. “All wine is wine, isn’t it?”
“T-That’s not a kind of wine that either of us should be drinking at our social standing. Honestly how are you a highborn with a mouth like that?” Fancy Pants bit down gently on his lip. He turned around and took three steps away from Blueblood while he examined the shelves. More creaking of the floor filled the silent shop. “You deserve something less… cheap is all I’m saying.”
“Didn’t it make you blush for a reason?” Blueblood questioned the older unicorn. Fancy Pants looked down to his hooves and ran it slowly over the floorboards uncertainty. “I’m sure it’ll be pretty romantic if you’re there drinking with me… I-I mean… that doesn’t sound odd, does it?” Blueblood lowered the bottle a few inches and whinnied softly. “A bath with wine is starting to sound a bit nice. We could… It’s starting to sound fun, I mean.”
“It’s just that…” Fancy Pants turned back to Blueblood with a frown on his face. “We usually drank that at a bar the stallion I dated owned. It’s the kind of bar you wouldn’t have ever gone too.”
“I haven’t been to any bar in general,” Blueblood narrowed his eyes at Fancy Pants. The unicorn was avoiding his gaze again. “Except the one in the castle. I always assumed nothing but ruffians and dirty old men who think about taking baths with stallions far too much attended bars. That and Hoity Toity.”
“Isn’t Hoity the latter?” Fancy chuckled. He reached out his hoof and hesitantly took the bottle. He frowned and spun it around a little in his hooves.
“It’s a special spot just for you.” Blueblood grinned and pushed the bottle out to Fancy Pants. “But if he owned a bar doesn’t mean he had some taste in quality, even if it’s cheap? If we don’t like it, we’ll still have fun, right?”
Fancy Pants continued to look around, but ultimately his eyes landed on the one Blueblood was holding. “Sweetheart, honestly the worst kind of bars served this kind of drink. I can find something that you deserve more. Just give me a few minut-”
“One minute, let’s move!” The cashier called out when he interrupted Fancy Pants. Fancy bit down on his lip and stared at the bottle before he disgruntledly shook his head. He looked up to Blueblood and the two’s eyes met. His eyes looked wide and uncertain for a brief moment, but they soon softened when Fancy Pants looked down at the bottle.
“Oh, what the hell. Just don’t get mad when I kiss you and taste like this stuff.” Fancy Pants whinnied. He walked past Blueblood and gave him a gentle bump with his body when he did so. Blueblood followed closely. The prince couldn’t help but smile at Fancy Pants’ many promises of the night to come. “Leave it to you to pick the rose colored wine, Sweetheart.”
“It can’t be that bad.” Blueblood raised his brow at Fancy Pants. The unicorn adjusted his monocle when he got to the counter and set the wine down. The cashier put on a polite smile that Blueblood recognized all too well from his many maids and royal guards that passed him in the hallways of the castle.
“Just in time!” The cashier chuckled and tapped his hoof once more where his invisible watch lay. Fancy Pants reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bag of bits. Fancy counted out twenty of them and watched the cashier stack them. “Sorry to rush you two. Not often I get two popular ponies in my little shop!”
“It’s no trouble, sir,” Fancy Pants put on his public speaking voice. It was a voice that Blueblood enjoyed… Fancy was able to talk to the public much easier than he ever had. “You have a lovely shop. I’m glad I come here so often. I’ll be able to tell my boyfriend here a… nice story when we get home.”
“A story?” Blueblood questioned the other. “You have a story about your cheap wine?”
“I’ll tell you when I’m a little more tipsy,” Fancy pants chuckled and adjusted his bow-tie. The cashier quickly packed up his wine in a paper bag and handed it to Fancy Pants, who took it with his magical grasp. Fancy Pants turned and grabbed Blueblood’s hoof, giving him a gentle tug back down the aisle and to the exit of the shop. His grasp was eager and strong.
“Have a nice night!” The cashier called.
“Cheap wine and a cute stallion to share it with,” Fancy Pants grinned over to his lover. “I’m beginning to feel ten years younger.”
