Astarion and Piper arrived back at camp a little later than everyone else, letting the refugees set up the party for them. Alfira was already tuning her lute, ready to provide music for the night while Zevlor and a few others brought out the barrels of wine they had brought. Halsin had also arrived, speaking with Zevlor about how sorry he was about Kagha's treatment in his absence.

Piper stuck close to Astarion still, a little overwhelmed by the amount of people now swarming their small campsite. Their companions were mingling as well, chatting with each other and with the tieflings. Piper wondered if she should join in as well, but she wasn't sure what she should talk about. She hadn't really talked to the tieflings very much, and many didn't give her the time of day. She rubbed her arm, stepping closer to Astarion, who grabbed a bottle of something as a tiefling walked by with a crate.

"Did you grab something good?" Piper wondered. Astarion popped off the cork and took a sip before making a soured face.

"No, it's awful," he replied. "Too dry and rich."

"More of a sweet wine person, I take it?"

"I'm just not a vinegar wine type of person."

"Fair enough," Piper shrugged, grabbing the bottle from him. She took a drink, understanding his meaning. It was a lot drier and more bitter than she had anticipated. The tieflings probably found it in the blighted village on their way to the grove, hoping it turned out to be a nice vintage instead of vinegar.

"Just awful," Astarion remarked after seeing Piper's displeased face.

"It'll do, I guess," she grimaced, taking another drink. He frowned. "It's not the worst thing I've ever had."

"That doesn't mean you should still drink it."

"The point is to have fun and get drunk, right?"

"Is that the point?"

"Maybe?" Piper guessed, reading his face. That had been her plan for tonight. She had been through a lot the past week or two, and the thought of getting drunk sounded very pleasant. Getting drunk with Astarion also sounded like a very fun time. "Does that not sound like fun to you?"

"Given my condition, I'm not really able to get drunk," he reminded. Piper frowned, not realizing that his vampiric powers took that away from him as well.

"Really? That sucks."

"I get by."

"What if I were to get drunk and then you were to drink my blood. Do you think you would get drunk then?" She asked in a lowered voice after looking to see if anyone was walking by. Astarion smiled before he shrugged.

"I'm not sure, darling, never tried it," he admitted before he sighed. "But that wasn't exactly the type of fun I was looking for this evening."

"Oh, and what type of fun were you looking for?" she asked before taking another drink. He winced before he tried to put on a sultry grin.

"Do you remember the little game that we started back in the grove?" he wondered, leaning on one hip. Piper nodded, giving him a wary look.

"You said that you had your eye on someone in camp, and you wanted me to guess who it was. If I guessed right, you'd give me a treat."

"Exactly right, my dear. Did you figure it out?"

Piper watched him as he lowered his eye lids at her. His entire body language changed, and she wasn't sure what he was doing. She blinked at him twice as she thought about it. She had gone over her list a few times in her head, and still, none of them made sense.

"Can I talk through my thoughts with you?"

"Be my guest."

"These don't count as guesses, okay? I'll let you know when I'm guessing."

"Deal," he smiled, intrigued by her mind. Piper nodded, tapping her lip with the top of the wine bottle.

"So, I know we've already knocked Wyll out of the running, which would have been my top contender."

"No idea where you got that idea, my dear. I've hardly talked to the man."

"My next thought would've been Shadowheart, but she's just as secretive as you. That connection between the two of you, were there to be any, would take more time than we've had."

"An astute observation."

"I think my first guess would be Laezel. She's smart, cunning, and strong. She's quick to the point and always says what she's thinking," Piper answered, taking a stab in the dark. Astarion paused, thinking about her words. Laezel wasn't a terrible choice, and he would have considered pursuing the gith had Piper not landed in his lap.

"An intriguing guess, but no dice, I'm afraid. That's one bottle of wine for me."

