Fable's RoDs

I was not wrong, we did not leave the forest alone. As we left the White Forest, I could swear I felt a presence following us, but I could not see nor smell who or what it was that was following us all the home. It did feel like we were being watched though, making me wonder if we had angered a spirit in the forest and now it was waiting to strike. We arrived home the day after, having stopped for the night late and waking up early the next morning, allowing us to make it back before night fell the next day. Blitzen was waiting for us to return, standing at the fence surrounding our owners property, his head perking up when he saw us. We had not taken him with us since we did not know what the forest was like, but with the rumors that went around bout the place we did not want to risk being slowed down in any way, even though he normally just followed me everywhere when he did some with us. He was waiting for us as we trotted up to the gate and Sakari slid out of the saddle to open the gate and lead me through. I met Blitzen on the other side, the reindeer blowing in my face as his greeting. "Hey Blitzen, sorry we left you behind." Sakari said, joining us once she had closed the gate behind us. She scratched the reindeer behind the ear and then started walking towards the barn my pack and I stayed in most of the time. Blitzen followed Sakari and myself inside as we moved towards the tack room. I waited just outside with Blitzen, and Sakari removed my tack, putting it away. She closed the tack room and scratched me behind the ear. "Would you like to spend some time with Blitzen? Or would you like to come inside with me for the night?" she asked. Blitzen of course could not enter the house like the tokotas could, so if I went inside I would have to leave Blitzen behind, but I see him so often that one or two nights was not much compared to the time I did spend with my companion. I nudged her hand in response. "Alright, I guess you and Blitzen can catch up tomorrow, tonight you get special treatment in celebration of finding your spirit animal." I followed Sakari inside, Blitzen following us half way across the yard before stopping, watching our handler and myself disappear into the house.

Sakari put some logs in the fireplace and lit a fire, warming up the room and giving us some additional light. As the sun started to set Sakari only left the two living room lamps on as we sat in front of the fire. Sakari was laying on the couch, wrapped in a blanket and reading a book, I was laying on the carpet in front of the couch, having eaten a large, celebratory, meal. I did lift my head to looked out the large window looking out towards the back where I could see Blitzen looking at the house from the barn. I did feel a little bad choosing to go inside, but I wished to spend the night celebrating with my handler. I would spend time with Blitzen the next day, and we would celebrate together. Sakari stood one last time to put two more logs on the fire before laying back on the couch, drifting to sleep. I drifted to asleep, watching the fire flicker and slowly die down. I slept well that night, happy and satisfied by the result of my journey to the Soul Pool.

Sakari let me out the next morning, heading back in to get dressed and ready for the day. I looked around for my companion, wondering why he had not come out to meet me. It was unusual for him not to come and meet me in the yard after a night in the house, and so I rushed to the barn, looking for the reindeer. He was nowhere to be seen, in the yard, in the barn, he just seemed to vanish into thin air. I looked out towards the woods, wondering if he somehow or for some reason jumped the fence. Movement in the trees caught my attention, but whatever it was it bounded off deeper into the tree. "Blitzen!" I called out to him. I got ready for a running start and charged the fence, leaping over the fence, rolling onto my side on the other side. I was too worried about my friend to stay down though. "Fable!" I heard Sakari call after me, but I kept going, not wanting to lose Blitzen's tracks. I followed the bounding reindeer through the woods, running as fast as I could to catch up to them. "Blitzen! Please stop! Wait!" I tried to call out to him, but he did not stop. I lost sight of the him, even though the trees started to thin out and then it opened up into a field. I knew where we were, and was wondering why Blitzen would run so far, but it was not Blitzen I saw standing there.

