Naija was born to the springer herd, a normal fawn born in the midst of spring just a bit later than normal. The herd was a small thing the lead hart a kind but aging male who loved his hind and his fawns. He was as brown as the tree’s and his eyes as blue as the sky. Naija recalled he had many tines, so many that at the time she could not count them for lack of knowledge in numbers. The springer her lived in a small groove that was shared with a flock of Spink-footed geese. A noisy bunch but then their warnings for danger saved the herd plenty of times. It was healthy and happy times, but those times never do last.
It started slow at first; the leader would stumble or forget what he was talking about. However as months went on he started to drool and fall, he stopped eating. There was nothing anyone could do, and more of the deer started to become sick. Naija was fine however, and everyone wondered why. Then a look at her mother was the same. Neither of them was becoming ill, and the lead hart explained his thoughts the best he could, that they were new to the herd. Everyone just grew sicker and sicker, and one day the lead hart did not wake from his dreaming.
After that happened Naija’s mother moved off, herding Naija with her away from the sickness of the herd. They stayed to themselves but then her mother was taken by another hart. A foul black male who poked and prodded his herla with his antlers making them group together. Naija grew up in this herd, she kept her head down and was ignored as she was only a young doe. Her mother one day died; the lead hart had made a mistake when he punished her for wandering and his antler cut into her mother’s throat. She died quietly and calmly, but everyone could smell the fear that reeked from her as she died slowly. Naija could not react or the hart would punish her, with the rest she just watched on as the light of her mother’s brown eyes faded and died.
After the death the herd was moved to escape the scent of fear and the memories. It did not work; the herla doe’s and fawns knew just what had happened. They started to act out and when rut came many herla refused to be covered by the hart with every fiber of their beings. Soon bodies piled up, the hart went mad with anger. It was luck that another came and wanted the herd. It was an older hart his red like fur fading. With his age however, came experience and he beat the hart and took over the herd in a quiet affair. Things settled down and the new lead hart brought the weakened and scared herd together with the band he had already. The herla were give freedom many never had before, the fawns were shown how to play and the doe were left to learn and play.
Naija was still young, her fur unmarked from scars or anything of wounds. She like many of the others from the old herd, were surprised to see more than one stag in the herd. These were the lead harts sons, kept to help him protect the herd. Life was good for a long time, until Naija entered her first season as rut came again. When this happened things for her changed, she was sought after by the lead hart and sweet talked. Naija did not want him though; he was old his antlers ragged and growing weaker after each drop. So she denied him, and he allowed it. She was again allowed to be left alone to do as she liked.
The next time came and she denied him again, too old to weak. This time he had a temper. She wanted none of it. She remembered the time when the herla revolted against the black hart. She did this, kicking and running when he got near her and even biting. She did not understand why one of his sons did not take over yet they only grumbled about it. So she left. She picked a time and fled the herd to be rid of what she did not want. She managed fine for a while, she became more fearful of things that moved and often she ran from a small rustle. However she stayed alive to meet a small band. Two does a stag and a hart. They welcomed her to join and she did.
For a while things went fine, they stuck together and defended each other. The two legged came. Those odd things that spoke no language any animal understood but the odd wolf like creatures that bayed after them and those deer like creatures they sat on. They shot the deer, the birds the rabbit. They ate them, they were predators like no other for they could be far away yet they could still kill you. They started putting up things of stone, making it hard to travel. The small herd avoided them; it was easy they did not travel far from their stoned places. When the wolf creatures howled and bayed they ran far and fast.
Naija was safe where she was, and she enjoyed the company. It was during winter that things went bad. They had heard no hound so they had been grazing peacefully and talking of the spring to come. Then they heard the voices and sound of the two legged. So they hid. Naija stayed low and still, she did not move an ear or her tail; but the rest of the group fidgeted and shifted. Suddenly the hart ran and bolted right toward the voices and foolishly the others followed. Naija watched from the bush’s as they fell, branches in their side appearing so fast she could never tell where they came from. One of the two legged shouted loudly and waved about, it wore bright big things like some colorful bird.
