His....father...told him that he had to play with his brother, and he didn't know how to feel about that. He just wanted to cling to safety, to home, to the soft voice that loved him, to his mother who offered him the only wonderful thing he'd ever known, and his father had taken Carrie away from him to speak with her. She didn't look too happy, but she whispered quiet encouragement to him and touched his cheek and smiled at him before she left, and that was the important thing. He would be a brave son for her, he would face what scared him with courage.

He turned. And looked up.
Even if what scared him was supposed to be part of his family.

From the very moment the two brothers locked eyes, instantly they disliked each other, and for Yarrow, the feeling only grew. He didn't want to be around the tall, majestic colt, he wanted to run away and hide and close his eyes against that horrible sneer that told him he was less than worthy.

What did he do? He didn't do anything wrong! He wanted to cry, but he wanted to be brave, so he took a deep breath and kept eye contact with Kingsfoil.

Play with his brother. Why did his father want him to do that with such a pathetic weakling? That stupid, malformed nuisance was just like his stupid mother! He should never have been born! Still, the Lord wanted him to be toughened up and he guess since he was a prince he had to at least try to make weak subjects useful. He could try but he doubted it would work... He could smell the weakness from where he stood.

Oh wait... that wasn't weakness it was just his brother's stench. Kingsfoil wrinkled his nose as he watched the brown thing slink towards with his head low, practically oozing his submission like a virus. He knew that meant his little brother would be easy to control but it also meant that this could possibly be a long day.

Kingsfoil said nothing while he stared down at Yarrowfeld, eyes like chips of ice as he silently dared the weakling to look up at him. When he finally did he gave a nod. First test passed but how would he fare with others? After he locked eyes with his brother --noting the slate-gray gaze and already growing antlers with sheer jealousy-- a sneer formed on his face. "Congratulations, you actually showed up. I thought I'd have to go find you and drag you here by your tail." The fawn gave a cruel little laugh before shaking his head like it was all just a joke.

"Oh but don't worry, I'll be nice to you. Father has instructed me to train you so that you'll be... useful. So, that's exactly what I intend to do. You'll be the first of my official royal guard." His eyes searched up and down the hybrid like he was appraising a new toy. He had the rhino twins, yes, but they were more accustomed to looking after Hasira. Besides, wouldn't it be grand if he could just train his own little army? "Do you know how to fight? I mean, you've got the antlers already. Surely you know how to use them." There was a hint of bitterness in his voice that wasn't betrayed by his golden eyes when he mentioned those antler stubs. His hadn't grown yet.

@Yarrowfeld

Yarrow felt his fur rise on edge, and he looked down at the ground again, sitting on his haunches, wringing his little hands. He didn't like walking on them much, but walking on his back feet didn't seem to work very well. He had to suffer through it, it seemed, and he wished he had hooves like his brother so that he didn't have to feel every rock and pebble under his senstive hands.

Maybe...if something covered his hands, at least the palms of them...so that it wouldn't hurt? A small idea formed in his head, fuzzy and ill-formed, like a sheet of paper he tried to fold mentally around his hands, but before he could go anywhere with it, his brother brought him back to attention, sneering at him and insulting him.

W-why...? Why would he pull him by the tail? Why would he do that? Yarrow trembled. It would hurt, too! He didn't do anything to deserve that! And if King thought it was funny, Yarrow didn't.

And there was that word again, the word he disliked. Useful. It just irritated him, dug under his skin, making it crawl, and he wanted to cover his ears so he never heard the word again. And what was he saying, about making him a guard? He didn't want to guard, he just wanted to be with his mother and be safe.

"F-....fight?" He repeated, trembling, his small voice breathy and quiet. Antlers? He had antlers? He reached up slowly and felt the top of his head, frowning, feeling hard little nubs peaking out from under the skin. How would you use these tiny little things for anything at all?

He could see the weakling trembling in his fur. It annoyed him and with a barely veiled threat in his voice he said, "Stop sniveling, coward. I haven't even done anything to you... yet." He stamped a hoof in the earth to shed that excess anger as he sighed. He was a prince. It wouldn't do for the commoners to see that he was getting too far worked up by their silly antics.

Then Yarrow was questioning him, stuttering like a buffoon. Kingsfoil rolled his eyes and said mockingly as he imitated Yarrow's voice, "F-Fight...?" He made a "tsk" sound and then went on forcefully. "Duh! I don't stutter like you! You can't be a part of father's kingdom unless you know how to do something... Something besides sit in the dirt and be a drain on resources." Lifting his nose into the air like the self-important princeling that he was the fawn began to pace side to side as he outlined everything for Yarrow. "Listen up, mutt, you might have been made by accident but that doesn't mean you can't grow up and make the Lord proud. Imagine, you could be a general, a feared general that'll make every carnivore run for miles. You could have father look at you like you're worth something instead of looking at you like you're an idiot." He stomped prancing back and forth and stopped in front of Yarrow, shoving his nose right up in his face. "War is coming and it's up to you whether you'll be able to fight and defend yourself, your herd, and your mother. You don't want to always be a failure, do you?" He narrowed his eyes, waiting to see how much of an incompetent idiot his brother really was... or wasn't.

His brother was mocking him and making fun of him and Yarrow wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out. He shrunk onto himself, trying to make himself as small as possible, telling him of all his flaws. He stuttered, he cried, he sniveled, he was....useless...

That word in particular just plain hurt him, and he wanted to run away from the whole thing. What was stopping him? He could just run into a tiny little hole King couldn't get to and cover his ears till his mother came to get him with her soft voice and caring words.

