It'd started off well enough - all of the squirming bundles his wife had birthed had been possession of all the appropriates bits and pieces, tails, ears, toes, and even eyebrows properly attached where you would expect to find such appendages. Maybe not all of them had balls, but he could at least say that his daughter...sure was there? Some oddities only grew apparent with the passage of time. And as the months passed, it seemed that Rainer would have no recourse but to accept that the unusual redness that tainted @Everick's skin was not a flaw that was going to go away. What a troublesome reality. Well, it was probably far more troublesome for the albino boy than it was for Rainer, but still. The Jarl would not raise a boy to live in fear of the sun, of all things. The Rike were above such ridiculous vulnerabilities. As far as Rainer was concerned, it wasn't an issue that a healthy dose of regular exposure therapy wouldn't be able to fix! And with that utterly foolproof plan in mind, the grey beast would call for Everick insistently at the break of dawn, while leisurely making his way towards one of the more popular hunting grounds. Perhaps the allure of sinking his teeth into something still bleeding would be enough to properly motivate the boy outside of the swamp's cool, shaded depths.

Code by Shaz | Art by Moogle

He was quite eager to join his father upon hearing his call, finally able to spend some time with a male of the family as opposed to all the females of the pride he just kept running into. So he quickly trotted after the sound of the call, picking up on his father's scent trail shortly thereafter, which led right... out into the rapidly brightening day. Well, he was hardly going to let a little thing like the BLINDING SUN keep him from spending time with his father the all mighty Rike Jarl, and so he trotted out into the growing brilliance with only a soft disgruntled sound. The only problem was, he couldn't see worth a shit once the sun really started to come up and he knew it, so he did his best to follow his father using his ears and nose as he squinted, trying to keep from being blinded as his eyes slowly adjusted. Very slowly. What're we doing? he called out when he thought he was getting close, if that slightly fuzzy, massive dark shape in the near distance was his father. It probably was, unless someone was trying to impersonate him, which... seemed like a horrible idea on their part. @Rainer

ART AND CODE BY SHAZ

Fortunately, the albino boy does not leave the Jarl waiting for long, even as the sun's piercing light continued its creeping ascent over the distant horizon. Such wise decisions, and at such a young age, too! Clearly a trait that @Everick had gotten from him. Rainer watches critically as the scrap of pale hide weaves its way ever closer to him through the swaying grasses, taking note of the fact that the young seemed to have tracked him just fine. Though he might have a hard time charming the young ladies of Amaryllis if his face ended up getting stuck in that squinting, puckered expression. He highly doubts that the 'I sucked on a lemon' aesthetic has much of a following here. Or anywhere, actually. Come to think of it, what unholy creature out there liked lemons? "Hush." He hisses instinctively, grey tail lashing sharply while he turned his icy gaze pointedly to where the first of the watering hole's hooved visitors were just beginning to gather in their milling droves. "You vill not find out, if you startle our breakfast away so quickly." He rumbles, turning fully to stare down his son as he drew closer. "It's time for you to put your claws and fangs to good use, Everick. See those bleating nuisances over zere?" His massive skull swings gesturally towards a small cluster of tip-toeing gazelles. "I vill wear one down - but you vill be ze one to kill it. Bring it down, steal its life between your teeth, and you vill earn the right to train vith me as a warrior." A hefty task for a child barely halfway through his life, perhaps, but the world was full of such unfairness. It was better to figure out who was capable of rising to the challenge early on. And the 'reward' would be more than fair, no? A white paw reaches out to nudge at Everick's chin, the unseen threat of his sheathed claws heavy near such a delicate neck. "Open your eyes properly, mein Junge. You vill not strike fear in our enemies' hearts vith eyes half-closed." Nor did a blind lion make for an effective hunter. Hence why this little test would be the first stepping stone. 1. My boy.

Code by Shaz | Art by Moogle

Everick immediately shut his mouth as his father hushed him, dipping his head in a silent apology as he drew up next to him, squinting at the forms moving in the near distance. It seemed his father wanted him to go on a hunt with him, and while Everick was intrigued by the idea and willing to go along with it, he somewhat doubted his ability to succeed at this considering he'd never gone hunting before. Well... how hard could it possibly be to kill something? The punishment for failure wasn't something he wanted to think about. He'd just not find out what it might be. His butt wriggled once in betrayal of his silent excitement at the idea of being taught by his father, and he promptly almost smacked it into the ground as he forced himself into a crouch to keep himself still. The young man tensed briefly as @Rainer tapped him under the chin, his nose wrinkling only momentarily in dismay as he forced himself to open his eyes more, slowly but surely increasing the amount of light that poured into them. Well, he could certainly see better now, but the burning sensation in his eyes and the back of his head wasn't that great of a tradeoff. Eh, he'd just have to suffer for a little bit now and then when he had successfully accomplished this task and was alone again he could go back to protecting his eyes, right? Right. Ready, vater, he whispered once he was slightly more adjusted to the blinding ball of light in the sky above.

ART AND CODE BY SHAZ