Chapter 5: The Price

He traveled up to the top of the hill overlooking the large open area and in the distance saw the large forest Geno had gone to, and now his son and daughter had come from. He was alone and wanted to be alone. He shook his head in frustration. How long had he taught Balo and Stena? How long had he taught Stuben and Delon? What had it been for if not to provide the herd with good leaders? Now they were arguing over who would follow him. It almost sounded like it end up in a fight with one or more of them leaving, hurt, or dead. They spent all of this time with Bambi and him and yet his first and simplest lesson, we are here to help the herd, had gone unlearned. What type of teacher was he if he could not get that across? They had not learned, not really, and it made him almost sick to his stomach that he had failed in this most basic of duties. Maybe he was too old to do this. Maybe he should be going. The forest could certainly do without him more than the others. As he told them, they were the future, he was the past.

He could see light rising from behind him. He had spent all night out here looking at the horizon. Soon another day would start. Part of him said he should just leave and go to the forest in the distance. If he lived through the crossing, he just be another old male there ignore by the others until he was gone. If he did not live through the crossing, well that would not be the worst thing. He did not think he could do any more good here. He lay down just inside the trees and tried to relax.

He woke to a noise behind him. Someone was coming up behind him. He got up and turned quickly. There were three deer coming up the hill. Not what he wanted them, but it was clear they already knew where he was.

"Here," he called out.

He watched Bambi, Faline and Claris approached and lie down next to him.

"The rest of the herd most likely listened to the arguments," he said.

"It was impossible not to. Both Galin and Galene stopped their training and I sent them away for the night. We followed your scent to here."

"After all this time and they still have not learned," he said in a low voice. "I have failed miserably as a teacher and as a herd leader. Now every deer in the forest knows my family is ready to fight each other to see who comes after me, as if any of that matters to them. Why should they listen to any of us?"

"As you said with Geno, the fault was his and not mine," Bambi said. "I really did expect more out of Balo and Stena, and even Carie. You have done all you could."

"I have done nothing," he said loudly. "And I have done all I am going to. The herd does not need me any longer. I am going to call for that gathering and then tell everyone that I am no longer herd leader. They will have to choose another one."

The others looked shocked. Finally Claris looked at him. "All that will do is cause Balo, Delon and Stuben to get into a fight. You heard them. They may kill each other."

"Oh yes," he said loudly. "I certainly succeeded there. They can pound each other's tails into the ground. They can kill each other almost as quickly as the bear. I taught them well there. They learned to avoid man well. They learned to give orders quickly. The most important thing however that I was supposed to teach them, that they were all working for the benefit of the others: that I failed in. In failing that, I failed in everything else. I wonder if they all be better off without me."

"You cannot mean that," Bambi said out loud. "This herd is much better off with you here. Maybe better off than when I was herd leader here."

He looked into his close friend's dark black eyes. "That may be true, but what happens after me? Who continues to lead? They cannot all be leaders. Balo has the experience, but he wants Delon to follow him. Carie wants Stuben to follow me because he is my son. It is not them that need to make the choice. It is the herd that decides and that is the one thing they do not understand. If they force themselves on the herd, then they are no better than Tarro or Razor, and that I also failed to teach them." He put his head on the ground and closed his eyes. "I feel useless."

There was no more said. Claris snuggled in close to him and Bambi and Faline lay together in front of him. He felt very tired and very old and very weary of his life here. He was thinking about that when darkness passed over him.

"Bang," he head from below him. That brought him awake. "Bang," he heard again.

"Killing sticks," he said, "But not the big ones. Man must be hunting birds again."

The other three looked at him as if asking what he intended to do about it. After a few moments he took a deep breath. "Very well I will go take a look after dark."

During the day it had become cloudy and the wind shifted to blow from the Man path forest. The sky had darkened over. Soon the rain came. A soaking warm rain fell on them. The rain continued for a short while and then stopped and the hot sun came out and dried everything again. The ground was dry by the time the light started to fade.

He rested with them there until the greater light had set. Then they got up and moved the long way to their viewing spot. The last thing he wanted was to talk to the others right now. The lesser light had risen as he approached their viewing spot he picked up other nearby scents. The two belonged to Balo and Stena. He also smelled both Carie and Stuben nearby. He walked into the little area and looked. At the other end of the meadow he saw the Man cave, but it was dark except for one small flickering night light. He saw a Man animal there that was also dark and not moving. There was no movement on the Man path or around the Man cave. The increasing wind was blowing from the Man cave. In the air he could see distant flashes of light in the sky. It looked like a storm, but it was far off. The wind also brought a lingering scent of Man, but he could not smell any dogs. The wind brought a scent of what smelled like a skunk which put him on alert. It made him wonder if there were any Men there.

"It is strange," Bambi said. "I would think I smell more of a scent of Man. There are no dogs that man uses to hunt birds. I also do not like the smell of the skunk, yet I see no sign of Man.

By now he heard the approach of another deer. This one was quieter. It was Delon.

"Listen to me," he said loudly. "I am not that old were I cannot smell you anymore. This presence of Man concerns all of us here along with the rest of the herd. You should all look at this."

