He hadn't witnessed the vows, but he had been told multiple times that it had been beautiful and pretty much perfect. Rhyme wasn't about to push for another reiteration so he had agreed to start the festivities. While the pack missed the ceremony he didn't want anyone to feel left out from the reception. He grew a bit giddy, glad to hold such an exciting event for his pack. They would be given a chance to bond over something less stressful than training.

He trotted out onto the serpent plain, one of the few flat places big enough for the whole pack and guests to gather comfortably. His mother and likely Valentine would be quick on his heels while Shaye, Vail, and Tana brought the party favors. Hopefully the hunters might drag a couple bigger carcasses with them so they wouldn't be drinking on empty stomachs. Whatever happened, he was ready for a good time.

Standing in the middle of the plain he'd throw his head back and invite the pack to celebrate together. Imperia and Solitude circled above him, they were eager for the party as well.

She had followed Rhyme here, knowing the party was what he was likely doing. Vail and Solor had been married but apparently in secret. HEr red cloak was on but her hood was down. In her bag and mouth were bottles of alcohol. She wasn't sure alcohol was a great idea for Rhyme right now, but she figured if she reminded him why he shouldn't drink he wouldn't drink too much. She was round enough now anyone could see and guess.

As the arrived and Rhyme howled she went about putting the alcohol down in a pile. There were many bottles of cider and wine, but she hoped anything potent was left elsewhere. She wasn't going to be partaking in this part anyway. She seated herself next to Rhyme and gave him a whisper. "D-don't d-drink too m-much."

A call for the pack had been heard, and Ace was curious to know what was going on. It sounded like a call for celebration of some sort, so he scooped up the fox kits and headed over to see what was going on. While Ace generally minded his own business, he figured it would be in his best interest to interact with the pack as much as possible, especially since he was in a higher rank. Besides, someone who kept to themselves and didn't interact with the pack would make for a poor member in his rank, and that was something he wasn't. He wanted to be an integral part of the pack, to get to know those he lived with and help any way he could. While he didn't know exactly where life would take him, he would strive to push it where he wanted it to go. The male lumbered towards the plains, both fox kits riding along on his back. They were about three months old now and growing fast. But they would always be small enough in size to hitch a ride whenever they wanted, especially considering he would still be twice their size even when they were fully grown. "You two best be on your best behavior, you hear? I expect there will be a lot of wolves there." He wasn't far from the den before Ignis raced up to him with excitement gleaming in his eyes, and the boy told him that they were celebrating something. Ace didn't get to question him for more details, however, before Ignis went racing off back towards the plains. Ace stood there for a moment, and decided that if it was a celebration, he ought to bring something for the pack. So without hesitation, he took off towards the outskirts of the borders where he had scented deer on one of his earlier patrols. It didn't take him long to track them down and quickly bring down a doe that had been scrounging up the remaining grass. With his prize in tow, he headed off to find where the others were. As he stepped into the clearing, he spotted Rhyme and the former Ruina slave, and not far off were a bunch of bottles full of liquids, and Ignis sniffing around them. He rose a brow at the boy as he approached, dropping the doe on the ground. "Don't touch without asking, you don't even know what it is." He warned. Of course, he didn't know what it was either, having never had alcohol before. He glanced around, noting that nobody else had arrived yet. He let the fox kits get down on the ground, and right away they started sniffing around the bottles too. Ace sat down then, unsure about what to do next. speech action

Vail walked slowly beside Solor as the wedding party made their way to where Rhyme had called the party. Her footfalls were as sure as her bliss was obvious. She couldn’t remember a better day. She was married now, she and Solor had made a lifelong vow to one another. One she had every intention of keeping the rest of her life. Their time apart had been enough to fully convince them they wanted to be together the rest of their lives. He hadn’t had to twist her arm to say yes, they’d both known this was right. She smiled softly in the twilight, feeling a bit of a gust pick up as they drew more near the gathering wolves. Rhyme, Tana, and the head warrior Acere and his little fox kits. She felt a little thrill go through her ta the thought of babies. She realized suddenly how much she wanted to have a little family with Solor, to introduce new life into Abaven themselves. She came to a stop close to where everyone had settled, smelling the alcohol and the fresh kill. She smiled in the direction of each of them "Thank you for coming to celebrate with us." ""

The chocolate colored Destruction woman followed after Vail and Solor, using their trail to more easily navigate Abaven. She perked her dark ears, searching for the sound of Valentine’s steps. He had missed the ceremony, but she was sure he wouldn’t have minded that too much. The celebration was the fun part anyway. She didn’t catch any scent or sound of her mate so the old woman made her way towards her son and the mother of his children. She smiled as she approached them, navigating around Vail and Solor as she did. Rhythm offered him some quick affection before offering the same to Tana. She wondered if Rhyme had mentioned to his father that he was expecting a new litter in the coming season. She remained quiet in the background though, eager for a bite to eat and maybe a little indulgence in the recreations after. ""

With slow, confident strides Valentine made his way through the territory. He wasn't in a hurry, but he didn't want to be too terribly late lest he miss out on whatever goodies were handed out at a wedding. He'd been promised entertainment (well...kinda) and good food and he expected both.

Upon arriving on the scene he paused on the fringe to look the gathering over. The newlyweds stood out sharply. As expected, the woman was gazing all cow-eyed at her mate and while Valentine couldn't see the groom's expression he assumed it matched the bride's. There were a few others present as well. Rhyme, a little slave woman at his side, a tall, mostly white man with two rowdy fox kits, and a bright red boy. None save Rhyme were familiar to him, but he didn't want to hover at his son's side like a decrepit old vulture. So instead he bumped Rhyme's shoulder as he passed by and gave him a sly look before wandering over to the booze.

