"You damned fool."

Skokey's head shot up. He looked around, to find that he was in a completely different area. The ground was completely covered in a lush, squishy moss. The trees were short and young, sprouting thorns all over their bodies. Their leaves were brown and shriveled. The sky was totally black, with no source of light. Except the moss. The ground was giving off a soft glow, making everything else greenish.

Skokey looked to see a shadowed figure. It was almost like the previous dream, but this figure had an eerie aura to it. Nothing was visible, except for his ghostly face. The face similar to the Noh Mask. Skokey shuddered at the face, he never liked the Noh Mask.

"You can't see what's right infront of you."

"What do you mean?" Skokey gingerly asked.

"You're only going to lead her to her own grave."

"Who? Who are you talking about?"

"You won't know until it's too late. And you will pay the price."

"What are you talking about? And who are you?"

"You will never know, until it's too late."

The face faded away, and the glow slowly followed suit. Skokey pleaded for the face to come back, to answer his questions.

***

Skokey shot his head up. His vision was gone for a few seconds, but soon came to him. He was glad to see the Birch Forest, bathed in a lovely blackish-blue light. He looked around, and found Fenqua a few feet away, fast asleep. Who did that deer mean? Who would he lead to their grave?

Fenqua sleepily raised her head and looked at Skokey. "Skoke, you okay?"

He looked at her and paused, then said, "Yeah... Yeah I'm fine. I just can't sleep."

She sniffed, "Is something wrong? Did something happen?"

"No. No, I'll tell you later."

She nodded her head and went back to sleep within seconds. Skokey was scared to death. Did he mean her? Was she going to die? No, it was only a dream. Even though he was skeptic, he was still afraid. He couldn't sleep for the rest of the night.

***

It was morning. The sun was high over the treetops, glorifying everything covered in shining dew. Skokey had finally fallen asleep by pure exhaustion. Fenqua let him rest until noon. He couldn't sleep in all day, she wouldn't let him. She had a suprise for him anyways.

Fenqua woke Skokey up by poking him numerous times. Grumpily, he finally forced himself to stay awake. She gave him some pinecones to keep him from sleeping. Skokey munched on them happily until she forced him to go somewhere.

As they were walking through the forest, Skokey flatly asked, "So... Where are you taking me?"

"No where in particular." Fenqua replied cheerfully. "I have a surprise for you. But you're gonna have to wait."

Skokey shrugged, "Alright."

They came to a large tree covered in mushrooms. Skokey made a face that made Fenqua giggle. There was someone else there too. Someone Skokey didn't know. Fenqua went over to the doe and whispered to her. The doe nodded, and Fenqua went back to him.

"Alright, you need to turn around, and sit down. You might have to wait for a while. And no peeking!"

"Alright, alright." Skokey turned around and layed down. Sleep was starting to overcome him again, and he soon dozed off.

Fenqua didn't notice. She started to munch away at the neverending mushrooms. She licked her lips in delight, and casted the spell on her friend. A Secretary Bird Mask appeared on the doe's face, but Fenqua shook her head. The doe sneezed the mask off, and she went back to eating the mushrooms. This process repeated several times, until the right mask was found.

Fenqua went over to her friend, who promptly gave her the mask. She thanked the doe, and went over to Skokey. Much to her displeasure, he was fast asleep. She shoved her hoof into his back, making him bolt upright. He looked at her, irritated. But his anger soon turned to curiousity. She was holding a golden mask in her mouth.

She put it down in front of him and smiled. "I know you said you didn't want a mask, but I thought this would look really nice on you."

Skokey looked at the mask. It was a Golden Butterfly Mask. He studied the reds and browns, meshing together on a golden base. The wings at the bottom were delicately curved and perfectly aligned. Upon looking at the mask, he suddenly remember what his father told him.

"You're your own deer, you can have a set if you want."

He looked up at Fenqua, who was starting to look worried. He smiled warmly at her, "Thank you. I really like it."

Fenqua smiled again, and helped him put it on. She blushed a little, seeing him in that mask. She suddenly said, "Hey, try to bellow! I wanna know if it does anything to your voice."