Claris looked at him warily as if wondering what he was doing. Like it or not, his son, his daughters and Balo were still were senior members of the herd as were Carie, and Delon. Other deer did listen to what they said. They all had to speak with the same voice or confusion would spread throughout the herd. That had to be avoided.

Slowly Balo, Delon, and Stena came in on side of their viewing area and Stuben and Carie came in the other side. The two families glared at each other for a moment, but thankfully said nothing.

"All of you come here and look at this," he told them.

Slowly and silently they all came up near him with his family on one side of him and Balo and Stena on the other side. They both studied each other like they expected the other ones to attack them. He waited until they could all see out of the meadow like he and Bambi could. It was then he picked it up, a light trace of the odor of wet fur.

"Very well my future herd leaders," he said with a sarcastic tone. "Look out on the Meadow and tell me what you see?"

He watched them all look at the Man cave. They are breathed in large quantities of air through the noses. They all looked and Balo spoke.

"I smell the light scent of a skunk. That means Man wants to trick us again so we will get close to them so they can kill us."

That may be true," he answered, "But the wind is blowing and blowing hard from the Man cave. If they were hiding there, we could smell them. Also remember the skunk odor Man has used before was strong, this is weak."

"Last season when Man came to kill birds, they had a fire going outside and the burned the bird on that fire before eating them," Stuben said. "I smell no fire and I smell no odor of burning meat."

"That is true my Son, but we also heard Man and his thunder sticks today, so he was here."

"Then could he come here just to hunt and gone someplace else to sleep?" Delon asked. "He has done that in the past."

"That is also possible," Delon," he said calmly.

"When Man hunts for birds, he uses dogs," Stena spoke up. "I do not hear, see, or smell any dogs. If the dogs are not here then is Man is not here,"

He smiled and nodded his head. "That is the point I was noticing, daughter. I see a Man animal, but it is cold and dark. If Man has left, why would it be there? I have not seen him leave one of his animals behind."

It was then he heard it: a light breaking of branches and another whiff of fur and fat He looked at Bambi who smiled at him. He looked at the others who we studying in front of them so much they did not notice anything else.

"He called out loudly. "What do you think, my old friend" You know you are getting better in moving without being heard or smelled."

"Thank you Stranger, but I see I am not good enough for both of you," the bear's voice called from behind them.

All the deer except Bambi and him jumped up and away. Balo and Stena looked to be ready to flee.

"If the Bear was here to kill a deer, he could have already easily done so," he said to the others.

"The bear stopped several lengths away still mostly hidden by the trees and bushes. "As I see this is not how Man normally behaves. I know Stranger and Bambi would come and I was wondering what they made of it."

"That fact is we do not know what is happening here," Bambi added. "We do not know if it is safe for the herd. We will need to find out before we bring the herd out onto the meadow.

"Then how do we know if the meadow is safe?" Balo asked.

"We cannot know by standing here, but I can think of one way to find out," he told him and stepped away from the others. "The rest of you stay here," he ordered.

"Father, it may not be safe," Stena said.

"Another duty of the herd leader," he said tersely and walked away just inside the trees.

He worked his way around the edge of the forest along the far side of the meadow. He stayed just inside the trees always looking for any sign of danger. As he walked toward the Man cave it seemed to him the flickering light was getting brighter. Again the increasing breeze broke only a trace of Man scent. It looked like Man had gone, yet why the light and the Man machine. He got closer to the Man cave. Finally he got below the location of the bear's den. He continued on until he got as close to the Man cave as he dared. Other than the increasing light from inside the Man cave and the increasing smell of a skunk, he could not detect anything. Part of him told him there was danger here and part of him told him there was none. Man certainly had not behaved like this in the past. He left the cover of the trees. As he did he saw into the Man cave for the first time. The light was much brighter now. In fact it looked almost like a fire that Man would start to burn his meat. Would man burn his meat inside his cave? He had seen the Men he grew up with do that sometime, but the fire was always small and in something. This was in the open. Then he saw it. The light rose up and suddenly he realized it was not a light. It was a fire. The Man cave was on fire. He turned and yelled as loud as he could.

"Fire," he called back to the others.

"Just then there was a high squeal like some bird in distress and the skunk smell got very strong for an instant. Suddenly a huge bright light appeared in front of him. As he did he felt something lift him up off the ground and throw him away like he would throw away a piece of dirt caught in his antlers. There was a loud crashing noise in his ears. He hit something hard, very hard like a large male stomping on him. He heard several loud pops from inside his left side when he hit the ground. Then he felt nothing.

Sometime later he woke up. He heard a roar in front of him and felt heat on his body. He opened his eyes, but the view was blurry. He saw a huge mass of fire in front of him. The fire was large and already in the trees near the Man cave. He could see the flames were being blown by the wind. The fires were already in the trees going across the meadow. Fires were also breaking out all around him on his side of the meadow and the bear's side. Trees were lighting on fire everywhere. The bushes were burning quickly. He had to get up. As he tried to move, he found he couldn't. His whole lower body had a tingling feeling. It was in his legs, in his muscles and even in his neck. His body would not move. He could not turn his body either. He was going nowhere. He was also feeling dizzy in his head. He was fixed to the ground like an oak tree. He felt something liquid in his mouth. He recognized the smell and taste. It was blood. It was his blood. He was bleeding out of his mouth.

