The autumn nights in northern Boreas were cool and crisp, cold enough to leave frost and delicate ice flakes clinging to the surfaces of trees and rocks, freezing the dew on the grass into beads of tiny ice like crystals scattered across the ground. Overhead, the auroras that belted and banded their way across the midnight sky were dancing their usual rapturous display over inky black skies and smothering the celestial heavens beyond. Only the light of the full moon managed to make its way through the neon colors, casting silver amidst the hues of light that lit up the world like a wonderful kaleidoscope in motion. It was beautiful; a picturesque scene fit only for the gods, and yet mere mortals like themselves were blessed with its grace and presence.

As Alastor sat outside the den he and Manea had shared for the entirety of their lives since they had formed Elysium, he couldn't help but feel a little melancholic as he watched the auroras, reminiscing on the years that had passed. The more he reflected, the more he realized just how much of his life had passed. At eight, he already had a half dozen children, a loving mate, had been an alpha for half his existence, and lived a comfortable and peaceful life. Major life events flashed before his eyes, mixed in with the swirling spectrum of color overhead, each one making him feel older than the last. Alastor released a heavy sigh, glancing down from the auroras to his long tail fur curled around his paws—and spotting the irregular silver flecks of gray fur in amongst the sea of black. Fuck, he was getting old... With a frown on his face, Alastor huffed and resolved himself to do something about the emotional weight of age. He was going to do something to make himself feel young again, dammit!

Returning back to the den, Al stuck his head inside and called out, "Manea, darling! Could you join me out on the terrace, please?" The behemoth of a wolf went back to where he had been sitting on the flat plateau and waited for his wife to emerge from their den. The moment his violet-furred mate stepped outside, Al immediately greeted her with a toothy grin and dropped into a fighting stance, paws spread and muscles tensed to spring into action. "Would you share a dance with me, my love?" he asked, though the wicked gleam in his eyes and bared fangs betrayed just what kind of dance he was hinting at with her. A rough, violent dance, the kind the Mendaciums reveled in. He wanted her to fight him and make him feel like he did when they had fought each other when he was courting her back in their youths.

WC: 464
Total: 464 / 1500

"Alastor Mendacium"

Things around the pack had been far more lively as of late with the birth of Ikigai and Deimos' litter and the approaching brith of the litter Scylla was carrying for Avacyn and Saracyn. It felt good to have pups around the pack again. They breathed a certain kind of life and excitement into their family and she had been all too eager to spend every moment watching after them whenever she was allowed. Now as she stood in their den, looking up from the blanket she was working on that she wanted to gift to their eldest children for their new family, she couldn't help but think about the days when all of these chambers and corridors had been filled with children of their own. This was a far larger den than the two of them needed for just themselves, but there was so many memories here that she couldn't fathom leaving. She was wistfully peeking in the empty room that had once belonged to Saracyn when she heard Alastor's voice calling from the front of the den, pulling her attention with some surprise as he asked her to come out to the terrace. She wasn't sure what he could want her for out there, but she called back regardless, saying, "Be right there!"

She quickly folded the blanket she had been working on to make sure that it wouldn't get dirty before she turned and made her way toward the open space that stretched out in front of their home. The vibrant colors of the unusual auroras cast a beautiful array of colors across the smooth plateau, the moon casting just enough cool light for her to see by. That's where she found her husband, a bright grin cutting across his dark face as he fell into a familiar fighting pose. She raised a curious brow at him, but she couldn't help the matching grin that slowly pulled at her lips in return. She had not a clue what had gotten her handsome brute into such a mood, but as he asked her to dance she knew she would be taking full advantage of her soul mate's spontaneousness. "I would love to, handsome," she purred in response with a little chuckle, easily stepping into a fighting stance of her own as she moved toward him. It had been quite a long time since they had fought one another–something that had been such a common part of their relationship back when they were younger.

