(there's a prologue, guys. you should read that first if you havent yet!!)


It had been about a day since Siki found the little fawn. Skokey had been sleeping the entire day, never giving Siki a chance to wander around at all. He did get out of the shelter to stretch and graze not too far away. Skokey just kept sleeping. At one point, one of Siki's friends, Fraalch, came over to him to see what was happening. Fraalch was a smaller stag, just as old and wise as Siki. But while Siki had a natural appearance, Fraalch had the Secretary Bird Pelt and the Masquerade Mask.

"Hey, Siki. Where've ya been? You haven't been by the Pond or the Graveyard at all." Fraalch got a closer look behind Siki. "Well now... Who's this little guy?"

"He's my new son." He quickly added, " Well, uhh.. Not really. I found him this morning all alone."

"All alone? No mother at all?"

"No. It was the saddest thing I'd ever seen. And you know how much I've wanted a fawn. So, I decided, why not?" Siki smiled warmly at his friend.

"What's its name?"

"Well, its a he. And I named him Skokey."

Fraalch sighed and nodded with a smirk. "I'm not surprised at all. Every time the fawn topic came up you always said 'If my fawn's a girl, I'll name her Raku; but if it's a boy, I'll name him Skokey.'"

"That's right, and you always laughed at me for saying so."

"Well... We never really expected you to mate, much less just randomly come by a fawn. But mostly we laughed because we knew you would never let go of your old man's name."

***

Several months passed since that day. Skokey had been walking around with Siki, learning to talk, meeting every deer he saw. Siki taught him something new every day. They would sit down in a flower patch normally, where it was quiet, and Siki would just let the questions come.

One day, after a nice breakfast and an early morning stroll, Siki took the fawn to a large patch of blue flowers in the Birch Forest. They sat down so nobody could easily see them.

"Wow.. This place is really pretty! I've never seen so much blue." Skokey chirped.

Siki chuckled, "That's why they call it the Blue Bowl."

Skokey pricked his big ears, then shook his head. "Well dad, what are we gonna talk about today?"

"Hmm.. Well, I think I'll tell you about the Twin Gods."

"Twin Gods?" Skokey tilted his head.

"Yes, they're the ones who rule this entire forest."

"But I thought you said nobody rules the forest."

"Did I say that? Well, I meant nobody we can see. But there are beings that we can't see. Beings that are much more powerful and intelligent than us. They created this forest. And I'm pretty sure they created us."

"How many are there?"

Siki chuckled loudly, "Two. That's why they're called Twins."

"How did they create the forest?"

"I don't know. They can just do that. Normally, they stay hidden up in the heavens. Watching over us, controlling the weather, whatever it takes to give us a pleasing life. They're the ones who gave us the power to change our appearance. But we'll save that for tomorrow."

"But if we don't see them, how do we know they are there?"

"Well, they're not always hiding. Once in a great while they'll tell us to gather at a specific place. And they'll show us something spectacular."

"Why? What do they show you?"

"Well, I don't know why. I s'pose just for the fun of it. But one time they made it snow, another time they made flowers grow everywhere."

"Wow, everywhere? I'd like to see that!"

"Well, maybe someday you will. I've only attended two of those shows. And I wished I'd seen more. But when I was younger, I didn't really care about that stuff. So I'll tell you to go every time you get the chance. They're truly amazing."

Skokey's eyes twinkled at the thought of all those flowers. It made Siki give out a huge grin. Soon, Fraalch called out to them, and Siki called him over to where they were.

"Oh, hey Siki. Hi Skokey. Why are you in here? I can barely see you."

"Well, I thought it would be nice for Skokey to see the Blue Bowl. You know how much he likes flowers." He nuzzled Skokey, making him giggle. "So, what did you need?"

"Actually Siki... I need to talk to you in private."

Siki's smiled quickly faded, along with Skokey's. He told Skokey to stay where he was, and got a few feet away from him.

"What's this about Fraalch?"

"...It's Chorre. He just passed away."

"Chorre? What did he die of?"

"It's that disease that's been going around. Nobody else has gotten it from him. It's a miracle, really. But he just couldn't hold on anymore. He gave up this morning."

"I saw Chorre a few days ago, he looked just fine!"

"I know. But you remember, he hadn't been feeling to great. Like he had a cold or something. That's what we all thought until yesterday. He just toppled over while he was eating. We took him over to his sleeping area and watched over him. Frola decided that I should go home and watch over our little fawn while she looked over him. Then he just... died..."

"That's scary Fraalch. You could have given it to your daughter."

"I know, I'm scared too. Any of us could have it by now. He had been complaining for a month. I want you to be careful, Siki. If you start to feel sick, please try to stay away from Skokey. No fawn should suffer like Chorre."

"What was Chorre like before he died?"

"Frola told me he was spazzing a lot. He kept saying that he needed to get up and away from where he was. Then right before he gave out, his eyes started to roll violently. He gave out a cry, and then nothing."

Siki looked away. "That sounds awful."

"That's not the worst part." Siki looked at him again. Fraalch's face turned pale under his white pelt. "He died with a smile on his face. It was probably the most terrifying thing I'd ever seen." Siki's eyes seemed to fade, the most horrible way to die, and any of them could end with it. "We're holding his funeral tomorrow. He'll be honored at his sleeping area, then we'll carry him to the Graveyard."

Siki nodded. "I'll be there. I'll try to find someone to watch over Skokey."

"Skokey can come with my daughter. She's staying with a friend. Her friend never knew Chorre."

"Chorre... He was always so cheerful. Maybe that's why he died with a smile on his face."

Skokey was secretly listening to their conversation. He couldn't sleep for the next few nights.


(I know, it's gigantor ^^;;; )