He looked around what little he could and saw fire increasing. It would soon burn his entire forest. It would burn his herd along with it. He had to get his herd out, yet he could not move a single muscle. He was helpless. Again and again he tried to move his legs and again and again they would not move. Something had to be done. The fire was getting bigger by the moment. The smell of smoke was getting stronger and starting to choke him. He then realized this was where he was going to stay. He was going to die here and there was nothing he could do about it. As soon the fire reached him, he'd be just as burnt as the deer meat Man put on the fire. Not only him, but the rest of the herd would be caught inside the burning forest. They would be burnt too. He could show them where to run if he could only move. He had failed his herd when they needed him the most.

"Stranger," he heard.

"He looked up and saw Bambi looking at him. "You have to get up, the fire is coming."

He took a deep breath. "Bambi, I cannot move my body. It will not do anything. I can feel nothing in my legs. You have to go. I cannot run away. You have to get the herd out before the fire blocks any escape."

Bambi shook his head no. "Balo, Delon and Stuben are going that. They are going to take the herd to the top of the hill on our side and then move them into the Man path forest. I came to get you. You have to get up."

"No," he said. "There is blood in my mouth. I am going nowhere."

"Stranger, the fire will be here soon," Bambi yelled at him. "If you do not move, you will die."

"There is nothing that will stop that now," he said. He was getting tired speaking and it was getting hard to breath. "Listen we told each other long ago what we would do if it was one of using lying in the meadow. Well it is going to be me. You have to go. Maybe you can straighten things out with Delon and Stuben. I could not. I need you to take care of Claris as you promised. Try and help the others as much as you can. Now leave me."

He looked down at him, "Please get up," he begged.

"I tried, my legs will still not move. Now go before the fire gets you too."

Bambi looked up at the increasing glow and then leaned over and rubbed his forehead on his. "I am sorry my friend," he said with a moan and left.

He took another deep breath and started coughing. The smoke was getting heavier. "At least the herd would get out. He was happy the others would carry on now when he could not do it any longer. Now all he had to do was wait. He could feel heat increasing on his body. He hoped it would not hurt too much. He tried to lift his head, and found he could not even do that now. He started feeling dizzy again. Everything was spinning in his head.

He thought he smelled fat before he passed out, but suddenly everything went dark.

Chapter 6: A Strange Journey

He woke up, which surprised him. He could not see very well, but he knew he was not on the meadow any longer. Everything around him had a burnt smell, even him. Then his nose began to work again and he smelled it. That odor of wet fur and fat, it was near him.

"Bear," he called out.

He saw a large black object come quickly over to him and look down at him. "Can you move your legs?" the bear asked.

He tried to move them, but his side was shot full of pain. "No, nothing moves," he said with a groan

"You smell of burnt fur," the bear added looking him over.

"How long was I asleep?" he wanted to know,

"Two days," the bears answered. "None of the scavengers came around. They were most likely still running for their lives. What about the others?"

"I told Bambi to tell them all to run into the Man path forest. Bambi did not want to go with me lying there, but I told him to leave anyway and Bambi went. The fire did not go that way with the wind blowing. It just burnt up this forest."

The bear looked around him. "The trees are standing, but the leaves and bushes are all gone. The meadow is burnt. All the grass is gone. Things are so bare I can see your side of the forest. It looks just as bad."

"And they were arguing who was going to be herd leader," he said his side still aching.

The bear got up he moved over to the other side of his den and went to a bush that was just about burnt to ash. There were still a few sparse leaves. The bear came back with them. "These are the last of them. Eat them; maybe they will make you feel better."

"Thanks, did you drag me up here?" he asked his friend. "I do not remember."

"I found you in the meadow, asleep and not moving. I thought you were dead, but you moved your head. I dragged you up and put you into my den next to me. The fire passed over us."

That is why he was still alive, not that he thought it would do much good. Nothing in his body seemed to work right. "Thanks, that is twice you saved me," he groaned as a spasm of pain went up his side. "This hurts worse than when you took the Man stones out of me. "

"You look a lot worse," the bear said

He stopped and chewed on the leaves the bear gave him. "Any sign of Man?"

"None," the bear said looking around. "They were either gone or left when the fire started. The Man cave was burnt up. I have seen no sign of Man in two risings of the greater light."

He looked around himself. All he saw were bare trees and black ash on the ground. "With the fire burning everything, what is left for them to kill? "They will go someplace else until this all grows back."

"That will not be for several seasons," the bear said. "We will not be here when that happens."

"True, I should not be here now," he said looking at the huge figure of the bear. "The leaves are making me sleepy. I will try and get up when I wake. Thank you again, my friend."

With that he fell into a deep sleep. Just as he passed into sleep he felt the warm fur of the bear next to him. It was just like being next to Claris if not for the smell."

