The longer the night went on, the more Ember began to lose herself in the dregs of her cups. Wine flowed like water at the wedding reception so plentiful that it seemed as if the carafes on the table never went down. Or maybe that was just because of how much she'd been drinking. This was far from her first time consuming alcohol, but she'd never drunk this much in one night before. Perhaps it was inspired by the revelry happening all around her that she was losing herself in. Or maybe it was her aching heart whenever she spied the happy bride and groom sharing a kiss, or glimpsing her father and mother exchanging little affections. The lingering pain in her chest reminded her all too much of the viking boy from the mountains, now gone without so much as a reason why or even a farewell. There was a part of Ember that held out hope that one day she'd find him outside her balcony throwing rocks at her window again—but a larger part of her raged with anger at him for disappearing on her again.

And so Ember chose this self-destructive path of coping for the evening, drowning her anger and heartbreak in the sweet red wines of her pack. Her head swam with the disorienting fog of drunkenness while she sat at her beloved piano with her goblet of wine. Was this her fifth glass? Sixth? More…? Em had stopped keeping track a long time ago. Each glass dulled the pain a little more but swept her away in the heady sensations of inebriated anger. Her paws pressed lazily to the keys, no longer forming a smooth and consistent melody but instead punctuating the air with the occasional note as the reception began to die down in the late hour. Bleary blue eyes gazed down at the rows of ebony and ivory keys as her vision swirled and spun, but it was as if she was staring straight through the keys into empty space, lost to the world around her.

Glancing up from the piano keys, Ember spotted her parents seated up at the head table, her father on his throne and her mother beside him leaning into his side. They were snuggling and giggling with one another, clearly having enjoyed the wine as well, with Artorias peppering Briar's face with kisses. That dull pain radiated in her chest again as Em scowled and downed the rest of her wine in one angry gulp. She pushed away from the piano and got up from the bench, wobbling a bit on unsteady paws while she wandered her way out of the hall and outside to the courtyard, where it was thankfully much quieter. This late in the evening, many of the guests had already retired, leaving her the only wolf outside in the cool autumn night on the terrace. Em huffed and growled quietly to herself, slumping against the stone balustrade when she felt like her legs might turn to jelly underneath her. The cool stone felt good against her cheek as she stared out at the moonlit garden, wishing she had something to keep her mind from running off down paths she didn't want it to go.

"Ember Carpathius" | "Carpathian"

The wedding that had kept the halls of the castle roaring with noise and wolves for much of the day and into the night had kept her mostly out in the plains or the near by beach. She knew her mother had some kind of connection or friendship with some of the Armada wolves, but she didn't know any of them personally so she didn't feel the need to crash the party. At one time she probably would have at least tried to slip into the reception to sneak some wine, but she kept herself busy with patrols and mapping the stars instead. Was that considered maturing? Her father would probably tell her she was getting dull and the thought made her smirk as she started to make her way back into the castle courtyard. It was late enough now that she figured most of the guests would be heading to bed so maybe she could sneak a glass of wine after all.

Before she made it inside, however, she happened to catch Ember's now familiar scent that was heavily mixed with the scent of wine and when she looked across the way she spotted Ember's midnight form leaning against the stone and staring off into the night. Rebel raised a curious brow as she debated whether she should go over to her. The couple that was married had some kind of relation to Ember so obviously the Carpathian princess had been at the party so why was she out here by herself? After a beat of debate with herself she finally turned her path toward Ember, coming to settle beside her with a little smirk. It was obvious from the smell of wine on her that Ember had been drinking–heavily at that–and it was almost amusing to see someone who was usually so poised being so obviously drunk. "Had a little too much fun, princess?" she questioned with a chuckle.

"Rebel Klein"

Somewhere amidst her brooding and sulking, Ember became faintly aware of the sound of paws walking on the terrace. She didn’t look up at the other wolf, assuming it was just another partygoer stepping out for some fresh air as well—until she heard the distinctive cadence of a chuckle she knew. An ear flicked in Rebel’s direction as she teased the sullen princess about her inebriated state. Ember simply responded with an angry huff of breath, not lifting her head or turning her gaze to the unwanted company. "No, I didn’. Go ‘way, Rebel," she mumbled out, her speech slurred and missing bits and pieces. Ember had never been drunk drunk before, but she was clearly sauced now. And she was in no mood to be entertaining the rowdy Klein woman.

