It was morning. A fresh, crisp dew gently hung over the grass. The sun rose over the trees ever-so-slowly. A warm, honey-colored light shown through the green canopy above. The birds were chirping, the squirrels were chattering. A lot of them seemed to be gathered at one place, though.

A stag had found his way to the outskirts of the Birch Forest. The squirrels and birds had been fluttering about him all morning. He moved his thin frame through the tall, tickling grass. His tan pelt blended in with the white trees, except for the single, thick red stripe squiggling across it.

He turned his drawn, expressionless face to the right, and spotted an old doe. She was easily spotted by the orange-red patterns on her pelt. She was being followed closely by a fawn. The fawn seemed to have an aire of curiousity and wonder of the tall birches, turning her head this was and that.

The doe weakly approached the stag. She came close, and gave him a light nuzzle. She mumbled a very quiet "thank you", and slowly made her way away from him. The stag looked on in sadness. He watched her as she stumbled upon the hidden rocks, her creaking frame just about ready to collapse.

It's too late, the stag thought. He will never make it in time.

***

Skokey awoke before Fenqua. He looked at her, waiting for her to wake up. She never did, so he got up, stretched, and went to graze. He took a deep breath of fresh morning air, and let it out with a satisfied sigh. A butterfly instantly landed on his nose, fluttering its wings in and out. Skokey giggled gleefully at the butterfly, and tried to graze and keep it on at the same time.

But soon, the butterfly flew away, and Skokey dipped his head to graze. But he spotted something in the corner of his eye. He lifted his head back up and looked above the tall grass. A fawn, very close to adolescence, came solemnly walking through the grass. He seemed to recognize her pictogram, but he couldn't place her name, or who she really was.

He slowly walked over to her as she came closer. Her head was bowed in a sorrowful manner, her ears hanging below her chin. Her little tail was loosely swaying side to side. She looked up at him with large black eyes. Skokey tilted his head at her silently, and she looked down again.

"Hi..." She said, very quietly.

"Hi." He brought his head down to her level. "What's the matter?"

She looked at him, and looked at his pictogram. "Skokey... My brother."

Skokey's ears pricked up. He suddenly remember who she was. "Fulu..." He nuzzled her a little, "Is something wrong? Tell me what happened."

She started to sob quietly, then looked up at him. "Skokey... Mama's dead."

Skokey lifted his head quickly and lowered his ears. "W...What?"

She slowly lowered her head and nodded.

"But...how..?"

"She was sick. Very sick, she could hardly walk by herself. She told me to take her to the Birch Forest. She said she had to meet two deer... before she.. she died..." She started to sob again, but this time it was audible.

Who was the other deer? he thought. He looked as Fulu fell to the ground. He looked away for a few moments and then sat down next to her. "Fulu, it'll be alright." She shook hear head. He held her head to him, "It's okay. These things happen. It's a natural part of life."

She sniffed. "...Are you sure?"

"Of course I am. I learned that from the wisest deer on earth."

She rubbed her face against him. His fur was warm. Her face was cold, she had been crying for most of the morning. Skokey held her tight, and nuzzled her.

"Fulu... I have a question for you..."

"...What?"

"What... was Mother like? Before she came here?"

Fulu sniffed and rubbed against him a little more. "She was... Worried... Sad... She was so determined to get here..."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah..." She thought for a few moments. "She wanted to tell you... to forgive her. She wanted to tell you that she could barely stand treating you like that. And if it weren't for the other deer she met, she probably would have left everyone all alone."

She would have done what I did... If it weren't for him...

"Skokey, I don't know what to do. I never had a father. Who will I stay with."

"Nonsense, Fulu, you're staying with me. No buts about it."

She rubbed against him, and smiled. "Thanks..."

"Come on. Let's go home. I'll be with you all day if you need it." He helped her up and lead her to the Playground.

By that time, Fenqua was awake, and sitting on top of the rock that supported the slab. She rose and jumped to the ground when she saw Skokey.

She came up to him, but when she saw Fulu, her heart seemed to freeze. "Who's this?"

"This is Fulu. She's my sister. She... needs to stay here until she can be on her own."

At the word "sister" Fenqua calmed herself down. She nodded, "That's totally fine." She whispered to Skokey, "Promise me you'll tell me what happened."