He woke later, only this time there was a different, but familiar smell. It took him a moment to place the scent.

"Bambi," he called out.

"I am here," Stranger," the familiar voice told him. You slept through the day and most of the night. I am here with the bear."

"The others," he called out. "What happened to the others?"

"They are mostly all fine," Bambi said. Then he looked at him with pain in his eyes. "We cannot find Stelar," Bambi said. "She may have fled a different way."

That hurt almost worse than his side. He could only hope his daughter was alright, but there was little he could do one way or the other."

"Many of the others wanted to come with me, especially Stabo and Young Bambi. They were all worried about you. They were afraid you were gone."

He felt pain in his body and in his legs. He could feel them again. He could raise his head again. He tried moving his legs and they moved when he told them too,

"I think I can move," he told them.

"Can you get up?" Bambi asked

"I would have been gone if not for the bear," he said with a smile. With that he rolled over onto his legs. It hurt like fire was on him. He pushed up his back with his rear legs and then his front. So far it was doable until his weight shifted to his left. Then a wave of pain almost made him collapse again. He would have fell down if Bambi had not held him up with his own body. He slowly staggered over to the small stream near the bear's den. He slowly bent over and drank. As he did he felt pressure build up inside of him. He moved quickly over the stream and turned away from his friends. He side hurt again.

"Get away from me, I have to empty myself," he warned the others. He then let go and his body emptied a large amount of waste from his back and underneath. It was as foul smelling as that of a young fawn."

"I am sorry," he said and went back to drinking his fill. "The water tasted like ash. The water also smelled burnt, but it was the only water he had. He then ate a few acorns he found lying on the ground. He walked slowly. He got three steps and his legs suddenly collapsed under him with no warning. He felt to the ground like a cut tree. The agony shot through him. "AEEEEE," he cried out. He could feel a cold numbness again in his legs. He could taste blood in his mouth. He knew what that meant.

"Bear, you will need to go over the hill. There is no food for you here. Bambi you need to go back to the herd. I will be fine here. No one will want to come here with all this burnt forest."

The bear looked at him. "What about you? I want to make sure you were alright. Besides it is almost day. I think we should stay here until night."

"I am not going to go anywhere. The pain is worse, there is numbness back in my legs, and there is blood in my mouth. I am not going to get better this time."

"No," Bambi cried out. "You need to get up and move."

"No," he said groaning in pain. "Not this time."

Bambi looked around at the first sign of the rising light starting to break overhead. "Staying here is a good idea. It would be hard to hide now in this forest. We will rest here, and go on later," Bambi said.

"No, I will stay here and you two go on without me," he said and tasted the blood in his mouth again. He felt and increasing coldness taking hold of his entire body. He was going to go to sleep and this time he felt he would not wake up.

"I am going to sleep," he told them. "This is not like when Bear saved me, or when I fought the dogs, or all those other times, I am not going to get better from this. I think it be best if you told my family you found me dead. I do not want them or you two to be here and watch me die."

"Stranger, no," Bambi said his black eyes getting moist. "You can get better from this. You have to."

"Sorry, not this time. You and the others will take care of the herd now. Stabo, Young Bambi, Balo, and the others can lead the herd. We taught them well. We all know this was going to happen someday. Well today is the day. Now I want you both to go and just leave me here. Soon the scavengers will come and make a poor meal of me."

"No," Bambi said stamping his hoof. "I will not go back without you."

He looked up. His sight was getting foggy. "You have no choice. I cannot get up. We also know what that means. Now please leave. I feel like I am going now."

Bambi leaned over and he nuzzled his face and then he was filled with a great fatigue. He could not hold his eyes open. He put his head on the ground, closed his eyes and felt darkness fall over him like night.

How long he stayed there he did not know. At first he heard the wind, felt like rain on him, and heard voices, but it was all unfamiliar to him. He did not feel tired and he did not feel pain. He was at peace. His eyes were filled with clouds. He could see nothing for a while. All was formless and shapeless. Time passed, but he could not tell how long, but then off in the distance he saw a large brown object. It got closer and clearer. It slowly took form before him. It was a deer. A very large male with the biggest rack he had ever seen and bulging muscles along his legs and flanks. He walked up to him head high and looked down at him.

"You can get up, if you want too," he told him in a deep voice that sounded like Galin.

He found he could get up effortlessly now and looked the big male in the face. He had red tinged eyes. He remembered how Bambi described his father to him.

"You are the Old Prince, Bambi's Father," he said.

"Very good, Stranger; you are very clever." He looked into his eyes and smiled at him.

He seemed young not more than five seasons old, yet he had been dead for many seasons. That meant one thing.

"I am dead too," he said.

"Only if you want to be," the Old Prince said. "Very few deer get this choice. You see you can either come with me now and join the Great Herd, or you can go back to your family."

"How can I," he said. "I was hurt by the Man cave. I felt I was dying I felt myself dying inside. How can I be any use now? Besides I was old and not much use to anyone."