Piper furrowed her brow as she pursed her lips. Laezel was her best choice out of the whole camp. She only had two people left, not that it really mattered. She just needed to find out what kind of wine Astarion enjoyed and ask Gale where to find it. Although, she hoped that she only needed to find one instead of two.

"Alright, then, let me talk this through. Karlach is the kindest soul of the camp, but she can be loud and sometimes crass. I know that you tend to be a little more refined, so that might clash with your sensibilities. Which brings us to Gale. You two don't always get along, but sometimes that works in a relationship. A little bickering can strengthen a bond, and he does have a sense of refinement about him," Piper continued as she gave it some real thought.

Astarion rubbed the side of his face, realizing that she really didn't include herself as a possible candidate for the game. Of course, that meant that she would owe him three bottles of wine, but that would mean that she was possibly the densest and blindest person he knew. He held back a chuckle, realizing that he would have steered clear of her if he had met her when he was still bringing back victims.

"Time's ticking away, darling," he whispered, trying not to sound too exasperated.

"I'll guess Gale."

"Wrong."

"Then it's Karlach. Not that I'm surprised, she's such a sweetheart," Piper immediately gushed. Astarion placed a finger on her lips, surprising her.

"Also, wrong."

"What? But you said that it was someone in camp and it was someone I knew," she argued, glancing around. "You also said it wasn't Halsin. If you've been teasing me and say Withers, I'll turn into something truly formidable and throw you-"

"It's you, you wicked thing," Astarion nearly shouted before rubbing his temples. Piper froze, almost dropping the bottle in her hand. She had forgotten that she also was a person in the camp that she knew well. She swallowed as she turned to her side to stare at the campfire. Luckily, no one was around to hear, and the party continued around them as normal.

Astarion cursed himself silently, knowing that he had more patience than this. How did this woman get under his skin so easily and so quickly? This was supposed to be an easy and quick seduction. A little guessing game, get her to swoon, and take her into the woods for a night she would never forget. Now, he had yelled at her and called her a wicked thing. Now he expected her to storm away or something. When he looked in front of him, he saw a bashful Piper still standing in front of him, still holding the wine bottle.

"I didn't mean to yell at you like that," Astarion apologized, getting her attention. Piper turned to him, her eyes wide with surprise.

"Oh, it's fine. I just didn't think…" she replied, rubbing her arm as she dropped her gaze. She cleared her throat. "What kind of wine did you say you liked? I'll see if Gale has seen any."

"Piper," Astarion began as she stepped back with a strained smile.

"It's okay, I'll find something you'll like and be back," she replied before she bounded away. Astarion's heart hurt as he watched as she hurried off in Gale's direction. He crossed his arms, unsure if Piper was going to return.

He watched her carefully, trying not to pace. He tried to sit down and wait, but that only made it worse. Again, he glanced over at Piper, who was gathering bottles of wine from Gale. He frowned, wanting to go over and tell her he was joking about that part of the wager. It seemed so stupid now when he thought it was so clever then. Astarion truly thought she would have put the pieces together by the time they had reached camp that evening.

Piper walked toward Astarion, balancing three bottles of wine for him as she made her way through camp. Her heart was still pounding from his spontaneous confession. Never in a million years had she expected him to fall for her. He was absolutely gorgeous, and while she didn't think that she was ugly, she was no super model.

Although now that she thought about it, the pieces did click together. Why he was so protective. Why he brought her back to camp when she died. Why he had hugged her so tightly when she had come back to life. Why he had reacted so strangely when she brought up bringing him and Wyll together. He even tried to tell her that he was more comfortable sticking close to her than talking with anyone else.

Damn, she really was a dense idiot. What had he called her? A wicked thing? Honestly, not a bad description if she had caused him this much stress. He had been dropping hints and she had been as blind as a bat. Piper almost wanted to just drop off the wine, tell him to have a good night, and bang her head against a tree trunk until she knocked herself out. She felt rightly and truly stupid.