Skokey nodded and took Fulu under the slab. He looked at her face. It looked exactly like her mother's, but paler. He noticed her eyes. "You don't look very good."

Fulu shook her head. "I haven't gotten a good night's sleep in a few days. I've been so worried about Mama."

He nuzzled her, "That's not good. You should try to sleep tonight."

"Okay..." She looked up at him with her shining black eyes, "Skokey, I don't know what to do... I never saw this day coming. I knew Mama was older, but I never knew she would be gone this soon. I still have so many questions that she didn't want to answer..."

"You're still young. I'll teach you anything you want. And I'll be patient with you. For every answer, there are always two more questions. That's always how it is, and that's how it will remain."

"Where did you hear that?"

"Like I said before, I learned from the wisest deer on earth. Those were his exact words. Back when i was a fawn."

"Wow... You must know everything."

He chuckled, "I don't think anyone knows everything. Sometimes I even doubt if the Twin Gods have the answer to some questions."

She looked down. "So I guess you can't answer every question."

He smiled at her warmly, "The world is a confusing place, Fulu. Some answers, you just have to find out for yourself."

***

That night, when Fulu was fast asleep, Fenqua and Skokey sat on top of the stone. They looked upon the trees as they slowed turned to a blue-ish color.

"So... I didn't know your sister knew where you were."

"Of course. I told her if anything went wrong, she should come to the Playground and find me. I'm honestly surprised she remembered, but I really don't know anything about her."

"What happened? It must have been something terrible for her to stay here."

Skokey looked down and gathered himself. "My mother died today."

Fenqua raised her ears quickly, "Skokey..."

"No... It's fine. I'm not too broken up about it."

"Don't lie to me, Skokey, I know you're in pain."

He sighed, "Yeah... I guess you're right... It's just..." He didn't want to tell her about his mysterious dreams quite yet. "I.. I feel like I knew this would happen, and I didn't do anything about it. I could have made peace with her... And now it's too late."

Tears slowly fell down his face and dripped on the ground. Fenqua moved closer and nuzzled him. "It's okay... These things happen. You said she wanted to ask for forgiveness, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I did..."

"Then she would have made peace with you. Her body just couldn't take it anymore. It wasn't her fault or your fault. It was nobody's fault. It must have been in the Twin Gods favor to take her away before she could reach you."

"Fen, I'm really starting to doubt the Twin Gods now... Why would they do that? Why couldn't they give her a few more hours?" He started to sob again.

Fenqua nuzzled him, "Skokey... It's gonna be okay. You can tell me anything, remember that. I'll be there."

Skokey nodded. And for the first time in months, they locked eyes, and they never looked away.

***

"Hello again, Butterfly."

Skokey's eyes snapped open, but he calmed down when he saw the familiar glowing moss and bright blue moon. He raised himself up to look at the stag in front of him.

"Why couldn't you just tell me? It would have saved me so much time. And pain."

"I couldn't tell you. It's too difficult to explain. I would ne'er expect you to understand."

Skokey lowered his head. "Yeah, I get what you're saying..."

"It's okay, Butterfly. I feel the same as you right now."

"How could you? You couldn't possibly know how this feels."

"I do, Skokey... Because not too long ago, I saw my father. Dead."

Skokey raised his head. "Your father?"

"Yes. And, much like you, I grew up without knowing him at all. But unlike you, I grew up all alone. Nobody even wanted to adopt me. So.. It was a very strange sight."

"I can understand... But.. How did you feel?"

"To my surprise... I wept. Bitterly. I didn't even know the stag, and yet I still wept for him. I mean... He was my father. What else was I supposed to do?"

"That's nothing to be ashamed of. I wept for my mother. It seems we have something in common."

The stag nodded, "Of course. I knew that the moment I first spoke with you." He seemed to look behind him, looking at the darkness that gathered around him. It is almost morning, and your sister needs you. This may be the last time we shall speak."

"Wait.. Before you go... What's your name?"

The stag turned around, but he looked over his shoulder and smirked. "My name is Vessel. And I hope to see you soon."

The dream faded, and Skokey awoke. It was just before dawn, and he looked about himself. Fenqua was asleep in her normal spot, and Fulu was snuggled up next to him. He took a deep breath, and went back to sleep.