The redbud forest wasn't quite as lovely as Veigar remembered it. It was a combination of things, from his ever-so-slightly blurred vision to the strange emptiness forming inside his chest since his sickness, and finally to the strange loneliness that had gripped him since Aryn had left. Hearing his mother's voice again, so clearly as if she was still here, only for his hopes to be shattered swiftly with the reminder that he'd never quite see her again... he hadn't felt right since then. Even with the return of the sun that world didn't seem nearly half as brilliant as it had once seemed. Stalking through the forest he tried to find a reason to look up, but his eyes were permanently cast down, watching his paws as he trekked forward with no real purpose in mind.

Meanwhile, the speckled child, fur as chaotic as his mannerisms, loped about in a carefree manner. The forest, to him, was the same as it always looked - except now the sun had made the light filter through the leaves, turning the area into a sea of dappled gold flecks, some of which painted his coat as he gleefully trotted through the woodland. He loved exploring, and what pup didn’t? The world was still new to him, as were most of his family and not-so-family within the pack. Though he’d had the chance to play with his siblings, and gain a mentorship under Misery, he had yet to meet more new faces. Especially since Misery had departed on his own missions outside the pack. He’d given the child a goal; collect as much information about everyone as possible. Mac assumed it was because Misery didn’t like his close siblings, like Kali. He didn’t know the whole story about that drama, though..yet.

Upon spotting an unfamiliar wolf, Mac stopped in his own trek, approaching his fellow packmate with a wide, toothy grin. He didn’t know this guy yet - was he also a Klein? He had so many siblings, not to mention extended family, cousins, y’know..everybody. He had yet to wrap his head around his older siblings and some others he’d met. This fellow seemed nice enough, and Mac was far from shy. Not really stopping to process the other pup’s downcast expression, he chirped, "Hi! I’m Macabre, or Mac for short!" Tail wagging, he added, "Are you also a Klein? I gotta ask, because it seems like almost everyone’s a cousin or sister or brother. It’s crazy!" He didn’t know why the boy seemed sad, but he wasn’t the best person to aporoach in terms of emotions. He barely registered how he perceived his own emotions in front of others.

Macabre's mannerisms were quite a bit different than his own. When he was a bit younger he'd been much more carefree but as he neared the point where he'd be considered a yearling he'd grown a bit more restrained, like the long night had permanently darkened some part of him. Veigar watched curiously as the boy approached, noting the way the black and white markings on his face seemed to blur together in his vision, turning to a hazy shade of grey. "I'm Veigar," he returned his enthusiastic greeting with only a minuscule fraction of the same energy. "No," he lied to his question, after a moment of hesitation. His father had been Harbringr Klein but he'd died before he'd even been born. Veigar was no Klein and wouldn't claim to be one. "But yeah, this place is kind of overrunning with Kleins. You have a bunch of brothers and sisters too, right?"

Macabre didn’t note much of the older boy’s unenthusiastic greeting - unlike most people, he didn’t reflect the same energy as the other person within his conversation, instead, he brandished his own wild personality without a care. With the grin on his mottled face unwavering, the younger child tilted his head slightly at the male’s name. Veigar..pretty cool. He didn’t know what a Veigar was - if it was anything tangible, that is. Perhaps it was just a name without any specific meaning, and he didn’t mind. Nor did he care. He wasn’t what you’d call a considerate character, even for a child. He noted the hesitation in the male’s voice when he declined that he was related, making Mac’s lumiescent grey orbs shimmer softly in some essence of curiosity. For what little he did understand of social mannerisms, Veigar’s pause indicated, on some level, that he was lying. Did he care, though, to pry? Nope. If he said he wasn’t a Klein, so be it. Mac didn’t waste his energy trying to pursue those who claimed the same last name as him. He just encountered them as they came along. "Well, that’s a relief, actually. It’d be weird if the pack were all Kleins, after all," Mac noted out loud, flashing his toothy smile towards the luminescent-freckled boy. He wondered if those glowing spots were from the long night they’d had, or if they were completely natural. His own glowing grey eyes sure weren’t. "Yep! I have my littermates and also my older siblings." He said it with glee, though who was to say his enthusiasm was all genuine? He faked his emotions quite often, surprisingly compared to how dramatic he was. He played the part of whatever mask suited him for each person he met. Who’s to say anyone knew the real him?

Feeling like he didn't belong was kind of the core of his personality. He was part of Habari, sure, but he was no Klein. He considered Recluse and Deathbelle and Aryn all parental figures in a way, but he was not really one of their sons. He was no one - getting sick had only wedged that thought deeper and deeper into his mind, and now it seemed unshakable, tainting his every waking moment. Aryn disappearing on him only made it worsen. "Yeah, I guess," he mumbled barely-coherent agreement at Macabre's statement. His tone spoke of disinterest, but it shifted quickly as he continued to speak. "You must've already started training to fight, then?" Knowing who his mother, he was sure he already knew the answer. "Wanna show me what you know?" Maybe a quick little fight would help him feel marginally less miserable - though it wasn't like he'd really go all-out on a kid half his age, but it'd be something.

