From the Ashes

8

Tony follows Alec into what appears to be an office, the context clues being the large desk in the middle. The old mahogany wood stands out in stark contrast to the cream paint on the walls and the off-white carpet.

Alec touches the desk with his fingers as he rounds the single piece of furniture. He huffs and turns around on his heel to face his brother. "What?" he grumbles, clearly very annoyed with Tony's continuing presence. He's not in the mood to fight with him anymore. Alec has had enough conflict in this past week alone to last an entire lifetime.

"Where's Estelle?" Tony crosses his arms over his chest accusingly.

Alec rolls his eyes. His brother always acts like he knows everything. "She had some attitude problems." He shakes his head thoughtfully. A sour look crosses his face and a deep frown embeds on his lips. "She couldn't handle losing her rank." By that he really meant, she couldn't handle losing Ariana.

"So that's it? She just... left?" Tony asks, not quite believing that's all there was to the story. "She wasn't forced?"

Alec cracks a small smile. "She had it coming." 

Estelle was basically the fifth Moretti child. While Alec would never admit it, he loves her. So when he smiles at the thought of putting her in her place, it isn't malicious. It is more satisfaction than pride. And behind his smile, he does regret how harshly he handled that situation. But it was done now.

Tony has never condoned his brother's most unfortunate trait of pride. "You're an ass--you know that, right?" He scoffs.

Alec rolls his eyes and grimaces at the familiar words his brother had uttered many-a-time. "So I've been told." His face and voice lose all humor and instead adopts a more grim tone and a threatening look.

"You could try not being an asshole sometime. It wouldn't hurt," Tony adds smartly.

Alec sets both of his hands down on his desk and leans forward. "Being an alpha isn't easy, Tony. You'll never understand the things I've done, and I don't expect you too. But as long as I keep my family safe, I'm content." His eyes bore into his brothers'. "I frankly don't give a damn what you think of me. I do what I have to."

In the "hierarchy," so-to-say, of werewolves, there are the "normal" ones, like the rest of the Moretti family, and then there are "alpha's." Like the Phoenix, when one dies, another is born, to keep the natural order of things. However, unlike the Phoenix, there are many alpha's as there are many packs they lead.

Supernaturals naturally seek out a pack, it is their instinct--werewolf and non-werewolf; And each of those packs have an alpha. There is no set number to how many packs there are at a given time, as all alpha's do not choose to lead one. The Alphas that do not lead become Omegas--lone wolves. And no pack can be led by any species other than a werewolf, as they are the only ones to produce alphas.

Alec and Tony glare at each other. Neither of the brothers dare to be the first to look away.

Tony recalls when his father explained his brother's strong anger issues.

"Mio figlio," Papá Moretti squats in front of his youngest son. He brushes his brown curls away to reveal his big, dark eyes. "Your brother does not mean to be cruel. It is not okay, but there is a reason why he has a harder time controlling his anger."

Six-year-old Tony was frightened by a sudden outburst from his brother. They were only playing a simple board game when Alec decided to flip the board in the middle of their game with their other siblings. He screamed at them and tore the pages of the instruction manual apart. Their mother had to drag him away before his claws could shred her furniture.