"My daughter, Valeriya, and Alexander's son, Leopald, have been arranged in marriage! It will be the wedding of the century!"

Nora froze and let her hand drop back to her side. She put her best fake smile on, watching as Leopald walked over and put his hand at the same spot she’d had hers at earlier, right at her waist. She clapped mindlessly, her heart dropping to the floor. “Congratulations you two!” She spoke quickly, her voice hollow. So, she didn’t have any chance after all.

Val and Leo both plastered fake smiles as everyone turned to look at them. Neither of them was excited for the marriage. They were best friends, not romantic partners. Besides, Leo already had a secret boyfriend. But they had to comply with their parents. There was a reason that Amur Leopards were in the Top Tier, and it was because the species was critically endangered. They were expected to multiply, no matter their feelings.

She almost couldn’t do it. Nora continued smiling before leaving to go over to the liquor table, getting vodka in her cup along with the punch that was there. She didn’t have a chance no matter what Val thought. She was getting married, and Leopald would be the one to kiss her, even if it was just pretend.

Val watched as Nora went, but she couldn't really leave Leo's side. Everyone was watching them, and they would know something was up if she did. "And you won't have to wait long for it!" Aleksei yelled from the balcony. "The wedding is next week!" Leo squeezed Val's hand, and she squeezed it back. Leo was in a serious relationship, and Val had found the person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. The person who was walking away.

Nora slipped through the crowds of applauding people, looking down as she did. She didn’t know why she was so hurt; she never really had a chance, did she? The one person who she even saw a life with was being dragged into one of her own. She was headed to go and find her mother and father, wondering if they even cared a sliver if she wasn’t there anyway.

A growing expression of worry crossed Val's face. "Go after her," Leo whispered, having known what the expression was. She looked at him.

"Are you sure? No, I couldn't do that. Should I?" She was conflicted.

"If you don't go, you'll lose her." She pecked his cheek, giving a soft word of thanks. Then she went through the crowd, trying to avoid everyone applauding her, trying to find Nora.

"Nora! Nora!" She yelled, making her voice heard above the crowd.

Nora heard her voice being called but she thought it just might be her mother, whom she had already passed. She was close to the doors now and she had calmed to a walking pace, trying to keep tears from spilling.

"Nora!" She called again, trying to get her friend's attention. A Bonobo stopped her, but she tried to look for Nora.

"I just want to say what an amazing example you are setting for the new generation," He said to her.

"Thank you sir, but I'm currently in the middle of something. NORA!"

Nora could hear the difference now, she knew it was Val’s voice. But why would she be coming after her? She had her hand on the door of the ballroom, waiting for a few seconds to see if she could see Val.

It was at that moment that everyone seemed to want to verbally congratulate Val. She could see Nora at the door, ready to go out, even if the red panda couldn't see her. She was swarmed with people around her, and she felt almost dragged to the ground. She managed to ground her footing and look back to the door, only to see Nora having opened it and walked through. "ENOUGH!" She yelled, angry, not really caring what her father thought at that moment. "Let me through! Please! Have some respect!" The crowd parted, afraid of the leopard. As she gritted her teeth, they could see her fangs glinting slightly. The Amur Leopard was a natural predator, and everyone knew how high up her father was, even the most respected Top Tiers. They knew she could rip them apart, in more ways than one.

Nora jumped slightly when she heard the yell and she began to open the door, wondering if it was even worth it at this point. It was inevitable, the two Amur Leopard’s would be wed and would procreate, even if forced to do so. She pushed the door open further, slipping out into the grand marble hallway.

"Thank you," Val said, still with an annoyed expression on her face. She started to walk towards the door, opening it and then closing it behind her. "Nora?" She called out. "Nora? Please, it's me, Val! I need to talk to you!”

Nora turned around on the steps, looking up at the girl. She was breathing heavily, and all she wanted to do was touch her and kiss her. “Val, I’m down here,” she hummed, walking back up the few stairs she had walked down.

Val looked to see where she was, and when the red panda was spotted, she ran towards her. It was almost as if she was being propelled forwards to the other girl. A feeling overwhelmed her, and she kissed Nora in the spur of the moment. Even if Nora didn’t feel the same, she had to at least try.

Nora made a small noise of surprise when Val kissed her, the two of them standing only meters from the stairs. She groaned quietly into the kiss, wrapping her arms around the leopard’s waist to steady herself. She melted into the kiss, breathing in Val’s scent and drinking in the taste of her lips. One of her hands trailed up her back, running through Val’s hair gently.

Val's tail and ears twitched with content. She broke away from the kiss, and placed her forehead on Nora's. "I really like you, Nora. I know that we haven't known each other for a while, but I just know that I need you in my life."

Nora smiled brightly as her words, capturing her lips in a kiss again before quickly pulling away when she heard the door start to open. She pushed Val off quickly but seemingly like nothing had happened. “Come with me to the washroom dear friend! We mustn’t make fuss about the thing in your eye. Come on,” she hummed softly, ushering her quickly over to the washroom, busting the door open before pressing her against the wall, kissing her deeply. “I think we’re destined to be wed!” she laughed gleefully, locking the door behind them so the woman in the crowd that had followed them couldn’t get in.

Not wanting to ruin the mood, Val hesitated to answer. "But it's not going to happen," She sighed. "We're like Romeo and Juliet, in a way. My father won't allow me to be with someone who isn't Leo or an Amur Leopard."

Nora pouted, her heart dropping. "You're right, you're completely right. I'm so sorry I kissed you back, now it's just going to be more painful for the both of us," she muttered to herself, her hands covering her eyes as she spoke. She had screwed up, hadn't she? Yet another thing that she fallen for even though she knew she couldn't have her in any of the ways she wanted her.

"We just have to do things in private if we're going to do anything," Val explained. "Just like Leo and Damian. They're the same as us. If you saw Leo and Damian alone without any prying eyes, you'd see how in love they are. But they have to hide it."

Nora hesitated with her next statement. She wanted to marry her. But she couldn’t say that now, could she? “That sounds like a plan,” she muttered softly, her eyes trailing to the stain-glass window.

"Valyeria! Valyeria! Where are you?!" Val heard her father calling, and she knew why.

"I have to go, but don't leave at the end of the night before I say goodbye." She left Nora with a kiss, hoping to see her yet again. "Coming father!" She yelled in Russian as she ran out of the room. She knew what she had to do, and for once, she was excited.