Swallowing her pride and anxiety and whatever other emotions that were eating her up, Piper walked up to Astarion as confidently as she could. She gave him the best smile she could muster before presenting the wine she had gathered. He glanced down at the alcohol in her arms before meeting her gaze again, and she couldn't quite discern his expression.

"Three bottles for three bad guesses," she announced with a shaky voice. She gave her best showman's smile, hoping to make him laugh. The best he could do was a half-smile. He helped her put them down near his tent before reaching for her hand, hoping to catch her before she ran away a second time.

"I should've said that part wasn't serious," he mentioned as she shrugged.

"You did say that a party needed good wine," she offered, gesturing towards the bottles. "Gale said that this was the best we had, but we might need to replace it when we find another merchant. Well, I'll need to replace it, but I don't have any money."

"I'll pay Gale back, don't you worry."

"I'll figure out how to pay you back, then."

"I just said you don't have to worry about it."

"I know, but-" Piper complained before Astarion placed his finger on her lips again.

"I'm the one that came up with the stupid game," he reminded. She conceded with a slight nod as he lowered his hand. "And I'm sorry I surprised you like that. I'm usually more suave."

"I'm sure you catch all the honeys back home," Piper laughed awkwardly as she shifted. "I guess I just didn't think that you'd be interested in me, as silly as that sounds. And I'm not being self-deprecating before you get any ideas. I suppose I just didn't think I'd be your type."

"And who exactly is my type?"

"Skinny elves who look like they should be on the cover of magazines making tons of money?" Piper answered honestly. Astarion smiled before he genuinely laughed. "I'm just a naïve human woman who fell into this world who has no idea what's going on half the time."

"You're the only person who makes me laugh and confounds me at the same time," he countered. Piper grinned as she raised her shoulders.

"Must be my out-of-town charm," she remarked as she stared up at him. "You did mention that you wanted a certain type of fun with a certain person tonight. Do I get to know, or did I not win?"

"Well, according to the rules, you did not win, so you don't get a treat," Astarion recalled, humming in thought. Piper rolled her eyes, wondering where her open bottle of wine snuck off to before realizing she had left it over by Gale.

"That's a bummer," she complained, teasing him a little. He winked at her. In truth, he had thought about whisking her away for a little late-night tryst. However, that was when he thought she was going to figure out that he was seducing her. Now, it seemed too sudden with his initial seduction being so rocky. But that didn't mean that they couldn't at least spend some time together.

"Why don't we sneak out of camp and have a little wine time to ourselves, since you were able to find us the good stuff?" Astarion suggested, going back to her original plan. She raised an eyebrow as he handed her a bottle.

"But you can't get drunk," Piper reminded, unsure if that was what he really wanted.

"True, but I would love to test out your little theory about drinking your drunk blood. With your permission, as always," Astarion amended with a smirk. Piper smiled up at him before she nodded.

"I don't see why not," she agreed as he grabbed a bottle of his own. He led her out of the campsite and into the forest, sneaking away from the rambunctious party. She caught up to Astarion, glancing at him. "I do want to talk about us, though."

"Oh? What about us?"

"I know you said that I had caught your eye, but I'm not sure what you expect from me, if you expect anything."

"Well, I suppose that is a good discussion to have," Astarion smiled as he reached for her hand, pulling her along the path until they reached a clearing. They could still hear the party and see the lights of the camp, but it was far enough away that they could at least hear themselves think. "I don't expect anything from you, darling. I think expect is the wrong word to use in this situation."

"Okay," she replied, opening her wine. She wasn't sure how else to phrase it.

"Had I known that you were this clueless, I would have gone about this a very different way, though," Astarion informed with a smirk. "You were supposed to win the game, darling, and I was going to whisk you away for a rather passionate night."

Piper sputtered when she had tried to take a drink as Astarion chuckled, taking a sip of his own wine. She wiped her mouth before looking at him with wide eyes.

"So, you were thinking of something much more physical then," she muttered, still piecing that image together. It wasn't an unpleasant image, but it wasn't one that she had expected.

