"Elders!"
I say in greeting as I walk inside the conference room, going straight to sit on Thor's seat at the head of the table.
But instead of them acknowledging my greetings, they look at me with disdain. Like I'm not right in the head and also not worthy to stand before them.
Even without speaking to me, I can imagine the wheels in their bone heads turning as they wonder...
'Who the fuck is this nobody standing before us? How can he be so brazen? How can he be so disrespectful as to sit before his Elders without first asking for permission?'
'Ridiculous!' I thought and laughs to myself, wishing Thor was here so we can laugh together over this ridiculousness.
The Elders of a pack are not determined by just old age. Before an old wolf is to be named an Elder in a pack, the wolf-man or she-wolf must be of renowned wisdom and strength. The Elders are the ones that the Alphas MAY submit themselves to and go to for advice If the said Elder has shown in many ways that they have indeed earned the title bestowed on them and are worthy to be called a true Elder.
It is very obvious that these pompous old wolves in front of me don't have the criteria of a true Elder. They are probably old Alphas from a rich pack who desired to sit on the council after they'd handed their Alpha position to their equally pompous kids
Well, I don't care who appointed them as elders. In my own opinion, they are not worthy. They think because money exchanged hands and they were named Elders of not just their pack but also of the Council, they can walk around high and mighty, while the rest of us kiss their asses and worship at their feet.
Spoiling for a fight, I look at Henrik and Ivar who I guess have been on their feet ever since these old-timers arrived out of respect for them.
"Sit guys. They are not your Alpha and so you are not obligated to stand while they sit!"
"Yes Beta" Henrik and Ivar reply as they sit on each of my sides.
I smile when I see the old farts' eyes widen in disbelief while looking at each other. They can't believe I just asked Ivar and Henrik to sit at the same table with them. Well, they don't need to stay if they don't like my friends' presence. They can spare themselves and myself the misfortune of seeing each other's faces by quickly saying what they came for and leaving.
"So, to what do we owe the pleasure of your presence Elders?" I ask as if I didn't notice the disapproval on their faces. I can't read minds. It's either they voice out their discomfort by telling me Henrik and Ivar cannot sit at the same table with them or they bottle it in till they can't take anymore and leave.
"Who are you? We want to speak with your Alpha, not you." One of them finally speak in a condescending manner
"As regards to what? Do you have an appointment." I ask coolly, not bothering about his attitude.
"Excuse me? What do you mean by that? Have you ever heard of Council elders booking appointments to visit a pack before?"
"Has anyone ever told you how rude and disrespectful you are?"
Two of them fired at me at the same time.
"No. I have never been called rude before. You are the first elderly person that has ever called me rude and you know what?... I think it's because people like you think what the rest of us see as normal should be specially tailored to suit your ego..."
"How dare you!" The only one that hasn't spoken out of the three suddenly bangs his hands loudly on the conference table, shaking with anger.
"How dare me what?... I ask if you have an appointment, where is the crime in that?... There's a reason why normal people ask for an appointment before visiting people's houses, right?...
Obviously, you don't get that. Anyways, I regret to inform you that the Alpha flew out of the country early this morning. He had an urgent business that he had to attend to and he left me, his Beta in charge of pack matters.
Do you now see why I ask if you have an appointment? If you had called ahead before coming then maybe the Alpha would have waited for your visit. So as much as you hate seeing my face right now, you have no other choice than to tell me your reasons for wanting to see the Alpha or whatever you think I can help you with. Otherwise, you can wait for whenever he will return."
They look like they are short of words. They know I got them in a corner so they glare hatefully at me, their faces red with anger.
I stare back at them in amusement. They think they can come here and shock us with their bad news. The joke is on them.
"If your Alpha is not in the country, then does any one of you in this mansion listen to the news?" One of them ask in resignation
"Of course, Elder. Who doesn't listen to the news. Just that we just moved into Alpha's mansion yesterday. We've been so busy finding our way around and settling in that we couldn't make the time to watch the recent happenings. Why do you ask though? Is there anything happening on TV that might interest us?" I ask with a smirk
"If that's the case, have you heard of any rumor of your Alpha's impeachment?" He ask with a smug look that makes him look like an overaged pup playing pranks on his elders.
I laugh at him before replying
"Yes elder, I heard about it not quite long ago. And seeing that you are here, I guess you came to clear the air that the news was just a bad joke that was circulated by a bunch of ugly old farts, right?" I reply with a serious expression on my face.
I can clearly hear Ivar make funny sounds as he holds himself back from laughing. Henrik has a steel face but not Ivar. The idiot can't hold in his laughter. I just pray he doesn't laugh because if he does then I might not be able to hold mine too
The Elders start to growl and bare their canines in annoyance then. I guess they also hear Ivar trying to stiffles is laughter. When I see they're getting ready to shift, I say to them...
"Before an old wolf is to be named an Elder in a pack, the wolf-man and she-wolf must be of renowned wisdom and STRENGTH..." I emphasized the word strength.
"It's three against three Elders. So bring it on, I guess we're about to find out if you three are truly worthy to be called Council Elders."
Henrik and Ivar growls loudly beside me in excitement as their bodies get ready to shift.