After a moment more of silent brooding, Em huffed again and lifted her head from the balustrade to glare out into the garden at nothing in particular. "Why does ev’ryone else get t’ be all mushy an’ romantic an’ have sum’one to love?" the Carpathian fae blurted out, the alcohol letting her tongue run wild with what her heart and mind were warring with. "Ev’ryone else gets t’ dance an’ kiss with sum’one an’ I jus’ get t’ wonder why he left. It’s not fair! I wanna dance with sum’one an’ get drunk with ‘em too! I wanna kiss ‘em and go to bed an’ fuck ‘em, jus’ like my Mom an’ Dad and the bride an’ groom an’ every other couple is doin’ right now!"

With a frustrated and dejected huff, Ember slumped down over the balustrade again, her vision misting with tears as she tried to fight back the anger and the heartbreak. "Why’d he leave me…? Did I do sum’thin’ wrong…?" She must have. Ember couldn’t comprehend any other reason why Erik would’ve just abandoned her one night.

"Ember Carpathius" | "Carpathian"

Rebel raised a slightly curious brow when Ember responded that she in fact had not had fun and told her to go away. She had assumed that this was lost in the party kind of drinking, but that assumption had obviously been wrong. This was drinking to drown out something kind of drinking, but that seemingly hadn't worked for the Carpathian princess since she was now out here by herself brooding. Just as she was contemplating whether she should actually follow Ember's demand to be left alone, her intoxicated friend let the floodgates open and spill what had driven her to drink like this. Rebel's brows lifted a bit with surprise as she listened to Ember blurt out her rhetorical questions about why everyone else got to be romantic and mushy tonight while she was left wondering why 'he' left. Rebel didn't know who 'he' was, but her only guess was that guy she had seen with Ember at the pack's bonfire. It was the only guy outside of her family she had seen with her anyway.

Her lamenting about how she wanted someone to dance, drink, and fuck with did make Rebel smirk and have to fight back a little laughter because it sounded so silly in her slurred, mumbled words, but she knew the emotion behind it was real so she wouldn't laugh at Ember's dismay. It was obvious that whoever this guy was had clearly hurt her and this was a hell of an event to be at for someone who was dealing with heartbreak. Rebel frowned as Ember slumped and questioned why he had left and if she had done something wrong. "Nah, no way," she insisted firmly without hesitation, giving a little shake of her head. "Whatever this guy is doing it's not your fault and you didn't do anything wrong. If he's going to run off from a girl as beautiful and smart and strong as you then he's clearly got something wrong with him."

It actually made Rebel a little mad to think about as she looked over at Ember–the gorgeous princess that had immediately caught her eye from day one that was now heartbroken and dejected because of some fucker that clearly didn't value her the way he should. She obviously hadn't known her mother's first husband, but she had heard about how he left her and broke up the family they had made despite the fact that she was stunningly beautiful and powerful and so smart. If ladies like her and Ember could be left by someone then some men really did just have rocks for brains. She couldn't keep herself from lifting a paw and trying to put it around Ember's shoulders to offer her side to her friend to lean into if she wanted. "He's a fucking idiot, alright? I for one would be tripping over myself for the chance to dance and drink and kiss and go to bed with you," she said with a chuckle, rubbing her shoulder soothingly.

"Rebel Klein"

Ember continued to mope while Rebel, bless her heart, did her best to try and lift her spirits out of the doldrums. With her cheek mushed up on the cold stone she pouted and listened while Rebel emphasized that whatever Erik was doing wasn't her fault and that he was a fucking idiot and had something wrong with him. But that couldn't stop Ember from wondering if she had done something to turn him away from her. Erik's culture and customs... they were radically different from her own. What if she'd fucked up somehow and she didn't even know it? But if that was the case, then wouldn't he just be mad at her? Why would he simply just up and leave and never come back? And then there was the question of her flirty encounter with Absinth. The crazy chick from the Syndicate had seemed into her, but then... just nothing. Again, she just never saw her again. And the only common factor here was herself.

