Twitterpated (Bambi x Ronno)

Chapter 2- Grass and Flowers

Ronno was up early the next day.

Emerging from the bed of grass he slept on, he hobbled up and yawned out his drowsiness. Arching his back, he stretched away the lingering aches for sleep, taking a moment to uncurl himself. Stiffening his legs out and leaning his head back, loud pop suddenly emitted from his spine. "Ung- ow," he winced, flinching a little as mild pain briefly flickered in his back before dying down. Shaking himself off, he dusted his tail and took a second to groom his chest. He quietly grazed his tongue over his fur, knowing he couldn't be too loud or he'll awaken his mother nearby. If everything was to go to plan, he had to slip away in silence. As he finished cleaning himself, then stopping to spit out a clump of fur, he took a deep breath and walked out into the morning.

The air was cold, subtly carrying a sharp chill that made him fluff up his fur for warmth. It would warm up later, but mornings in the forest always seemed to have low points in temperature. As he walked down the grassy path, gentle chirps could be heard in the trees above, a symbol that the birds were waking up. Ronno undeniably hated the sound, making him grit his teeth and wish he could ram his antlers into the trees and knock down the nests. He didn't have the strength for it, much to his annoyance, leaving him with the only option of flattening his ears and sucking it up as he walked.

He pushed through a wall of tall grass, crossing into a small dip that led to a rushing river. The beautiful water with shining stones and gentle plants made his face twist in disgust, remembering the humiliating fall he took the day prior. Despite the hateful thoughts swimming in his head, he couldn't resist his own thirst and leaned down to dip his tongue in the water.

"Hi!" A cheerful voice poked nearby, prompting the deer to flick his eyes up at the sound. A bright blue songbird was standing in the water, looking at him with a friendly smile. "Good morning," it said with a chirp, before quickly dipping its head in and shaking the water around it.

"Sure, I guess," the buck rolled his eyes, turning away a little as he continued drinking.

"Do you like the morning? I like the morning," the songbird continued, splashing more water over itself, "it's so pretty, the sky and the wind." It gave a short hop closer to the deer, who wasn't even looking. "Everyone's talking about you, by the way." He pointed with his feather, finally prompting a reaction from a deer.

"What are they saying?" Ronno looked at the bird with a raised eyebrow, water dripping from his mouth.

"You fell into the river, right?" The small avian giggled, "frankly, I think that's hilarious. But don't worry, I used to fly in the rain all the time and it made me-"

"I didn't fall, Bambi pushed me," Ronno said almost immediately.

"He did? I didn't-"

"Yes, he did," the deer sharply cut him off, "anyway, where's that field with the purple flowers?"

The bird hesitated, taken aback, "the... what?"

"The field, with purple flowers," Ronno growled, punctuating each word, "sheesh, are you listening?"

Taking a small step back in the water, the songbird lowered its head a little, "uh, yeah, sorry," it said apologetically, "it's just down there, past all the caves." He pointed with his wing off to his left. "Are you-" the bird stopped as Ronno sharply turned and walked off, leaving the avian alone in the river. Feeling hurt, the songbird gave a small sigh and went back to his bath.

"I hate birds," the deer muttered grimly as he kept his head low.

Speeding up his pace, the deer walked out into an expansive field generously gleaming with colored flowers. The number of trees in the area was scarce, allowing the sun to shine right down onto the petals and give them a lovely shine. Crushing a blue flower under his hoof, he scanned his eyes over each color as he bulldozed his way along the field. Finally stopping in his tracks, he spotted a clump of purple flowers among the whites and yellows.