The Prince smiled broadly even affectionately. "I felt the same way when I was old. Then a beautiful doe gave me an awkward, stumbling, at times agitating son. After his mother was killed I had to raise him myself. I found out then I still had a purpose. I taught him the best I could and watched him grow up to take his place as a herd leader. He is a great deer; I think greater than me. Only after I fulfilled that purpose was I allowed to rest knowing I had done the best I could. You can do the same thing, Stranger."

"Your purpose was to train Bambi," he realized. "He is the best deer I know. You should be proud of both him and yourself."

"I am," he said. "He became a fine deer he has lived and still living a good life. His place in the Great Herd is already prepared and is waiting for him even now, as is your place and the places for your family in their time. There may even be room there for a bear. Your choice is simple. You can go to the Great Herd now, or go back and help the others."

"What more can I do for them?" he wanted to know.

"There is more to be done," the Prince said. "That is the only thing I am allowed to say to you. I can tell you if you go back, there will more pain. You will see your friends and some of your family precede you. However, you will be able to do more good. Not just for you, but for the herds as well."

"My injuries?" he asked. "Right now I am almost useless."

"Most will pass in time, but some of the pain will remain with you for the rest of your life. You will still be able to be useful. That I can tell you, Stranger, that is your choice. Come with me or go back to your herd. You have to choose now."

He was sorely tempted to just go with the Great Prince. He felt he had done enough in his life. Whether it had done any lasting good he was less convinced of that than the Old Prince standing before him. He still had trouble accepting that he had any more to give. He had given his life to try and train others; how could he give more. But there was the nagging question in his mind. "I can still do good there?" he asked.

"Yes," the Prince answered empathically, "A lot of good."

He would be with his family again. He could lie next to Claris again. He could play with his children again. He could be with his friends again. That was worth something even with the pain. "Well then tell the Great Herd they will have to wait a little longer for me. I just hope I do not lose my place there."

"I can tell you that will never happen as long as you stay who you are," the Prince said.

"Send me back," he said. "And let us hope both of us do not end up regretting this."

"We will not," the Prince said with another huge smile. "Now rest."

Again the great fatigue fell over him and he again felt darkness fall over him. He felt his body lying on his side in the dirt. He could hear the sound of running water next to him. He moved and a jolt of pain ran through his side. He eyes popped open.

"Ahhhhhh, my side," he said out loud.

"He is awake," he heard a deep rumbling voice call out.

"Bear," he called out. "I thought you went over the hill."

"I am not leaving you here" the black shape answered. "I stayed here and Bambi left for the Man path forest. The few scavengers thought twice about having you for a meal. I was here when the others came back."

"Others?" he asked.

"Us Father," he heard Stabo's voice. "Bambi came for us. When we got here and you were lying still and cold. We all thought you were dead."

"I think I was for a while. It is very strange. It was like I was awake, but in a different place. Not a forest. It was a place that seemed to be made of clouds."

"Who were you talking to?" Claris asked. "We heard you mumbling, but we could not understand you."

Then it struck him. "Claris, you are here with the bear?" he said astonished.

"We are all here with the bear," he heard Faline's voice. "Strange as it is; he didn't eat you or any of us."

"I do not believe any of this is happening," he said. "It is just too strange."

"Yes it is," the bear growled. "I am surrounded by more deer meat than I have ever seen in my life and I am not even hungry."

"You were talking a lot there for a while before you went silent again. Who were you talking too?" Claris asked.

"My friends, if I told you that, you would all run from me as fast as you could. I know because if I heard this, I would be running next to you, yet I tell you that it happened."

"Who?" Bambi asked.

He looked around and saw the old gray and brown deer standing there next to Faline looking down on him with a mixture of worry and confusion.

"Bambi, I was talking to your Father," he said.

You could have heard a leaf hit the ground in the silence He could look around and they all looked at him as if he had taken complete leave of his senses. "I do not expect you to believe it, but I tell you it was real to me."

"How, he has been gone many seasons?" Bambi asked.

"I do not know, other than I think for a while I was gone too," he said and his voice trailed off.

"Father, you have to get up" Stabo told him. "It is like what you told me about getting knocked down in a fight. You have to get up or else."

Stabo was correct. If he could not move, he would not live. He no longer felt the numbness in his legs, nor did he taste the blood in his mouth. He moved his legs under his body. After a few seconds of agony, the pain subsided. He pushed up first with his front legs. The front of his body came off the ground. He then pushed up with his rear legs. As he stood erect and felt the pain course through his side, he lost his balance. He would have fallen had not the bear and Stabo held him up. He had to spread his legs to stay up. After a while he stood normally. He then looked around him. Besides Claris, Stabo, Bambi and Faline, there was also Young Bambi.

"The others?" he asked Bambi.

"With the herd trying to get them settled," Bambi added. "We are still looking for Stelar. Many deer are looking for others. I am sorry, but I do not think all the herd got out in time or went another way.

He nodded and took a step. Pain shot through his side, He took another and then another. The pain seemed to get less, but it still racked his body. "I can walk awhile," he said, "But I am not sure how far."