Still dejected and forlorn, Em didn't lift her head when she felt Rebel's touch on her shoulder, but neither did she pull away. She remained where she sat, letting Rebel rub her shoulders reassuringly while the taller fae emphatically proclaimed that she would do anything for a chance to do all those couplesy things she'd been griping about with her. That got a little snort of amusement from the heavily intoxicated Carpathian fae. Em tilted her head to lean on her cheek so she could glance up at Rebel with a glint of playful mischief in her eye as she simply slurred back in retort, "Tha's sooooooo gay, Rebel." A cheeky grin slowly crept across the dark-furred femme's face as she tried to stifle a series of giggles at herself. She had no idea of Rebel's sexuality and fully assumed she was just trying to make her feel better. At the very least, she'd gotten Ember to laugh.

Releasing a slow sigh, Ember's bleary gaze turned to peer up at the clear skies above, staring off at the celestial heavens and the canvas of stars and galaxies overhead. She got lost in their swirling patterns and chaos the longer she stared. "Wha' if there is sum'thin' wrong with me though...? Wha' if... I'm th' problem...?" The smile slowly slipped from Em's muzzle as the dour thoughts came creeping back like demons in the shadows of her mind. With this much alcohol in her system, Ember's walls were down, and her innermost insecurities were being laid bare. What if she wasn't good enough? What if she was the reason for all the bad things happening around her? Erik's disappearance, Hemlock's sundering, the Syndicate's continued existence... What if she was the nexus of all this misfortune?

"Ember Carpathius" | "Carpathian"

Rebel felt a little pride when she got Ember to laugh, glad she had perked her up even for a moment with her insistence that she'd be more than happy to do any of those couple-y things with her. Ember's response that her want to do those things was 'soooooo gay' made Rebel chuckle, but she gave Ember a look with a raised brow as if to say, "Yes? And?" Ember obviously didn't take her offer seriously, but that was fine. She didn't figure the Carpathian princess would be too in the mood right now anyway. Just getting her to laugh was plenty. Still, that was short lived as Ember quickly looked crestfallen again and continued to wonder and lament about how she might be the problem. Rebel frowned again and secretly wished this dude that had done this to Ember would appear just so she could kick his ass.

Continuing to rub Ember's shoulders while she was quiet with thought for a moment until she said, "Have you ever met my mom? Venom? Used to be the Empress of Ashen?" Regardless of how Ember answered, she went on to say, "She had a husband before my dad. They ruled the pack together and had a family and the whole thing. One day he just decided he didn't want it any more and he left her. Not because of anything she had done, just because he wanted to do something else regardless of how it was going to hurt her or their family." She gave Ember a reassuring smile and tried to give her shoulders a little squeeze. "You're not the problem. He's the problem. He obviously didn't know how good he had it and probably walked away from the best girl he'd ever get."

"Rebel Klein"

Ember snickered again when Rebel gave her an incredulous look as if it was plain as day that the Klein fae was a lesbian. Well, that was certainly news to Ember, but she didn't exactly make it a point to go around asking other wolves about their sexualities. Their conversation turned somber again and Rebel began to tell her the story of her mother's first marriage and how that had tragically failed. There was no rhyme or reason to it, they simply had different life plans and they fell apart. Em's heart sank in her chest the more she listened despondently. What if she and Erik were falling apart? What if they were never meant to be together?

Rebel tried to reassure her that she wasn't the problem and that he was; that he had chosen to walk away from her whether he knew she was the best girl or not. That did get a slight shift of the corner's of Ember's lips into something akin to a weak smile. Deep down, she knew she hadn't done anything to deserve being so unceremoniously abandoned the way she had been, but she also couldn't find it in her heart to hate Erik. He was her friend. She had done so much for him. It didn't make sense for him to just... disappear. And yet that was exactly what he had done...

