Chapter Twenty-One: Tipsy

A/n: Thank you KanaMac for this suggestion! It was super fun to write, and I'm really sorry it took so long to come out, but hopefully you enjoy it~! ^~^

Prompt: In which Areum gets drunk off of wine.

" Old enough to see that it's wrong, young enough to do it anyways!"-Abhishek Tiwari

Areum had always been the type that when she got super curious about something, she had to investigate it herself to satisfy her curiosity. Now, most of the time Yona and Hak considered it a good thing that their daughter would do such a thing, instead of blindly trusting anyone else. They were happy and proud that Areum was smart and independent enough to want to figure things out on her own.

Of course, there were many, many, maaanny times that they both had wished that Areum wasn't so strong headed about trying everything out on her own. It often lead to confusion, and an apology or the two of them being sent out on behalf of their daughter. Either that or she got herself in trouble in a much more dangerous sense, which, naturally they didn't exactly like either. Nobody, after all, wants their child to be put in danger and certainly not because their child was curious about something.

So, this trait of Areum's could both be a blessing or a curse depending on the situation at hand. And, on some occasions, it lands somewhere in the middle, and they didn't know exactly what to make of it….

Areum was only seventeen at the time. In another year, it would have been perfectly legal for her to drink. Not that she was really all that curious about the appeal of liquor when the after effects were less than pleasant.

"Ugh. Close the curtains. Why won't the sun just shut up? I swear I'm not drinking ever again." Hak would say sometimes when he was espically hung over.

"Then why drink, Father?" Hanuel would ask. Hak would just look at him.

"You don't have to shout. I'm right here."

"But I wasn't-"

"Areum, my little princess, do your father a favour, and get him some wet rags to put over his face, hmm? And tell everyone not to bother me today." Hak would say as he ruffled her hair, and walked past her.

Now, that's not to say she wasn't totally opposed to alcohol. In fact, she really was quiet… Curious, as all kids can be, about what it tasted like. Naturally it bugged her enough to where she just wanted to try it out, and see what happened.

So, that's what she sought out to do. All she had to do, first of all, was figure out where in the holy hells they kept their liquor hidden…

"Areum, sweetie, what are you doing?" Yona asked curiously when she happened to see Areum poking around her and Hak's bedroom. Areum felt her face heat up from being caught, and she had to wait a moment to turn around with an innocent smile.

"I left a hair pin in here, and I wanted to wear it today, but I can't find it." She answered simply. Yona gave her daughter a doubtful expression, but shrugged as she moved on. She trusted her daughter not to mess around too far in her and Hak's personal chambers anyways.

Needless to say, it was a bust. The alcohol wasn't in their room, but when thinking about it for a second, Areum thought that it was only natural that they wouldn't keep it in there. They would keep it somewhere where the wine would be kept nice and cool, which lead her to her next venture : The storage rooms where the food were kept.

Naturally, about a two days after being busted in the room, Areum quietly crept to the private cellars, making sure that there would be nobody to stop her or question her about what she was doing. She wanted to be completely alone. Less chance of getting in trouble, ya know?

"Yes!" She whispered in victory, when the door easily opened. Areum then looked around to make sure nobody was around, and went inside.

The young woman looked around cautiously as she stepped inside, closing the door behind her as quietly as she could. There were some cracks in the wood that allowed for some natural light to filter through, but it was still mostly dark. Areum felt around until she felt the oddly shaped bottles. She then smirked, pulling out the bottle, she opened it, and smelt it.

"Oh yeah. That's it." She smiled in victory, and then took her first sip.

"Anyone seen Princess Areum? I went to her private chambers to see why she hadn't called for me to do her hair, but she wasn't even in there." It was one of the castle maids that personally attended to Areum. She was talking in whispers with some of the other workers in the castle. She didn't want to raise alarm in case the young princess was just playing a prank again.

"No. We haven't." They all said in unison, which caused more whispers around the castle about the whereabouts of where the young princess could be.

"There's really no reason to worry. Areum is smart. She wouldn't have run off without telling someone, right?" Isuel was trying to remain positive as he looked around. Hanuel scoffed, rolling his eyes as he shook his head.

"Idiot. Have you forgotten the time she ran off, and why Li-Huan is now her damned guard? She does this all the time." Despite his harsh words, Hanuel was quiet worried. There were so many things that could have happened to her, and none of his thoughts were exactly good.

"What are you guys looking so worried for?" Hak questioned, playfully ruffling both of his son's hair, but when that failed to get the usual reaction out of them, Hak knew it was serious."Ok. I give up. What is it?" He questioned, folding his arms over his chest.

However, before the two boys had a chance to reply, Yona appeared, wearing an exasperated expression.

"Hak, could you come here for a moment?" She questioned, trying to keep her usual happiness in her tone, but Hak could hear the exasperation underneath it. SO could her boys.

"Mother-"

"Hanuel, Isuel, you two stay here." She said simply, which only worried the two of them further. Hak straightened out, nodding as he followed after his wife.

"You're joking. How many did you have?" Hak questioned, trying to keep the smirk off his face, considering that Yona was quiet annoyed with their daughter at the moment, and he didn't want to end up in the dog house, so to speak. But that didn't mean that the edge of his lips weren't twitching, which didn't escape Yona's gaze. She glared at him.

"Ummm… Ummmm… Not that much…. I lost count." Areum said, laughing as she leaned against her mother.

"It's not funny!" SHe said simply. Areum laughed, shaking her head.

"M-mom… You're really worrying over nothing. Look! I… I can still walk!" Areum was slurring, and laughing as she shakily stood up, and took a step forward, but fell. Luckily, Hak was a bit faster, or sober, and easily caught his daughter who hung on to him, and laughed once more."Hey! See! That's one more step than I was able to take five minutes ago! I'm proud!" Areum exclaimed, but then started laughing again.

"You walked like a new born horse just getting used to walking." Yona stated, sighing as she shook her head. Hak wasn't speaking simply because he knew if he spoke, he would lose it, and start laughing. He wasn't about to admit it, but at least his daughter could handle her alcohol very well.

"I'm walking though!" Areum said, standing up, only to sway back into her father's arms.

"Pfft. Be careful there." Hak let out a small laugh as he spoke, holding on to his daughter firmly. Areum looked over his shoulders, grinning brightly.

"It's so bright! And pretty! And I wanna lay in the sun! Can I do that?!" She asked about to run off from her father's arms, but he held on to her firmly.

"How about you sober up first? Then we talk about when you can see the sun again." Hak said simply. Areum looked at him in confusion.

"What do you mean?" She questioned. Hak said nothing as he shook his head.

"Never mind. Let's just get you some rest." He said walking off with her. Yona was close behind.

"Pffft. Hahahahaha! Oh my Hiryuu! You're joking! How did you manage that without anyone noticing?!" Hanuel questioned later that day once he had heard from Areum what had happened. She winced, glaring at her brother.

"Gods, do you have to be so loud? Shut up." She growled out. Hanuel laughed, shaking his head.

"Oh hell no! This is too good! So… How long are you in trouble for?" He questioned. Areum shrugged.

"I have no idea." She said, making her brother laugh again.

"Man. This is something I will never forget!" He exclaimed, patting her back. Areum sighed, glaring at her brother, which just made him laugh again as he shook his head, and walked off. Areum sighed, throwing the blanket over face.

Sure enough, the after effects with the hangover and such weren't fun, but while drunk…. Well, Areum wasn't exactly opposed to it. In fact, she rather liked it, but she wasn't going to drink again for awhile. She could wait a year.