He looked back at the bear and slowly turned around. He slowly walked up to the large head with the large teeth and rubbed his forehead against the bear. This was normally certain death for a deer. "Thank you again," he said with true affection for his friend. "I hope Bambi's Father was right about one thing."

"What was that?" the bear said in a low voice.

"He said there was a place for all of us in the Great Herd when we are done here. There is a place there for you too. I would like that very much," he told him and rubbed the bear's head like he would rub his own fawn. His eyes started getting misty again only this time the bear's eyes were misty too. He turned around. The others all looked misty eyed. "I hope he was right for all of us," he said and started to walk away.

He walked slowly, and carefully. Bambi and Young Bambi took turned in walking close to either side of him with Stabo, Faline and Claris walked behind him in case he fell backwards. He could not move quickly. By the first sign of the greater light they had only reached the spring by the ruins of the Man cave. They drank in the spring and ate the grass and then lay just inside the burnt woods of his forest. The day passed in peace and quiet. With the night they crossed into the Man path forest. As they entered the green forest he saw many deer from his old herd there. They all looked at him, not saying a word. One of young males started to run toward the middle of the forest. Soon, Gena and Koren came to see them. Koren looked at him and his face was a mixture of horror and relief.

"Stranger, you are alive," he said and came up and nuzzled him.

"Mostly alive," he said.

They walked until they reached the Man path where he stopped as they got to the other side. His side hurt too much. Stabo turned to Koren and the young male ran off into the deep forest coming back a while later with leaves from the healing bush. He ate them and then closed his eyes and slept through most of the day and half the night. This time as the fatigue came over him, he didn't feel as if he was going to die. He felt as if he was home.

Chapter 7: Decisions

When he woke up this time Claris and Charlene were there. He let out a groan and tried to get to his feet. It was painful, but he managed to get up.

"Ahhhh," he grunted as the pain flowed through him again. Besides hurt he felt famished and very thirsty. His insides also felt ready to burst. He looked up at the two doe. "Excuse me, please," he told them.

He walked off until he was far enough away and again his body released waste that smelled like death itself. The greater light was going down and there was no sign of Man in the forest. He walked to a nearby stream and drank and started to eat. He ate several mouths full of grass before his insides started to hurt again. He stopped and limped back to where he woke up. By now Bambi and Faline were there with Stabo and Gena. All of them looked at him like he had just returned from the dead.

"I still hurt on the inside, but at least my legs move. I cannot run, nor can I eat much When the Man cave caught fire and disappeared, it knocked me down and damaged me inside. I do not know if I can heal or not, but for now I cannot lead. In any case we are now all forced to live here in the Man path forest. Our home is no longer there so we are going to have to live here or someplace for many seasons until our forest grows back. We will be living with the herd here and its leader Stabo."

They all nodded so they saw the situation like he did. He next turned to Charlene. "I want you to get your brother, sister and Young Bambi Also find Galin and Galene. Do not bring any others of my family.

The young doe explained, "Young Bambi will come with Karene and Koren and Galene will likely come together. I will bring Galin."

"Oh," he said. "I thought Karene was a pair with my Son Stuben"

"There was a big fight between her and Carie after she and Stena almost came to blows. She does not think Carie is doing the right thing and this is angering Stuben. They got so angry with each other Karene left and said she would never come back."

"That is a pity," he told her, "Thank you." He then kissed on the side of the face.

She looked at her father who nodded his approval and she went on her way. Stabo and the other looked at him suspiciously. "Father what are you going to do?"

"I will explain when the others get here. I only want to do this once," he told him. "I am starting to feel tired again. I am going to lie down. When the others get here, please wake me."

He went over to a small grassy area near one of the many small clearings and lay down. He was asleep almost immediately."

Bambi woke him later and he went back to the others. By now it was dark and it was the normal time they feed. He saw they were all there and he walked in among them.

"With the permission of the herd leader I am going to call for a gathering of both herds. We must decide what we are going to do with the herd from the meadow forest. We cannot go back there for many seasons. Stabo I am concerned about food. Is there enough for both herds to last through the winter?"

It was Young Bambi who spoke up. "Yes he said, but your herd will have to go deeper in the woods. I have walked for a full day into the woods and the forest goes on as far as I could see, and I have seen little sign of deer. The forest is just like here, lots of trees, many small clearings, and a few streams. There should be enough food and water for all. The question is Man. If we all live here in this forest, will not Man will return here in greater numbers. I have already lost my father to them; I do not want to lose any of you."

It was the voice of an intelligent deer speaking out. It was clear and to the point. He nodded. "Thank you, Bambi," he said deliberately leaving out the word young.

"Do you want to keep this as one herd or two?" Stabo asked.

"That will be up to the herds," he said. "If there is one herd, then you Stabo are herd leader. If they want to become two, then I will recommend Balo be leader of the second group. He is still the most experience deer we have."

"I see two others," Galin pointed out looking at Bambi and him.

"No Galin my injuries will not allow me to be a herd leader, besides I am old and getting older. It is time a younger male do this, but thank you."

"I already gave up being a herd leader," his old friend Bambi said. "I do not need to do this again."

