Once again, another lame chapter from me, although I've tried to put a lot more effort into this one. I'm sorry it's taken so long to put Anzel and Emiva into it. ^_^

Bumping for people who haven't read it yet. Btw. All of these chapters can be found on DeviantArt.

EDIT:: Fixing some typos.
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The baking hot soil, dusty underneath Lieka's hooves, crumbled as she climbed the hill. It was the day after she had returned to the Deermuda, and since her return there had been no sight, sound, or scent of anything unusual. The Birch forest around her was peaceful, echoing with the merry trills of the small birds which nested higher up within the trees. The long, golden stalks of grass tickled the doe's sides as she walked, returning from her patrol to the formation of rocks where she slept.

The 'Playground', as named was a collection of giant rocks where fawns tested their ability to climb. To some it seemed more like a platform or stage where they could display, or call out to others around. It was one of the higher vantage points within the Birch forest but since there had been no danger, it was never used as such. Lieka had often used the rocks for sunning to listening to the chorus of the birds, taking delight in the refreshing air that was provided.

As Lieka travelled, her ears twitched in the delicate sensation as a voice was carried along the wind. A female voice, gentle enough, but with the undertones of someone who had suffered. Lieka's eyes tranversed the grassy plains, soon drawn to the sight of the speaker. Standing not too far from her, upon the rocks, was a doe. This doe was a young adult, her face concealed behind a light brown deer mask which matched the stripes of the gazelle-like pelt she bore. Her fawn-coloured fur bristled with the gentle breeze, of which her words seemed to be aimed at. Lieka stood, observing the female for a few moments and wondered vaguely if she should interrupt. The doe seemed absorbed in her conversation with nothing. Conclusive that she wouldn't mind, Lieka drew close enough within hearing range, and called out: "Emiva?".

The gusts of air bristled the leaves about Emiva's hooves as her fascination with the space before her vanished. Her soft eyes blinked slowly whilst her ears turned first towards Lieka's voice, followed by the rest of her head. ".. Lieka?" She curiously replied. The gazelle-like female seemed weak as she re-positioned herself upon the largest, flat-topped boulder amongst the formation. "D-Did.. Did you come to see her too?" The doe cast her vision back to the empty air in front of her, absorbing the space with intruige. Lieka cocked her head. "See who?"

"Anzel."

"Who?"

Emiva did not reply, but continued to stare at the air. The winds picked up again, and as the flurry was carried past Lieka, the startling scent of an unfamiliar deer cause her to look about in alarm. But they were alone? The Queen turned her head back to question Emiva, but the astonishing image of something else grabbed her attention.

A ghostly pale deer of grey fur was hovering before Emiva, in mid-air. The secrets of air-sitting were known to some, but the way that the newcomer stood clearly suggested that this wasn't a regular gravity-abuser. Lieka stood, transfixed as the misty deer's form faded in and out of visiblity, the loose fur around the hooves blowing into the form of a silver dust which glittered and scattered around the clearing. Garbed upon the ghostly deer's head were two elegantly curved antlers, reaching back past her shoulders and hanging down almost like a veil. The patterns of the antlers were somewhat intricate, the ends resembling key-like shapes. Lieka was awestruck at the etheral beauty of the deer hovering there, but with all her curiosity she continued around the rock formation to get a closer view. She was soon aquainted with the ghost-deer's eyes, which were a dangerously icy blue but filled with the sorrow of heartache. "Anzel.." Emiva whispered the name softly, drawing the attention of the ghost deer. Anzel bowed her head slowly in acknowledgement, and faintly smiled. "Hello, Emiva."

The Queen's legs fell beneath her as she lay down, all attention focused on the pair's conversation. It seemed as if this was normal for Emiva, but this wasn't at all! A ghost? Did it mean there was an afterlife? "I sense your curiosity, Lieka, Queen of Darkness." The voice violated Lieka's thoughts and she gasped openly. Noone had spoken, but the female sensed that Anzel was aware of Lieka's questions. "I am of the Limbo. The lands between here and death. My physical form is lost to the void, but my spirit is here, listening and speaking to the nature of the Forest. Do you see?" Anzel's voice was crystal clear in Lieka's mind, but all the time the ghost deer appeared as talking with Emiva, although now their words were faint and unrecognisable. It was here in her thoughts, where Lieka and Anzel now communicated."Are there others like you.. ?" Lieka enquired, now fascinated with the possibility of others like Anzel in existance. "There are few of my curse in existence, but recently we were joined by another. An older one." Lieka's heart skipped a beat. Could it be.. ? "He refused to communicate with us, but we can sense his pain. He suffers greatly at the mercy of the Gods. They will not let him die, although he said he had tried.". Positive about the identity of the stag being spoken of, Lieka broke from the contact and stood up. He was alive! Walter was alive! That meant that somehow, there would have to be a way to return him. He was neither alive nor dead, to be accurate, but there still had to be a method of returning the old stag to the world.

"Anzel!" Lieka cried out, breaking the words spoken between the ghost and Emiva. Both gazed around as the female leapt onto the rock formation. "You say that your body is lost but perhaps this stag you mentioned.. Perhaps he still has a body! Is there some way we could return him?" Anzel gazed in her sorrowed ways, and the voice filled the Queen's head again. "Place the physical form within a magic-inflicted place and draw the symbol of his identity in the soil. If both forms are healthy and willing, there will be a connection." Lieka was puzzled. How could they return Walter to this world if his physical form was dead? It was last known buried by the pond where the stag had tried to drown himself.

The Queen raised her voice to speak again, but Emiva's flowing words crossed her path. "Sleep well, Anzel." The ghost deer nodded, sealing the contact between the pair away. With the next heavy blast of wind the entire of the silver deer vanished, replaced with a light glowing mist which was carried out across the birch landscape. Emiva followed suit, nodding to Lieka before laying down to rest, her entire body dissaperating into the familiar purple mist which moved the sleepers on to the realm of rest. The Queen stood alone, watching the process before turning away, her mind set. Her long legs carried her down from the rocks and she galloped off into the grass again. She would seek out Twenty-One and inform her, asking others along their way to assist finding her.

As Lieka's form vanished between the approaching darkness between trees, the forest set into twilight, steadily putting the Forest to rest.