"If that was what you were interested in, then yes. I will say that sitting with you with a bottle of wine is just as enjoyable as well," he replied, winking at her. Piper's cheeks reddened before she took another sip. "Our relationship doesn't need to change either, if that makes you uncomfortable."

"It doesn't make me uncomfortable," she countered shyly, glancing up at him. Grinning, he reached for her hand.

"That's good, darling. I'm glad to hear it," he whispered, covering her fingers with his on the grass. Piper took another drink, wondering what exactly he was asking. It sounded like an exclusive friends with benefits type of relationship, which she would be fine with. Her main goal was to get home, even if it did prove to be impossible. Having a significant other in a different plane could make things more complicated than they needed to be.

Astarion continued to drink as well, glad that Piper did get the good wine in the end. It had created an awkward situation, but he had gotten his plan back on track. Well, for the most part. He hadn't bedded Piper as he had planned, but she was with him away from their campmates and the refugees. She even agreed to being almost lovers, which he would take.

After a few minutes of downing her wine, Piper felt a little bolder and leaned on Astarion's shoulder. Pleased, he wrapped his arm around her and placed his cheek on the top of her head. She felt safe in his arms ever since she had been brought back to life. He had been the last one she had seen before she died and the first person she saw when she came back. Of all the people she knew on this strange plane, she could trust Astarion with her life the most.

Eventually, the bottle of wine she had was empty and she whined. Astarion chuckled, glancing down at her. They had been sipping in a comfortable silence for a while, and he hadn't noticed that she had consumed it all in such a short time. He placed a knuckle under her chin and turned her face to look up at him.

"What's wrong, my dear?"

"I ran out of wine," she complained with a groan. Her eyes were heavy lidded as she pouted, but she kept eye contact with him.

"Oh, you poor thing. Come here," he whispered as he repositioned behind her. His chest met her back as she leaned against him. "Do you remember what we wanted to try before we left camp? It's okay if you don't remember."

"We wanted to see if my blood could get you drunk," she informed, tilting her head back to look up at him. Astarion smiled and nodded.

"Very good. Do you still want to try it?" he asked. Piper glanced between his two crimson eyes before she nodded.

"Yes, I think so."

"I need better than 'I think so,' darling," Astarion replied. Piper hummed as she thought, keeping her eyes on him. He could see the wheels in her head turning before she nodded more firmly.

"Yes, I want you to bite me," she answered.

"Then let's get you more comfortable," he said, wrapping his arm around her torso.

He pulled her tight against him, sprawling his legs out on each side of her. His other arm went across her shoulders as her hands rested on his forearm. Piper tilted her head far to the side, giving him access to her neck. He could see the twin puncture wounds he had given her a few nights ago, and he felt a strange twinge of pride in his chest.

"Are you ready?" he asked, giving her an option to opt out still. She nodded.

"I'm ready," she answered clearly.

Astarion hummed as he pressed his nose against her neck. He hadn't been able to take his time when he first bit her. He tried to be quick and painless with his attack, which hadn't worked. Piper shivered in anticipation before he bit down. A small gasp escaped her lips, surprised at the pain before the numbness came. It was such a strange feeling when she wasn't fighting for her life. While there was the initial prick, the cold numb feeling felt almost euphoric as she felt the blood start to be sucked from her neck.

Holding her tight, Astarion tried not to moan into her throat. Her blood was just as delicious as it was the first night he had it. He could taste the alcohol in it as well, and it added a certain richness that he found he enjoyed. Not something that he would indulge in often, as he didn't want to see Piper drunk all the time, but something that he wouldn't mind partaking in from time to time. It made him curious to what other things could affect the taste of her blood.

All too soon, Astarion detached himself from her throat and licked the wound closed. Piper's chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath, exhilarated by the experience. He held her close as she evened out her breathing before she turned to look up at him. He met her gaze, and she lifted her head to meet her lips with his in a searing kiss.