Skokey nodded and turned away from her. He tilted his head up and filled his lungs. He wasn't expecting the noise that came out when he finally bellowed. He almost stopped out of embarrassment, but he realized that it was a beautiful sound. It was like the wind was whistling through the holes in a tree. It was a peaceful sound, and it seemed to relax both Skokey and Fenqua.

Skokey chuckled, "So that's where that noise came from. I've always wondered what that was."

"You've heard it before?"

"Well, yeah. A whole bunch of times. I just didn't know it came from a mask." He turned back to Fenqua, and blushed. "Thanks so much. I never thought I would like any mask, but this one is great."

"Any time, Skokey." She nuzzled him like she used to do with young fawns. Skokey felt like that was okay, since he was younger than her.

***

Skokey found himself in the same place he was last night. Glowing green moss, short, thorny trees. But this time, there was a dark blue moon overhead. The blue moonlight seemed to blend with the green glow of the moss, making a sort of teal tint to everything.

"So, your name's Skokey, right?"

A deer came into the blue-green light. It was the same face as before, only it was attached to a body. The deer sported a Kirin Pelt with glimmering Butterly Antlers.

Skokey stood up to meet the deer. "Yes, that's my name. Are you gonna tell me yours?"

"I'm afraid not. I won't tell you just yet."

"Alright then... Are you for real, or are you just a figment of my imagination?"

"I'll leave that for you to decide. If I'm a figment, then you have nothing to worry about."

"And if you're real?" Skokey shook his head, "No, wait, you can't be real. Otherwise I'd see you around in the forest."

"Choose what you wish. There are some forces that can't be explained. If I am real, we might just cross paths."

"So does that mean...?" Skokey growled, he was getting confused. Then he remembered the last time they met. "Hey, what did you mean last time? Who's gonna die?"

"I told you you wouldn't know until it's too late. But you see, I've been watching her. She is in more pain than you realize." The deer started to walk in a circle around Skokey. "From what I've seen, she doesn't have much time."

"You've been... watching? You must be some kind of sicko."

"Oh no, I would say I was her guardian angel. I had been giving her councelling in her dreams. She's told me everything. Last I remembered, she told me that she was grateful to me."

"I want to know who you're talking about." Skokey sternly demanded, looking the deer in his colorless eyes.

"How many times must I repeat myself?

"Until you tell me." He was starting to get angry.

"You won't get it out of me. I can leave any time I want. So if you push me, you'll never get the answer."

Skokey looked down, utterly confused by all this. He looked at the expressionless face again, "How are you doing this? How can I see you and talk to you here? Why can't we just talk in real life?"

The deer shifted his gaze upwards. "I suppose the gods have granted me one thing at the loss of another. You see, Skokey, I can't speak in real life. I have been cursed to be a mute all my life. But in exchange, whenever I sleep, instead of having my own dreams, I can see the dreams of a chosen few. I suppose you were one of those chosen few, and that's how we are communicating now. The only time you will ever hear my voice is in your dreams."

Skokey's ears dropped. "Are you gonna be in my dreams for the rest of my life?"

The deer laughed, "Oh, no. I won't rob your life of dreams forever. But when I want to speak with you, you'll know where you'll be."

"Okay. But... why are you taking your time to warn me? Do you just get a kick out of scaring other deer?"

He shook his head, "Sometimes. But no, I just wanted you to be prepared. I've seen to much sorrow in this forest. And if I can get a chance to warn someone, I'll take it. Just because I'm suffering doesn't mean anyone else should. And besides, I think you've had your fill of sadness."

Skokey was shocked at his words. The deer bowed slightly, "Until we meet again, Butterfly."

The landscape seemed to fade again, but Skokey was too shocked to realize it. Soon, he was awake again, looking at the sun rising in the distance. He wanted me to be prepared, he thought. Just like Dad wanted me to be prepared for his death. Who was he?

Skokey put his head back down and drifted into a light sleep. Much to his delight, it was dreamless.