She stalked toward him with measured, languid movements, beginning to slowly circle with him in the middle of this terrace with a wicked grin lingering on her muzzle. Alastor was and had always been the more bloodthirsty of the two of them, but she relished a fight just as much–especially when it was with him. After a few teasing moments she finally leapt toward him with tiger-like paws outstretched, trying to hook her paws around his neck as she went for his scruff, claws biting into his shoulders as she wasted no time trying to grapple and overpower her muscular demon, her body pressing into his as she kicked off their dance.

WC: 527
Total: 991 / 1500

"Manea Mendacium"

Alastor had not expected Manea to deny him his request of a violent dance together; she had never refused an opportunity to get her paws and jaws on him before and that was not going to change tonight. Alastor returned Manea's grin as the two Mendaciums prepared themselves for their dance on the moonlit terrace high in the mountains, the auroras bathing them in neon lights. It was moments like this that they had built their relationship on, and it was these moments that made Alastor feel alive, the same ways he had when she had breathed new life into him when he had gone wayward so many years ago. His flowing tail swished with excitement behind him as his wife began to stalk her way towards him with graceful, practiced movements, almost feline-like in nature. Obsidian eyes tracked her movements around him, keeping his svelte mate in his sights at all times. Ordinarily, allowing her to sneak up behind him would have been exactly what the dire brute would have wanted—but in a spar, it was the exact opposite.

Manea slunk around his side and Alastor pivoted on his paws, never permitting his violet queen to leave his line of sight, an eager and anticipatory grin peeled across his muzzle. Every nerve was steeled, every sense heightened, waiting for her. Sure enough, after teasing him and keeping him on edge, Manea suddenly lunged for him with deadly tiger paws extended for his neck. With his size and bulk, Alastor was not the most agile of wolves, and he was unable to withdraw before Manea’s paws grasped his shoulders, her sharp claws finding purchase through ebony fur and flesh. The dire brute grit his teeth in a snarl as he grimaced against the pain, enduring it so he could press his body back into Manea’s with all his might, letting her feel the ripple of solid muscles as he slammed into her like a sumo wrestler. The sting of pain ignited his nerves, electricity running through every synapse in his brain. The pain was like an aphrodisiac to the demon brute and he utilized it to his advantage.

With Manea still clinging to him, Alastor growled and pushed his larger body into hers, seeking to push her off balance while powerful jaws opened wide to snap at the side of her neck, trying to grab her around her throat in their close proximity. One massive paw lifted to wrap around her side, razor sharp Siam claws extended just far enough to be able to catch skin as he went to grapple with her back. He wanted to prevent Manea from retreating, to keep her locked in his space where he could dominate her with his greater size and raw strength.

WC: 460
Total: 1451 / 1500

"Alastor Mendacium"

As her forelegs found purchase around Alastor's neck, she dug her back paws in for as much purchase as she could have possibly gotten on this rocky surface just in time for Alastor to press his heavier frame into hers. Even though only a few inches separated them in height he certainly had the advantage when it came to sheer power and muscle. She snarled as she pressed back into him and braced herself against his attempts to push her back or topple her over. Of course she knew she was fighting a losing battle in that regard, but that didn't mean she didn't enjoy the fight all the same. With all of the effort she was putting into keeping ahold of her husband and maintaining this grapple she had on him she didn't notice him going for her throat until his teeth were already pressing into her skin. A grin crossed her lips at the feeling, a gasp escaping her that settled into a low growl. His claws at her back only made her growl louder as they were locked into this stalemate of trying to overpower one another.

Manea knew she was going to have to do something to shift the tide in her favor or she was going to have to give in. It would have been plenty easy to fall back and let Alastor have this victory, but what fun would that be? After keeping up this struggle for a few moments longer, she pretended that her hind legs finally gave out and relented to the pressure he was putting on her, but instead she fell onto her back and tried to keep going and roll with Alastor to flip him onto his back, using gravity and momentum to her advantage. She kept that grip on the back of his neck and shoulders all the same, keeping him close so he wouldn't have a chance to let her go to avoid falling with her.

