Redhawk Caldera Who knows how to use a flamethrower?

They embraced for a long beat before gently pulling apart. Towhee returned Finley's crooked smile with a small grin of affection and gratitude. She snorted at her aunt's words, taking the unfamiliar term as some sort of coded portmanteau of "alpha" and "dominance."

"I think I've already aced that lesson," she pointed out, expression turning into a slight smirk. Her face then grew more sober again. "Will—you'll still be a leader too, right? You and Uncle Elwood?" They hadn't explicitly discussed his role in any of this, though she knew full well that Finley wouldn't make such an important decision without her mate's blessing. "You'll be the Betas now?" Towhee guessed.

It was right then that the whole thing hit her. She felt suddenly breathless. She had been preparing to take on the Beta rank for a long time. But she had never seen this coming. She had leapfrogged right onto the golden red throne. Towhee could feel the yoke of responsibility settling upon her white-streaked shoulders. It didn't weigh on her, so to speak, but she was suddenly very, very aware of it.

"You'll be the Betas now," she repeated. It wasn't a question this time. "That's my first decree as Alpha," Towhee added, the light smirk returning even as a burgeoning excitement and sense of pride thrilled through her.