Galin shrugged his huge shoulders. "Very well, but I must tell you there is talk among the other deer about Balo, Stena, Delon, Stuben and Carie. Many of the meadow herd dislikes what they heard with all their arguing, especially the herd males. Stranger even with your injury and age, I do not think any of them would challenge you for herd leader, and if they do they can fight me first."

"Thank you Galin," he said with a bow of his head. "No, all we would do is post pone the decision until I pass on, which may happen soon anyway. My injuries are serious and they do not appear to be healing. A new leader must be chosen."

"Then you can expect Stuben and Delon to have a fight soon afterwards," Galin said. I have seen this before with my father. There is so much hatred built up now between them, it may be a fight to the death."

"My old friend Bambi and I will try and stop that," he said shaking his head. "I am afraid that in the end there is little we can do. If they want to kill each other, I can hardly stop them. We do have other deer that can help he said looking at Koren."

"I am afraid not, Stranger, Koren said. Both Charlene and I will go with Galin and Galene when they go back to their old forest. Galin will need help and both of us can provide that help. Besides I do not think I am saying anything secret when I tell you that Charlene and Galin are going to be a pair as are Galene and I."

He, Claris, older Bambi and Faline were surprised at the announcement.

"Is this true?" he asked them. "Is this what you all want?"

The four of them nodded together. There were going to be lots of new pairs this Season.

"Yes, Young, I mean Bambi will likely take over here after I step down," Stabo told him. "He is almost ready now. When he gets to be three seasons old he will be fully grown and I will gladly step aside for him. I never wanted this in the first place. He will have children and teach them and Gena and I have other children to teach. We should all be fine here. It is the meadow herd I fear for."

"Then could I ask Stabo and Bambi to call the herds together. With my injuries I can no longer call out strongly."

He watched Stabo, both Bambis, and Koren go away and then start to call out loudly, "Here, All of you come here," they bellowed. Slowly, in twos and threes they came toward them. The lesser light was well overhead before they all got there. The clearing was much too small to hold them so they assembled in the trees. He only hoped he could speak loudly enough so they all could here.

He stood in the middle with Claris on one side of him, older Bambi and Faline next to him, and Stabo and Gena with Koren and Galene on the other side. The younger Bambi, Galin, Galene, and Charlene stood next to Faline. As Balo, Stena and Delon came he put them on one side. Then he saw Carie and Stuben come in and motion for them to stay on the other side.

He looked at Carie. "Have you seen Stelar?"

All she did was shake her head no, but she did not seem too upset by the problem which bothered him greatly.

He noticed Stuben was eyeing Karene carefully standing next to the younger Bambi. Not only that, he could still see Stena and Carie glaring each other. The other deer looked bewildered, and lost due to the recent fire in their forest. Since Stabo was herd leader here he nodded to him to speak first.

"You all know Stranger, my Father," Stabo told the group. "He has asked me to call the deer together from both this and the meadow forest to discuss what we will do now that fire has destroyed the meadow forest. It might be many seasons before we can use the meadow forest again. I ask you all to please listen to my Father."

He waiting until here was silence and he started to speak as loudly as he could. "I am sorry, but this is as loud as I can speak due to my injuries. With the burning of the meadow and our old forest we are forced to stay here in the Man path forest. We may be here for many seasons. I am told that if we go deeper in the forest we will find enough food and water to keep us all well fed through the winter."

That took care of the immediately concerns. He then went on after the mumbling died down. "We must now make a decision. In this forest Stabo is herd leader. Those of you who wish to remain with Stabo's herd are welcomed. Those of you that want to stay with the old herd can travel deeper into the woods and have your own herd and herd leader." Then he stopped and let the murmuring settle down again. "If you want to stay with the old herd, you will have to select a new herd leader. Due to my age and my injuries, I can no longer be your leader. You will need to select a new herd leader."

There was a chorus of 'no', and 'do not go' he heard from those around him. It did make him feel good that he was liked by so many. He heard a lot of talking and that was good. He let it go for a while and then Marco, one of the large 4 year old males came up. "If I may speak," he said.

"Marco may speak," He said as loud as he could.

Marco nodded his head and then spoke loudly. "Stranger, if we do keep the old herd, who would you suggest as the new leader?"

"Balo has more experience than any of the others. I left the herd to him when I had to go away. I would recommend him to you."

Marco nodded his head as if expecting his answer. "I would agree with Stranger that Balo has the most experience. Yet lately we have seen how Balo and his family have argued loudly over the leadership. This has caused me to question Balo's ability to lead the herd. I also question Balo's Son, Delon, and his mate Stena for their parts in the argument. I question even more your mate Carie and your son Stuben for starting the arguments. I do not think they have the needs of the herd as their interest. For this reason I think we should stay as one herd under the leadership of Stabo. He is wise, he has been trained by Stranger and Bambi, and he has proved he has the needs of the herd as his first concern. Veron's son Bambi has also shown the ability to lead. I would follow both of them."

He saw Balo's jaw almost drop to the ground in surprise. Both Delon and Stuben looked ready to charge out and kill Marco. Stabo, him, and the two Bambis stepped out near Marco.