WC: 328
Total: 1779 / 1500

"Manea Mendacium"

Naturally, Manea did not go down without a fight. Alastor honestly would have been sorely disappointed if his mate had simply caved under his surge of strength, but she met him head on with equal force, snarling as viciously as he snarled, pressing her lithe, powerful body back into his. The rush of the struggle and the heat of battle was a high that coursed through the dire brute's veins like a drug, adrenaline honing his senses as the pair of wolves fought ferociously against one another. They gave each other no quarter, fighting for every inch they could take from the other. Despite her fervor though, Alastor knew he would win this war of attrition if he kept at it. Sure enough, Manea was so focused on maintaining her grapple on his body that she didn't notice his jaws going for her throat until he had them wrapped around her neck. The gasp that he pulled from her as his fangs pressed into her skin sent a lustful shiver crawling down Alastor's spine, and the growl she responded with was quickly met by a squeezing of his jaws around her throat until he felt the vibrations of her vocal cords against his tongue, seeking to cut off her sounds with a chokehold on his wife.

With his submission hold on Manea, Alastor knew it would only be a matter of time before she was forced to relent and surrender to him or attempt something risky to free herself. It turned out that his violet goddess opted to surrender to him, her body slumping down as her hind legs gave out beneath her, unable to keep up with their struggle. The corners of Alastor's lips curled upward in a triumphant grin as he prepared to throw her to the ground and stake his dominance, but instead he was taken off guard to find Manea falling backwards and pulling him along with her. Although he was heavier than her, the surge of her strength coupled with their momentum and gravity helped tug the dire brute off his paws. He had no chance to try and break free, so instead he rode out the momentum with her, letting their bodies tumble backwards over one another's. All the while, Alastor refused to relinquish his hold on Manea's throat, clinging to her neck as she clutched around the back of his neck.

The pair of wolves tumbled to the hard ground with Manea rolling with their movements so she ended up on top of him—but only for a moment. Alastor's back hit the ground and his giant paws still wrapped around her slender sides clutched tight to her, holding her body to his as he pushed off the ground with all his strength, muscles rippling and core flexing as he pushed into their roll to reverse it one last time. With the last of their momentum, Alastor flipped Manea over and pushed her body down onto the ground, paws leaving her sides to grab ahold of her shoulders and pin her down with a powerful press. His jaws, still locked around her throat, squeezed hard once more with a threatening snarl against her flesh in his mouth, letting her feel the prick of his sharp fangs against her tender skin as he strangled her. He demanded her absolute submission from her, bracing his hind paws from between hers in a strong, stable stance to ensure Manea had nowhere left to roll out from or squirm free. All he needed to do now was wait for her to submit or until he choked her out.

"Alastor Mendacium"

There was a feeling of satisfaction in that brief moment as her plan played out perfectly, the two dire wolves tumbling head over heels with one another and allowing her to at least temporarily get him onto his back despite his jaws still being latched onto her throat. However, Alastor's sheer strength was something she could never really match and he proved that yet again as he flipped her over onto her back once more. This time his paws moved to her shoulders, roughly pinning her to the stone and making it impossible for her to wriggle or twist away no matter how hard she pulled against his grip. What little air she was still able to breathe was cut off as his grip on her throat grew tighter, cutting off her breathing with a strangled gasp. She felt his teeth pricking into her skin and she knew without a doubt now that she had lost–but only in the sense of the fight. She knew that for everything that would come after she would still very much be getting a prize.

Finally she relented as her vision began to swim, a grin crossing her lips as her eyelids fluttered. She relaxed under him, but kept the hold she had around the back of his neck, her claws hooked firmly into the thick fur of his scruff. With his hind legs planted between her own it was easy enough for her to lift her hips a bit and hook her hind legs around his waist with the last bit of conscious thought she had. They may have gotten older and mellowed with age and parenthood, but that didn't mean a rough fight with her husband didn't turn her on any less. She pulled herself up into him and his hips down into hers until she felt the firm press of his most sensitive parts against her own. Any sound she might have made was cut off, but a tremble of lust still ran through her all the same as she silently begged her soul mate to claim his prize.

"Manea Mendacium"