But he sat there, listening to King's speech, and his face wrinkled up in the way little kids do when they're about to really cry, his eyes big and watery, and he was faced with two choices. One, run away, or two...learn to...fight?

Protect his mother?

He sniffed and ribbed at his nose with the back of his hand and looked up to King, his nose running.

"N-no..." he said quietly, his soft voice like the wind.

Oh good gods, was he about to cry? He could practically see it in the hybrid's face. His eyes were tearing up. King just waited on just one tear to drop. Just one. And he would lay into coward like no tomorrow if he saw it fall. He glared into his brother's face, just daring him to do it. He never did though. Somehow Yarrow managed to keep himself from bawling like the little baby that he was. Kingsfoil nodded, pleased. He backed away from the hybrid to give them some space for what they were about to do next.

"Good. Maybe you're not a completely lost cause." The young stag stared at his more timid brother before finally saying, "Alright, I want to see how you fight. Throw a couple of moves at me and I'll judge you." As if Kingsfoil knew the first thing about fighting himself. He was just an arrogant hart who thought he was a god, nothing more. He'd never even been in a fight himself.

Almost patronizingly he added, "I'm only doing this because I wanna help. We can't have you being worthless forever. Not a brother of mine." Because that would look bad on his own name and he would be damned if he let that happen.

Yarrow just stared up at King, confused, and he looked around, his hands clenching and unclenching as he looked for something. Uhh-? A fight, a fight, you tried to hurt the opponent in a fight, didn't you? He felt so nervous and scared just thinking about it. How did one go about hurting someone who made you dizzy just looking up at them? What should he do, punch his tall, elegant leg?

He felt panic rise in him, the need to impress his brother that expected so much of him, but he had no idea where to even start. He picked up a rock and held it in his hand, glancing up at King like it would give him the answers he needed.

He felt...something...answer his desire to impress his brother. Yarrow didn't know what it was, but the tiny little spikes coming from his back glowed with multi-colored light, and he felt himself pull...something...from himself. It was very strange, very very strange, and Yarrow's face scrunched up in worry and fear. Did he do it? Did he impress his brother? All that seemed to happen was that Yarrow felt extremely tired, and condensation appeared on the tips of his fur from no where, like he was suddenly drenched in water.

He didn't like this at all.

Round: 1/4
Attempt: Uhhh???
Defense: None
Injuries: Is a super crybaby
Now is soaking wet????

It finally seemed like he'd been whipped into shape or at the very least motivated to do something besides snivel and whine like an idiot. Now he just looked to be staring like an idiot. The mutt picked up a rock and stared at it like he was braindead. Kingsfoil could feel his already thing patience waning. "Hurry up and do something, mutt!" His father always preached patience but when it came to his hybrid brother he had none. The younger brat just always instilled some sort of deepset hatred within him no matter what he tried to do. Even now as he was "helping" Yarrowfeld he only did it because he'd gain a soldier and possible a notch on his belt for training such a waste.

Finally it seemed like something was happening. The gem spines on the hybrid's back glowed and then... Yarrow was wet. That's all that happened. Kingsfoil rolled his eyes. Could the capydeer do nothing right? "Do something to me!" He said through clenched teeth. Worthless, yellowbellied, scum! He was working himself up into a fine temper as he turned around and kicked at the earth, aiming to throw a rock or even dirt on the capydeer. Maybe that would spur him into action. "Try something again and this time actually attack me!" Or so help him he would run over and box his stupid ears!

Kingsfoil vs Yarrowfeld
for Sparring
I of IV

Attacks: Kick dirt and rocks at Yarrow.
Defenses: None
Injuries: None

@Yarrowfeld

Yarrow hated this, he didn't know what to do any he didn't know what just happened and with King yelling at him his mind went blank and he was just he couldn't think. He was scared and his belly was churning with panic and nervousness and the need to perform well under stress when he had no idea what he was doing. He wished that King would just tell him what to do, how to fight, how to protect himself, but no, his brother was just insulting him and calling him names! This wasn't helpful, and Yarrow wanted to protest, but his throat was choked by the overwhelming need to cry.

He just wanted to go home! He didn't want this at all!

His hand clenched around the rock. He just wanted this to stop! So he looked up at Kingsfoil, and he aimed to throw the rock as hard as he could between the eyes.

Round: 2/4
Attempt: Throw a rock at him??
Defense: None
Injuries: Is a super crybaby
Now is soaking wet????

This time, as he waited he tried being a little more patient. He had to remember what his father said about patience... but he wasn't good at it. Not yet at least, he was still very much a spoiled brat and still very much prone to tantrums. As he was about to have...

Yarrowfeld finally did something, something that left the little fawn flat on his back. The rock thrown smacked him dead in the forehead, dislodging the crown from his head and knocking him down with an "oof". The fawn moaned in pain while he clutched his head with his front knees, rolling back and forth as the pain of a headache hit him.

It was a full minute before he was able to stand up and give a glare to his brother. "Damn you! Why did you hit me so hard? This is a spar! You're not trying to kill me, idiot!" He rubbed his sore head with his knee again before decided to teach his brother a lesson. After he lowered his hoof back to the ground King promptly turned and lashed out with his hind legs, aiming to catch the hybrid with in the head so they would have matching headaches.

After properly re-positioning himself after the kick he said, "Now, attack again but this time don't brain me!"

Kingsfoil vs Yarrowfeld
for Sparring
II of IV

Attacks: Kick Yarrow!
Defenses: None
Injuries: Headache and bruise on his forehead Thank you, good job Yarrow! Very good job <3.

@Yarrowfeld