"All here have the right to speak," Stabo shouted.

Relnor the deer from the forest over the hill then walked out into the open. He had been one of the first to flee from Razor and had never gone back to his old forest. "I hear Marco and I agree. Stabo and Veron's son Bambi are best to lead. I also did not like hearing the arguments among the other deer about being herd leader. One thing Stranger and the older Bambi has taught me is that the herd must come first and that is not the case with them. I say we live as one herd with Stabo as our leader."

"I agree," came a shout from the herd followed by other similar calls.

After the shouting died out he stepped up again into the middle. "Is it then the wish of the herds that you now become one herd with Stabo as your herd leader?"

There was a general chorus of yes, from both herds. Although the amount of support surprised him, the decision to become one herd did not. Poor Balo, Stena and Delon looked like they had all just been beaten by a bear. They had been rejected by their own herd. He knew what that meant. There was nothing to be done, they had made this mess themselves and they would have to correct it.

"Very well," he said loudly."Then as of now I step aside and let Stabo be leader for both herds. I want to thank all of you for allowing me to be your leader. It has been my pleasure to do so."

"Marco then walked up to him. "Thank you for being our leader, we can clearly see the price you have paid for it," Marco said and rubbed his forehead. "We thank you for it. Many of us are alive because of you two. To many of us you and Bambi will always be our leaders." Marco then looked directly at Stabo, "No offence is made to Stabo by saying this."

"And no offence is taken," Stabo said. "They will always be leaders to me also and I hope will continue to give me advice when I need it."

"As long as we are able," he told his son.

"I have something to say," Balo shouted out.

He thought Balo cannot be that stupid, but Balo walked out into the middle with the rest of them. All of them in the center looked tense and ready for a fight.

"I do not accept being one herd and I do not accept Stabo as my leader," he said spitefully. "I will not challenge Stabo for the leadership of this herd, but I will say that if there are any who also do not accept this, I will leave tomorrow night for the deep forest where we will set up our own herd. All who wish to come with us are welcomed."

There was dead silence among all the deer. That should have told Balo, Stena, Carie, Stuben and Delon all they needed to know.

"All who wish to go with Balo, are free to do," Stabo said loudly. "The rest will stay here."

"Any more questions?" he asked the herd.

Again there was dead silent. He turned to Stabo.

"One more thing to take care of," Stabo said. "Bambi," he called to Veron's son. "Come with me." Stabo then turned to him and older Bambi, "May I ask you two to also come with me."

They all followed Stabo over to Carie and Stuben. The other deer were already leaving. The matter of the herd had been settled. He did notice Galin hanging back about three lengths behind them. When Stabo got within two lengths of Carie and Stuben he stopped dead and stared right at them. "Let me say this to both of you," he told them with his voice showing anger. "I am herd leader here and when I step aside I will suggest to the herd that Veron's son Bambi take over from me. If you do not like that, then I suggest you both leave now, because I will not put up with anything from either one of you."

"And just are we suppose to go," Carie sneered. "Our forest is burnt, that fool Balo and his family are leaving for the deep woods; we cannot go with them. Maybe you hope we go to the forest over our hill and die before we get there?"

"Not to my forest will you go. I do not want you there," Galin called out from behind them. "You go to that forest and when I become herd leader the first thing I will do is chase you both out. Deer like you I do not need."

"Then I suggest you go to the forest over the hill with the bear's den," he told both of them sadly. "No one knows you over there except Young Claris."

"Very well," Stuben said. "I am taking Karene with me."

"No you are not," Young Bambi said moving right up to Stuben. "She is staying here with me."

"He is right Stuben," Stabo told him curtly."I heard her myself. She is staying here."

He saw Stuben almost turn red with rage and he was waiting for him to take it out on Stabo or Young Bambi. He wisely decided not to. Instead he turned to him. "I hope you are happy, Father."

"No, Son," he said calmly. "I am not happy, but again you and your mother brought this on to yourselves. You have no one to blame except yourselves. I am pained to see you go, but it would be best for the herd if you did."

With that he walked away thinking how problems tend to work themselves out if you give them enough time. Only one more thing to see. He went back to where he slept before and ate some grass until his side started to hurt. He then found a stream and started to drink. The older Bambi Faline and the Claris all found a soft spot of grass as the greater light rose, they all fell quickly asleep.

The next night he and the others watched as Balo, Stena, Delone and Young Faline gathered together. Four males and two female also went with them. All were deer from the other forest.

"I wish you all luck," he told them.

They said nothing in returned. He felt they all blamed him for the situation they were in. So be it. He could not control anything. They just walked off into the distance and disappeared into the deeper darkness of the forest. He hoped they be alright, but from here on out there was nothing he could do. He looked back and saw Stabo, Young Bambi, Gena and Charlene standing together. He walked over to them with Claris. "You know it occurred to me, we never asked permission from the herd leader to stay in this forest."

His Son laughed out loud and rubbed his head and then his mothers. "You two never have to ask my permission to stay anywhere," he said. They all walked off to feed.