The two legged approached her and Naija thought this was the end, but then that one shouted and stomped again and the taller ones that hunted stepped back and the whole group moved away dragging the bodies of her friends. She was left alone, all alone. From then on when she saw the two legged they looked at her but their hounds and horses were silent and she was never hunted. She did not relax though, the two legged were unknown predators. Still she was alone, but she was surviving and was healthy. She yearned to travel on and find a herd, but her past kept her still and her head low. She had no want to find another hart like before.
1,145 words
It started slow at first; the leader would stumble or forget what he was talking about. However as months went on he started to drool and fall, he stopped eating. There was nothing anyone could do, and more of the deer started to become sick. Naija was fine however, and everyone wondered why. Then a look at her mother was the same. Neither of them was becoming ill, and the lead hart explained his thoughts the best he could, that they were new to the herd. Everyone just grew sicker and sicker, and one day the lead hart did not wake from his dreaming.
After that happened Naija’s mother moved off, herding Naija with her away from the sickness of the herd. They stayed to themselves but then her mother was taken by another hart. A foul black male who poked and prodded his herla with his antlers making them group together. Naija grew up in this herd, she kept her head down and was ignored as she was only a young doe. Her mother one day died; the lead hart had made a mistake when he punished her for wandering and his antler cut into her mother’s throat. She died quietly and calmly, but everyone could smell the fear that reeked from her as she died slowly. Naija could not react or the hart would punish her, with the rest she just watched on as the light of her mother’s brown eyes faded and died.
After the death the herd was moved to escape the scent of fear and the memories. It did not work; the herla doe’s and fawns knew just what had happened. They started to act out and when rut came many herla refused to be covered by the hart with every fiber of their beings. Soon bodies piled up, the hart went mad with anger. It was luck that another came and wanted the herd. It was an older hart his red like fur fading. With his age however, came experience and he beat the hart and took over the herd in a quiet affair. Things settled down and the new lead hart brought the weakened and scared herd together with the band he had already. The herla were give freedom many never had before, the fawns were shown how to play and the doe were left to learn and play.
Naija was still young, her fur unmarked from scars or anything of wounds. She like many of the others from the old herd, were surprised to see more than one stag in the herd. These were the lead harts sons, kept to help him protect the herd. Life was good for a long time, until Naija entered her first season as rut came again. When this happened things for her changed, she was sought after by the lead hart and sweet talked. Naija did not want him though; he was old his antlers ragged and growing weaker after each drop. So she denied him, and he allowed it. She was again allowed to be left alone to do as she liked.
The next time came and she denied him again, too old to weak. This time he had a temper. She wanted none of it. She remembered the time when the herla revolted against the black hart. She did this, kicking and running when he got near her and even biting. She did not understand why one of his sons did not take over yet they only grumbled about it. So she left. She picked a time and fled the herd to be rid of what she did not want. She managed fine for a while, she became more fearful of things that moved and often she ran from a small rustle. However she stayed alive to meet a small band. Two does a stag and a hart. They welcomed her to join and she did.
For a while things went fine, they stuck together and defended each other. The two legged came. Those odd things that spoke no language any animal understood but the odd wolf like creatures that bayed after them and those deer like creatures they sat on. They shot the deer, the birds the rabbit. They ate them, they were predators like no other for they could be far away yet they could still kill you. They started putting up things of stone, making it hard to travel. The small herd avoided them; it was easy they did not travel far from their stoned places. When the wolf creatures howled and bayed they ran far and fast.
Naija was safe where she was, and she enjoyed the company. It was during winter that things went bad. They had heard no hound so they had been grazing peacefully and talking of the spring to come. Then they heard the voices and sound of the two legged. So they hid. Naija stayed low and still, she did not move an ear or her tail; but the rest of the group fidgeted and shifted. Suddenly the hart ran and bolted right toward the voices and foolishly the others followed. Naija watched from the bush’s as they fell, branches in their side appearing so fast she could never tell where they came from. One of the two legged shouted loudly and waved about, it wore bright big things like some colorful bird.
The two legged approached her and Naija thought this was the end, but then that one shouted and stomped again and the taller ones that hunted stepped back and the whole group moved away dragging the bodies of her friends. She was left alone, all alone. From then on when she saw the two legged they looked at her but their hounds and horses were silent and she was never hunted. She did not relax though, the two legged were unknown predators. Still she was alone, but she was surviving and was healthy. She yearned to travel on and find a herd, but her past kept her still and her head low. She had no want to find another hart like before.
1,145 words
