After returning from Sovrngarde and losing her husband, Alaine turned to Honningbrew Mead and Blood Wine for comfort and solice. She really didn't have any other reason to live. She had fulfilled her destiny, and after talking with Arngeir she realized that she was simply going to fade away through time, unremembered. Alduin was dead, Paarthunax was a refuge (Alaine lied to the Blades to spare his life); Marcurio, Francois, and Lucia had died when Windstad Manor burned to the ground.
So she spent her days locked up in Lakeview Manor drinking mead and listening to Llewellyn serenate her whilst Calder tried to talk some sense into her. it never worked. It never would. Calder hated the smell of alcohol constantly on the Dragonborn's breath.
Llewellyn came up with a very clever scheme to lure the Dragonborn out of her lofty manor. Calder knew it was no less than a long shot, but that was a shot they were willing to take.
Calder went to work the mines and Llewellyn requested the day off, taking with him (unbeknownst to Alaine) all of the house's mead and wine.
With Calder and Llewellyn gone for the day, Alaine was determined to drown her sorrows in as much mead and wine as possible without a single disturbance. Alaine reached the end of her mead she had been nursing and went on a hunt for the rest. She searched every shelf, safe, bookcase, bowl, cabinet, chest, end table, and nook in the entire house. There was not a single drop of mead or even Alto Wine in the house. She had no choice but to go and buy some.
She thought about it for a moment and then she realized she couldn't go into Falkreath because the people don't look kindly on drunks. She couldn't go to Whiterun because Balgruuf would ask to talk with her about Alduin and Sovrngarde. She didn't want to go to Markarth because of the Forsworn and a disagreement with Calcemo. Morthal was a given. Dawnstar had the Night Mother and her voice would be horribly painful with a hangover. Riften is where she adopted Francois, met and married Marcurio, so there was no way she could step foot there again. In Windhelm the only people that didn't hate her were the new jarl, his steward, and the dunmer. That left Winterhold.
At least there was always free mead in her Archmage's quarters. So she set on her way to Winterhold.