With an angry puff of breath, Ember slapped her paws down on the balustrade and lifted her head up, subtly leaning her body over into Rebel's paws as the other fae rubbed her shoulders comfortingly. "I don' wanna think about him an'more t'night," asserted the Carpathian princess. "I jus' wanna forget about ev'rythin' right now. I wanna feel good again." Ember turned her attention back over to Rebel, looking up into the taller fae's amaranthine eyes with a resolute look in her wine-drunk gaze. Even if her brain didn't fully register what it was she wanted yet, she knew she didn't want to feel sad or hurt anymore tonight. She didn't want to give Erik the satisfaction of having that much control and influence over her when he wasn't even here.

"Ember Carpathius" | "Carpathian"

Perhaps she didn't quite get a full smile out of Ember with her reassurance, but the angry puff and declaration that she didn't want to think of the loser that had hurt her any more felt like a victory all the same. Rebel grinned down at Ember with a soft chuckle as the Carpathian princess stated how she just wanted to feel good again. "Good. Fuck that guy. You should only ever feel good." It was impossible for her mind to not jump to the obvious as her eyes connected with the gaze of this fiery, drunk young woman. A sly remark of how she could make her feel good hung on the end of her pointed tongue. She had been attracted to Ember since the day she first met her so why shouldn't she take the easy bait that was right here in front of her?

Still, the thought how Ember might think of her come morning when the alcohol had worn off and the blurry memories came rushing back made her hesitate. As badly as she wanted Ember, she didn't want the princess to think she was simply taking advantage of her inhibited, emotional state to get her. She didn't just want a one night stand with Ember. She wanted to play her cards right and stay in this pretty girl's good graces. Still... Ember didn't deserve to be alone tonight either. As an attempt to find a happy medium somewhere in the middle, she let herself lean in close till her lips were close enough to make it obvious that she wanted to kiss her, but keeping enough distance to let Ember easily turn away if she didn't want it. "If you want me to give you something else to think about... I'd be more than happy to."

"Rebel Klein"

"Yeah!" Ember stoutly declared again when Rebel agreed with her sentiments to disregard her heartache and just feel good. But what came next caught Ember way off guard. After a moment of eye contact with the Klein woman, Rebel gave her a strange little smirk, then leaned in much closer. Em's eyes widened with a bit of a catch in her breath as Rebel's muzzle stopped just an inch away from hers, so close she could feel the warmth of the larger fae's breath against her lips. The dark-furred femme's heart skipped a beat at the sudden closeness, her stomach fluttering and clenching in a familiar way. The way she'd felt during her fight with Absinth. Her heart thumped hard in her chest. Excitement? Maybe. Nervousness? Definitely. Ember had never gone further than some hot flirting and a kiss with another fae before, and now here was Rebel coming on to her, offering to give her a good time to make her feel better. Was Rebel really offering her what she thought she was?

Ember swallowed hard, her breath coming in and out shorter, matching the quickening of her heart. The familiar warm tension in her belly began to grow, fueled by the copious wine in her system. Inhibitions were lowered, emotions were high. Not a great combination for rational decision making—but Ember didn't want to be rational tonight. Ember lowered her gaze down to their paws on the balustrade, looking at the closeness for a moment before lifting her eyes back to hold the amethyst ones of the other woman, a hazy sultriness in her oceanic blue-green eyes. She thought back to what her grandmother had told her about exploring her sexuality and having fun so long as it was safe and consensual. Well what could be safer than experimenting in her own home?

Leaning in closer towards Rebel with a bit of courage in her courtesy of the wine, Ember peered up at Rebel through lidded eyes with a roguish smirk on her muzzle. "I don' know if you could handle me, Rebel," she purred her playful challenge, sliding her closest paw over to rest it gently over Rebel's, extending her feline claws to gingerly trace along the edges of the navy and white femme's digits. "Wann' find out if you can...?" Her eyes flashed with a heated desire; she wanted to explore herself tonight. Would she remember this conversation or this night come the morning? Only time would tell if Rebel was daring enough to take her up on her sapphic invitation.

"Ember Carpathius" | "Carpathian"