Im sure this scene is supposed to display their comfort with one another before they fought, but something stands out to me. The WHOLE time, Alastor is clutching his staff.

I noticed that Alastor has a little quirk that you can tell how he feels around others based on how he has his staff. When he talks to Zestial he has his hands on it, when he speaks with Mimzy at the hotel it was behind him, and when he was begging Rosie to fix it he was pointing it at her like a threat. Basically, his staff contributes to his body language.

So, I think it’s strange that he’s clutching his staff so close to himself throughout their interaction despite it being such an intimate setting. He kept it front and center where he could easily access it if he needed it. Therefore assuming he believes a situation where he would need it was possible.

This kinda leads me to believe that he wasn’t naive from the beginning and still kept his bearings. Which tells me he was NEVER fully comfortable with Vox and didn’t trust him to not cause a conflict.

Although I can spin this as a playful thing for him. “You went and ruined it”, makes me think he derived joy from their relationship being the way it is. He PREFERRED having a rival that was SIMILAR to HIM. And then the second Vox wanted something Al didn’t, he lost his mind and went off on him.