100 proof bonding

Caedes had been making good use of his open invitation to Elysium it seemed, and Alastor was quite pleased with that fact. Knowing that his daughter and her lover were no longer sneaking off to hidden caves in wild lands to enjoy their trysts brought some peace to his mind. At least here, in his house, he knew they could be safe to be together. Safer than if Caedes' family found them, at the very least. Alastor had enjoyed his initial interaction with Caedes and had found the Saxe brute to be refreshingly direct and honest. He was used to other wolves trying to dress up their words or intentions with frills and fluff to make themselves look better, but not Caedes. The dark wolf was unapologetically himself. In many ways, he reminded Alastor of a more taciturn version of himself. He was keen to get to spend more time with his daughter's partner and get to know him better—it would be needed if Caedes decided to take the leap of faith as he had years ago.

Timing was everything. Alastor knew that Mariah would keep Caedes tied up for a significant while, and that eventually the pair of impassioned lovers would need to take a break. That was when he ambushed the other brute for some bonding time of a different variety, asking Caedes to give Mariah a break from their vigorous activities so they could have some time to get to know one another better. He supposed he really should find a better way of intercepting Caedes instead of catching him post-coitus every time... Oh well! That was a concern for future Alastor.

Following dinner, Alastor headed down the mountain to the rocky shores with a pair of bottles of aged whiskey in his jaws, finding a clear spot where he could build a fire on the beach. He assembled it from some driftwood and deadwood from the nearby pine forest, then lit the fire and fed it til the flames crackled and rose to illuminate and warm the area. Then he flopped back to his haunches beside the fire with a sigh, slicing the top off one of the bottles with his gemstone claws, then gazing out over the dark ocean and the colorful bands of lights in the starry sky while he waited for their guest to come share a drink with him.

"Alastor Mendacium"