He picked up a bottle, wandered off a short distance with it, and then laid down with his prize between his paws. This seemed like as good a place as any to watch the proceedings. He could only hope the drinks were strong enough to make the guests entertaining.

Before he could open the bottle of cider Valentine spied Rhythm. While she seemed to know most of the wolves there he couldn't very well leave her to her own devises. That didn't seem like fitting behavior for a plus one, so he rose and padded over to her with bottle in tow. After setting the bottle down he murmured to Rhythm, "Ceremony went well, I take it?" He then leaned down to nuzzle her cheek.

THEY’RE TRYIN’ TO KEEP HEAVENS GATES OPEN LATE FOR ME ooc. feel free to ignore Epitaph, he just needs some encouragement/time to work up some courage There was a big gathering today, he'd been told. A wedding had taken place, and there was to be a celebration. In his experience, weddings were more of a violent affair for slaves. A pooling of resources between newlyweds often meant twice the danger when you were the one counted as a resource. However, miss Shaye had invited him to attend, promising fun and an opportunity to meet more of Abaven's members. His limited knowledge of non-lethal herbs led him into the Serpent Plains in search of a gift for the attendees. The walk was good for his atrophied muscles, allowing them a chance to build up their strength. It was a short trip, thankfully. There weren't many plants flourishing at this time of year, and he would be lucky if he succeeded in finding what he sought. It took a fair amount of searching. Sniffing about for the distinct, musky odor of cannabis led him about in circles. However, a small plant, hidden in the shelter of the trees near the edge of the plains, was finally located. Not many of the leaves were intact, much less the growing buds that he sought. Regardless, he carefully plucked what he could find with his front teeth. Using a broad leaf from one of the tropical trees that seemed abundant in this area, he wrapped the small parcel up. As if on cue, a sonorous howl caught his attention. Clutching his gift loosely in his jaws, the ebon wisp began to limp in the direction of the call. He recognized Rhyme's voice almost instantly. As he muddled scents of a gathering began to waft towards him, any confidence was immediately drained from the male. He tucked his tail between his legs, tattered auds flattening against his skull. He kept his head low as he approached, moving with short strides as he hunched himself over to seem small and unobtrusive. Oh no. Miss Shaye wasn't here yet. Pausing on the edges of the gathering, he peered about warily. There were more wolves here than he had dared to interact with in months. There was Rhyme, with the small woman he'd met when he'd first arrived. She seemed to have an even rounder belly now, if that was possible. An absolutely giant male towered over the rest, with two young foxes scampering about his heels. Oh, Epitaph didn't like this. Not one bit. A woman paler than snow clung to a larger male who was wholly unfamiliar to him. They must be the newly wed couple. Should he deliver his gift directly to them? He caught sight of a collection of bottles, and a freshly dead deer. Perhaps it should be left there. Another face, he recognized from his time in the slavers' camp. The older woman he had spotted only once or twice. Had they been accumulating other refugees? At her side... A man who sent icy fear tripping up the dark male's spine. A giant in his own right, coloured slate blue. Something about him, it reminded him of Grim. His worst master. The one who was responsible for the final crippling in his leg, and the one who had so wantonly abused him for months. It was something about those eyes, and their intensity. Epitaph didn't like it, and he wanted to go back to Shaye's den now. He didn't want to come out ever again. Eyes watering furiously, he looked around for miss Shaye. She wasn't here, she wasn't anywhere. Trembling violently, he took a step back. This was too much, and he was overwhelmed. Should he leave his gift with the rest, and take his leave? Oh, he didn't know what to do. Not in the least. "speech"

“Epitaph? Are you alright?” Spider asked calmly as he approached the gathering wolves. At first Spider hadn’t wanted to come to the wedding, the pack somehow seemed more distant to him than it had before, perhaps because he had more interest in a member of another pack rather than anyone in his own. In the end Spider had decided it would be too rude not to at least bring something for the couple before he slunk back to his own den to pine over his own lover. With him Spider carried a small vessel filled with comfrey gel he had originally made for Hannibal but supposed Vali could make use of as well. He had planned to drop off his gift and leave but when he saw Epitaph he immediately recognized the signs of anxious panic. “Would you like to leave?” He asked softly, knowing it would most likely be for the best if the younger male wasn’t exposed to so much excitement. "Talk" You   Toad

Corvus fought the powerful urge to roll his eyes at the sound of Rhyme's call. He was a decent guy, he really was, and he found his opinions of Shaye were much nicer too now that he'd actually taken some time to talk to her - but parties just weren't his thing. Like, really weren't his thing. He knew now why his dad loathed meetings so much, and he found himself sharing in his sentiments, though the anxious feeling wasn't even quelled by the knowledge that this was supposed to be a celebration of sorts instead of a serious pack meeting. He grumbled the whole way there, but he was quiet by the time he arrived. Instead of making his annoyance known - he wasn't really the type to cause a scene, anyway - he instead started to look the group over as he found somewhere on his own to sit. His attention was captured by one particularly shaky looking black-coated male, who looked like he'd gotten his ass kicked for most days of his life. He only eyed him for a moment before focusing instead on Spider who had moved to possibly help the male. Weird. Anyway. He hoped Peggy or Caelestis or Rhea might show up soon to provide a welcome distraction from the odd group that was gathering - or maybe even Aiden, but his closest companion and brother had been remarkably scarce for some time now, so he wasn't going to get his hopes up.