Accompanying music if you so desire
____________________________________________________________________________


Furfur gave Kita a weak smile and returned her affection. ”H-hey..Kita look we need to talk about…this whole thing. I don’t know." He frowned beneath the mask and turned his head so he would not even have to face her. How could he when he knew what he had to say was going to hurt her badly. He could not hurt Fran by allowing Kita to choose him over her. They were partners and the whole situation had only caused heartache to all of them. Fran was his first friend after death, the first mortal that smiled at him and accepted him back into existence without a second glance. Yet he chose to repay this kindness how..? By wriggling his way into her companion’s heart without a thought and spreading self-doubt across every heart string. It was immoral. It was selfish. It hurt all three of them deeper than any hard words or sharp point ever could. He slowly lifted his eyes and met the questioning gaze of his constant companion.

That cheerful smile and concern for his safety were always present. She spent more time fretting over his little mood changes than her own safety. How could he not feel guilty? ”Okay Furfur. What are we going to talk about? I like talking with you and you look like you need to get something off your chest.”

He nodded weakly and allowed his legs to buckle until he was lying in a comfortable position on the ground. He had need been feeling well for days and had a sense of dread. It was most likely due to his nerves over their meeting today. It was inevitable. He could not keep up the charade forever and finally was ready to face reality. He had no future with Kita and he could not allow her to waste her life trying to decide between him and Fran. ”I…I can’t do this anymore. Pretending that I do not have these feelings of self-doubt. I deluded myself into thinking that I could make you happy and the reality is that we ha-“ He shook his head and leaned forward. Everything felt heavier, darker, what was going on? The sky..it seems different. The birds had stopped. What is that sound? A dull roar..everything closing in. He scrambled to his feet and blindly stumbled around. ”K-kita? K-kita?” He could hear her voice but she seemed so distant. He felt his body fall apart into blackness.

Kita reared up and circled her friend with concern. There was something wrong. Was this another joke of his like the pond? He was acting wildly and strangely. ”Furfur? Furfur what is wrong! What is wrong with you! Are you okay? Why? S-Stop! You’re fine!” Yet, as suddenly as he had appeared in her life he was gone. It was not a slow disappearance as his earlier departures from the forest. He would frequently leave her side by drifting into the wind leaving only his mask behind for comfort. He had always trusted it in her care and gingerly relinquished it to her possession.

This was no normal planned departure. She lowered her head towards the ground and stared at the discarded mask. It had split down the middle in the place where her snow stag had once stood. She tried to hold back the tears and gingerly nudged the pieces back together with her muzzle. ”Y-you’re fine right? This is just a joke. It’s not f-funny..but it’s a joke. R-right?” She raised her head towards the trees and gave them a pleading look. Any time now. Any time he would dive out from a trunk and laugh about how he tricked her. She laid down and waited. It would not be long. He always did silly things like this. Minutes passed. Soon an hour. Then many hours. She grew weary and rested her head on her hooves. He would show up. He always did. It would not be long.

Kita shivered and groggily opened her eyes. A grinning cracked mask stared back into her own. She leapt to her feet immediately and could not contain her excitement.”Furfur that wasn’t funny how could you sca-“ The face immediately recoiled and disappeared into the trees. She frowned and stared in shock as the nameless disappeared over the ridge.

”H-Hey! HEY! G-get back here! That does not belong to you! Get back here! W-when Furfur gets back hes going to hurt you for stealing that! GET BACK HERE!” She tore after the nameless and could not hide her anger. It was a rare emotion to show, but the faceless visitor was stealing his mask! She pursued it through the ruins and caught up only at the edge of the pond.

The nameless thief was standing on the edge and staring back at her with her companion shattered grin. ”D-Don’t you dare! That is not yours!” The deer only looked back briefly before diving into the pond and taking the precious totem with it. Kita gave a pathetic howl and pawed at the edge. It would be lost in the depth. It was just a mask, but she could not help but be filled with a sense of great loss. It was as if the nameless had stolen Furfur. She shook her head and stubbornly glared at her reflection. He would return. He always did. She lifted her head towards the trees as she heard a new call echoing from the playground.

The speckled stag raised his head and tried to take in his surroundings. It was brighter than he recalled. Wasn’t it night when he fell asleep? He stumbled to his feet and sniffed the wind a few times. How long had it been until he laid down to rest? He lowered his head to examine his condition. His antlers were still long and curved, his pelt decorated from the morning he fell asleep, and his muzzle showing only the faintest hint of his illness. It was so normal, and yet, something seemed wrong today. He felt as if he had forgotten something precious. He cast his head towards the sky and let out a loud mournful howl to alert the others of his presence. No doubt there would be someone he recognized willing to spar or stroll through the forest. Seshi had always been quite popular with the other deer of the forest.