Mac paid little mind to Veigar’s deflated expressions and response. His luminescent grey eyes were bright, but barely registering that Veigar was struggling with his own matters. Thus, further reinforcing that the speckled child wasn’t really the empathetic type - though, at the older boy’s mention of whether he was already training to fight, he nodded his head vigorously in response. "Of course! Since I first came out of the den, basically,” He chirped enthusiastically. What kind of child of Recluse would he be, truly, if he hadn’t already begin sharpening his skills? He lived to become strong and one day defeat those who’d certainly become his enemies. He’d looked forward to the day where he could truly let loose the bloodlust within him, and prove all he knew with deadly results. However, he was still a child, and such a fierce fighting style was innapropriate for just sparring and training. He’d get his chance to kill..someday. "Wanna show me what you know?" Veigar had asked him, to which the chaotic child leaned into a play bow. "Absolutely! Better watch out though, ‘cause I’ve been training a lot!" He said. He wasted no time sweeping his glowing silver gaze over the larger child, and without much ado, the boy wiggled his rump and aimed to roll into a firece somersault, with the brute but swift intent to bowl the lightly built male over, if not strike him off-balance. If this succeeded, he’d aim to whirl around back on his feet and aim to ram his shoulder into Veigar’s left side. Truly, a pup his size wouldn’t hurt him, and he knew it was mostly play. He figured the male would go easier on him as he was younger, but he’d give it his all anyways. Life with siblings that were mostly much taller and larger than him taught him a lot.

Macabre vs Veigar for Spar
Round 1/2
Age: Under 6 months
Size: Medium
Build: Medium
Offensive Battle Accessory: Bracers with switchblades
Skills: Intermediate Fighter & Intermediate Intellectual

A fight was a welcome distraction, and Veigar allowed a small grin as Macabre agreed to show him what he knew. Of course he'd been training since he'd left the den - and he was eager to see what he knew, where he could improve. He returned the play-fight stance with a bow of his own, chest lowering to the ground before Macabre charged him. Not in the typical way though; he rolled head over butt right toward him and Veigar made to dodge out of his way, despite knowing the other boy's smaller size would do little to him even if she did run into him. He wouldn't give him the satisfaction of striking immediately, aiming to dodge away from him and send his own greater weight right into him, a paw lifting and attempting to strike down across his back and send him stumbling.

Veigar vs Macabre for Spar
Round 1 / 2
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Large
Build: Light
Skills: Beginner Fighter & Beginner Intellectual

TABLE & CODE © SKELLE 2021
"Speech!"
Macabre’s smaller soze put him at great disadvantage in fights. He often got beaten by his siblings in spars, though despite his competitive nature, he was never pouty about it. He didn’t see much point in getting angry or upset over playing with his siblings, or even in more official spars, because he knew he’d only get stronger no matter if he won or lost. Experience was the name of the game, not always victory. Of course, if push came to shove, he’d push back - he was by no means someone who just rolled over and accepted defeat. Male no mistake about it. The speckled child recovered from his dodged attack, not surprised that the larger boy had avoided it. Of course he did! But he wouldn’t let him get away so easily. He had other tactics that played well with his smaller size. Getting up on all fours, his silver gaze caught the older boy making a move to swipe him with his paw as well as pushing into him. Instead of rolling out of the way, Mac aimed to time the right moment as Veigar pivoted towards him and leap onto his larger now unbalanced form to obtain the higher ground. If he succeeded, he’d splay his toes into the boy’s back as he aimed to crawl towards Veigar’s skull, aiming to bop his head with a firm but playful swat of his paw. He liked climbing in people - as a smaller fellow it made him grin to see others reeling in confusion as to what to do with this little thing on their backs.

Macabre vs Veigar for Spar
Round 2/2
Age: Under 6 months
Size: Medium
Build: Medium
Offensive Battle Accessory: Bracers with switchblades
Skills: Intermediate Fighter & Intermediate Intellectua

Veigar was pleased that Macabre wouldn't go down without a fight, at least not so quickly. He wouldn't be a Klein if he did. He was surprised - but also pleased - when Macabre reacted fluidly to his strike to lunge directly on top of him. Instinctively he gave him a hard shake as he felt a paw come in contact with his head, trying to keep his balance with the boy's added weight. Jerking his head to the side, stumbling slightly as he attempted to balance and stay upright, he parted his jaws and aimed to snap at his paw above him before he retracted it.

Veigar vs Macabre for Spar
Round 2 / 2
Age: Over 1 Year
Size: Large
Build: Light
Skills: Beginner Fighter & Beginner Intellectual

And the winner is...

Veigar

Macabre must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: Macabre: Attack Roll: 3 Defense Roll: 55 Agility Roll: 34 Perception Roll: 65 Total: 157 Attack[3] + 20% Bonus[0.60]: 3.60 Defense[55] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 55.00 Agility[34] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 34.00 Perception[65] + 10% Bonus[6.50]: 71.50 Total[164.10] + -20% Bonus[-32.82]: 131.28 Veigar: Attack Roll: 48 Defense Roll: 83 Agility Roll: 25 Perception Roll: 89 Total: 245 Attack[48] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 48.00 Defense[83] + 5% Bonus[4.15]: 87.15 Agility[25] + 5% Bonus[1.25]: 26.25 Perception[89] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 89.00 Total[250.40] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 250.40