Rain kept falling from the skies, the last crimson rays of sunset painted the clouds in the horizon.
The ground, too, was stained with crimson; not from the fading sunset, however. It spread across the grass and dirt with each raindrop that fell on the small puddle that formed on the rocks, slowly diluting in the water.
The near-crooked shape of a dog could be seen lying on top of said rocks; it wasn't moving, and would never move again. Its claws and fangs had the same red tint in them.
A few meters away from the dog's lifeless form was a fawn struggling to stay conscious, trying his hardest to walk away; his fur was soaked in rain, his neck and throat were soaked in blood.
His blood.
Ah... That's right.
Just moments ago, that dog had been right in front of him on the mountain cliffs above them. Before Bambi could think of kicking it off, it bit him. Right on his throat.
One moment, everything flashed red and white, an intense pain following instantly after. The next moment, both were falling down that cliff. The attack made them lose their balance.
His pursuer died instantly upon impact, and yet he was alive, for better or for worse. He'd fallen right on top of the thing, so perhaps that's why... Not that it made his situation any better, of course — he was injured. Badly injured.
Bambi leaned on a boulder to keep as much balance as he could, the wound stung and burned enough to leave him light-headed — even breathing, turns out, was increasingly becoming difficult. Pain mingled with the cold raindrops and the strange warmth still flowing down to his chest, his vision slightly blurry and blacking out as time passed.
How long could he endure staying awake...?
Sounds of hooves rapidly hitting rock and dirt could be heard from a distance — in no time at all, the shape of something big leapt from a big pile of boulders, and then it suddenly stopped on its tracks. Was it... Looking at him?
"... Bambi!"
Ah... That was his father, wasn't it...?
Bambi's vision cleared for a moment, joy quickly made its way towards him despite his current situation. But when he tried to make his way towards the stag, the fawn was only able to take a few steps before his legs quickly gave way and he collapsed.
Although he was still wide awake, exhaustion combined with the pain still overcame him. Bambi heard his father quickly approaching him as he tried to get up, to no avail.
By that point he was no longer paying attention to his surroundings, eyes shutting tight as the wound stung even more.
On his third or fourth failed attempt, he nearly collapsed again when he felt something hold his head from underneath, then proceeding to let it gently lay back down on the ground, avoiding any more unnecessary pain.
Right after, the fawn heard someone carefully lying down next to him — he tried taking a look through half-lidded eyes. The sight both comforted and crushed him.
His father looking at him in utter misery as he saw how bad the fawn's wounds were; he shook his head and then got down to nuzzle his son as gently as he could.
... He'd never shown this much affection to Bambi before. Not when the fawn was first taken in, not when he tried to follow on his steps, not when he was being sent away to live with a new mother.
That gesture alone made his heart beat in joy and regret — regret because of his attitude earlier that day, when he accused his father of not caring about him for him, and joy because the stag was proving him wrong.
Unfortunately, it all had happened at the worst moment.
"... I'm so, so sorry, Bambi... This shouldn't have happened..." He heard his father say in a soft, anguished tone, barely louder than a whisper. Bambi so badly wanted to nuzzle him back, but the sheer pain and exhaustion prevented him from doing so.
"... I... I-I'm... S-sorry... too..." He tried to speak, but even his throat hurt from the sheer effort... The damage was even worse than either of them imagined.
"Shh... Don't be. You were right... If only I had realized sooner..." The words caught the fawn off-guard, admittedly. So the stag came to understand his son's point after all.
Bambi's vision blurred even further, not only because of his increasing tiredness; tears gathered on his eyes, trickling down his cheeks without a warning — at the same time, the fawn felt himself slowly fading into unconsciousness, his surroundings darkening.
Even the wound wasn't as prominent as before, settling into a dull ache as his breathing began to slow down. The only thing that never left was the warmth of his father's presence, who nestled into his fur even more.
As if he, too, realized what was happening to his son.
They didn't want to let go, not now that they had just reunited with each other. Unfortunately, neither had any choice on the matter.
Holding onto the last bits of clarity he still had, Bambi gathered any strength he had left to say one last thing:
"... D-dad..."
"... I'm here..." His father said, his voice now this close to breaking and yet trying to remain as comforting as possible. Bambi weakly leaned closer, barely able to stay awake.
"... I'm here..." The stag repeated; a quiet, barely audible sound akin to a sob followed right after. Bambi could vaguely feel the warmth of tears falling onto his fur, as his father still continued to nuzzle him, comforting him even now.
The last thing in Bambi's mind before his consciousness left him at last...
... Was how much he wanted to stay with his father...
... He didn't want to go yet... He...
The rain had already ceased by the time the Great Prince found Bambi, only the distant roaring of thunder echoing in the distance and a soft chilly breeze blowing.
But that didn't matter. In fact, nothing else mattered to him right now.
He still remained where he was, caressing his son's form, trying to make himself believe that he'd wake up and be okay after all, trying to make himself believe that it was all just a nightmare. But the stag knew the truth, no matter how much he'd deny it.
His son... His young, brave, beloved son... was gone.
Just like how it happened with his mate back in winter... He was by her side when she died. He'd been there to offer as little comfort as he could, promising to find Bambi and bring him to safety.
And now, he relived that horrible moment all over again. Only this time, he had nobody else left. Even if he were to find another doe, none could replace the only one he ever loved. And no fawn could ever replace the son he'd grown to care about.
He was all alone, and he'd remain alone until the day his own life was done, one way or another.
Perhaps he'd even hope to reunite with his family in the afterlife...
So there they were: both father and son at the base of a mountain — one mourning the other, unwilling to leave him behind.
The full moon appeared from behind the clouds, but the gentle moonlight never reached them.
And now, it never would.