She had followed us home, the light brown piebald deer. She looked at me, and turned to face me. Beside her was Blitzen who looked like he had been waiting for us to arrive. I was too stunned to move and so Blitzen broke the frozen scene first, trotting over to me and blowing into my face in greeting. "Blitzen, I was so worried!" I exclaimed, then I blew into his face as response, my special way of greeting him back. He looked behind him to the smaller deer who seemed a little nervous, but after seeing our exchange she seemed to bring up the courage to approach me. I watched in awe as she moved gracefully and cautiously towards me, looking at me with curious and yet gentle eyes. She almost seemed to hide behind Blitzen as she got close enough, and she looked me over more slowly, as if inspecting me. "No need to be afraid." I said, trying to make my tone quiet and calm. She took a step closer to me, moving further out of hiding. When she looked up and hid behind Blitzen again, I knew Sakari had arrived. I turned to see her riding Eclair, bareback. She stopped at the edge of the woods, spotting Blitzen and the deer, realizing the situation. I knew she would stay there and wait quietly as to not scare away the little deer. The little deer seemed to realize this too as she came out of hiding again and approached me. She looked me up and down, even sniffed me, looking to Sakari and Eclair behind me every so often, watching them for any sign that they might attack her.

I turned to look at Sakari as she slid from Exclair's back and slowly started to move towards up. Instead of hiding behind Blitzen this time, she hid behind me. I was too surprised to move really, looking from Sakari to the little timid deer, wondering why she chose to follow us in the first place, let alone hide behind me. "It's okay, we won't hurt you." she stretched out her hand once she got close enough, bending over a little as to not over-tower the small deer. She peaked out from behind me and sniffed the hand of Sakari, though she did not come out of hiding. "Looks like we are going to have another mouth to feed." Sakari commented to me quietly, and I just gave her a little nod in reply. I knew she was no ordinary deer, she did follow us back from the White Forest after all. I was sure this was not coincidence. My spirit animal was a deer after all, so maybe this small deer was meant to be my companion like Blitzen. I looked to her again and took a step to the side, watching as the little deer seemed to follow, not wanting to leave the space open between her and the strange human, but also not wanting to run away from the human. "Blitzen." Sakari called to the reindeer who walked over to her. She attached a lead rope to his halter and gave me a nod, walking back to Eclair and then heading back towards home with the reindeer in tow.

I turned to face the little deer, blowing into her face like a did with Blitzen all the time. She shook her head and looked at me curious, somewhat cautiously, but not as scared now that Sakari and Eclair were gone. I sat down, wanting to look less menacing, and it seemed to work as her head perked up and she seemed to relax. I realized she had been prepared to run that entire time, but now she felt more safe, or so it looked like it. She looked wiser as her head lifted and she stood tall, more confident then she was before, and yet still gentle and calm. This was the real her. "Do you have a name?" I asked her, she tilted her head and I almost wondered if she did not understand me until she replied. "No, I do not have a name." she seemed embarrassed by this fact, but I just smiled. "Then how about I give you a name?" my tone was more of a question then anything, and I waited for any sort of response before suggesting names to her. She nodded her head, looking quite please at the idea. "How about the name Liva?" I asked her, trying to think of some nice names in my head. I watched as she shook her head. "Liva, Liva..." she said the name a few times, but ended up not liking how it sounded. "Nolva maybe?" I made another suggestion, but like the first it did not quite suite the little deer. "How about the name... Rila!" I suggested again. She seemed to think on it, and then she nodded. "I like that name! Rila, Rila! That is my name!" I smiled at her excitement, though all she did was bob her head enthusiastically. She was so calm unlike other creatures I knew. Most would bounce around or make lots of loud noise when they were excited, but she was calm and relaxed in her manners.

"Well Rila, how about you come with me, you came all this way." She suddenly turned shy and looked away from me. She shook her head and took a step away from me, unable to bring up the words to say no. "I'm not ready to stay there yet." the words she spoke were quiet, and before I could say a thing more she bounded into the trees. Her little tail vanished into the underbrush before I could call out to her or follow. I looked into the trees and all I could do was smile. I knew she would be back, she followed us here from the White Forest, and going back was not something she could do safely. She would be my companion, I am sure it was fate that brought us together. Blitzen trotted out of the trees with Sakari beside him. They had gotten home and Blitzen made a bolt for it again, running right to me with Sakari on his heals. He looked around the field, looking for the little doe that had been here only a few moments before, and then he looked at me as if asking where she was. "She'll be back, do not worry Blitzen." I said to him, taking a few steps towards him. Sakari walked up to me and patted me on the neck. "What a lovely little companion, I can't wait to meet her more formally." Sakari commented. She swung herself up onto my back, and together we trotted back towards home, waiting for the little doe to return.