A/N: The concept of this fic came to me in a dream after watching Bambi late last night.


You there, young one, come in, please. Welcome to my home young traveler. Take a look around, look at the books upon my walls... Ah! Yes! I see it in your eyes! You recognize some of these titles, don't you? Bambi, The Lion King, Great Mouse Detective, 101 Dalmations, yes, I have them all and so much more! Yes, all these stories got their happy endings. ...But... Let me ask you something, young one... What if... That were no longer the case. What if all of these stories had their happy endings ripped away from them? What if... The villains had won...

...What if they had won...


DYING DREAMS: BOOK 1.

The world they had known was gone. Dead, as if someone had taken a knife and stabbed it in the heart repeatedly. Magic itself, the good essence that helped keep the world together, was dying. Many heroes had suffered grim fates, of which only a select few managed to escape, mostly by pure luck. One such hero was on the outskirts of an abandoned village, left to rot with the rest of the world. His frame was bony from lack of food. So mu h was this that the young one was mearly stumbling along, occasionally needing help from his mother to stand. Most of what little food that was found was given to the young one, but even that was barely enough to keep them alive. Most would recognize this young one at first sight, even with his emaciated appearance. Most would know his name at a glance: Bambi. The young fawn stumbled along, eyes set for even just a few patches of grass, or maybe even some clovers to eat. His stomach occasionally let out loud rumbling noises as he searched for any source of nourishment, but the sun was blocked by dark magic when the Order took over, so barely grew anymore. Bambi's face darkened even more as the Order came to mind. When all of the villains had joined forces, that was when the heroes began to fall, when the world began to die...

"Bambi." His mother's voice brought him back down to earth. Bambi turned to her, she had unearthed a patch of clovers, whithering, but with just enough life in them to be edible. Bambi would have jumped for joy, but the last time he had done that he landed painfully and had to be carried by his mother for several days. Instead, Bambi had merely rushed to his mother's side, the two deer bending down to eat the little food that they had found. The clovers tasted bitter, but Bambi and his mother ate on, knowing they likely wouldn't find anything else to eat in a while. The older deer ate only a small amount, making the fawn eat most of it, it being her duty as his mother to keep him alive and safe. Her ears twitched, and Bambi froze midway through taking another bite. When his mother's ears twitched, it meant she had heard something, and that was rarely a good sign, especially these days.

"Mother?" The fawn croaked. His mother looked around cautiously, her body growing stiff.

"Bambi, hide." She whispered. Bambi sprung up, looking around wildly before leaping into a nearby wreckage, his mother following suit. The two deer nestled up, doing their best to conceal themselves. A flapping of wings, extremely quiet but audible to the ears of the two deer, was heard. A large, pitch black gargoyle like creature with glowing red eyes fluttered into view. A Searcher, a creature of Maleficent's creation. Bambi stiffined in fear. His mother shushed him gently, trying to keep him calm. The burning red eyes of the beast searched the spot the two deer had been. It growled lowly, before taking off, presumably satisfied with its search. The two deer waited for a few more moments, before Bambi's mother moved.

"Wait here." She told him quietly as she pulled herself out of the wreckage. The elder stepped out into the clearing, looking around for any sign of the horrendous beasts that now plagued the world. She nodded, and turned to call Bambi out, there was a roar, and the very same beast swooped out of nowhere, snatching Bambi's mother up in its talons.

"Mother!" Bambi burst out of the wreckage, desperately chasing after the beast as it began to take off, his mother in its grip.

"Bambi! Run away! Quickly!" The female deer shouted. Bambi didn't here her, continuing to run after the beast. One great flap of its wings, however, sent Bambi flying across the clearing. Blinking through the stars, he saw the beast finally take off into the sky. "Mother!" The fawn pleaded weakly, giving a futile attempt at chasing after the beast, managing to make it into the village before his strength gave out. He barely had enough energy to drag himself into an abandoned home, before he finally collapsed, giving out a great sob. He had lost his home, his friends, and now his mother. Bambi was truly alone in this demented world...


SEVERAL HOURS LATER:

Bambi had no idea how long he had been asleep, not even knowing WHEN he had fallen asleep. He eventually came to the conclusion that he had cried himself to sleep. He opened his eyes. Despite the lack of sunlight, Bambi was still a deer, so he could easily see in the extremely dark room. As he stared around the room, he became aware of a soft breathing within his proximity. The kind of breathing that told you someone was sleeping. Eventually, he became aware of the small pressure on his back. His eyes widened with the realization that something was sleeping on his back! With a frightened shout, Bambi jolted to his hooves. There was another frightened, more girly, shout as whatever was on his back was flung into the air, landing with a soft plop on his head. Bambi stiffened. After several long moments, the thing on his head began to move. A tiny, female mouse popped into his view, looking at him agape. She had tan fur and wore a blue, tattered coat, clutching a blue hat in her tiny paws. She looked really young.

"...Hello?" The mouse finally squeaked.

"Hello..." Bambi responded. "...Were you sleeping on me?"

"I'm sorry." She answered. At this point, Bambi became aware of her accent. It was different then what he had heard before. "I-I was cold, and I just saw you laying there. Your fur is warm..." Bambi suddenly became aware that the air was undeed very cold. He had never really noticed. Then again, he usually had his mother to curl up to...

Realization hit him like a brick.

"Are you okay?" The mouse asked at the face he made.

"I-I lost my mother. She was taken..."

"Oh..." The mouse looked saddened. "My daddy was taken from me not to long ago. I've been on my own ever since..." She looked at Bambi with wide eyes. "Um... Where are you heading?"

"I don't know. Me and mother were just wandering around for food."

"Um, may I please come with you, wherever you're going?" Bambi blinked, surprised at the question. "Please? I'm tired of being alone." Bambi couldn't deny it. He didn't want to be alone either. Besides, wasn't there strength in numbers?

"Okay." Bambi began to walked as the mouse sat on his head. "Um, what's your name?"

"I'm Olivia Flaversham." The mouse responded.

"My name's Bambi." He stepped out into the cold night air... Or was it day? No one could really tell anymore. He gave a great sigh, and stepoed off into the unknown...