“Peculiar,” Moe agreed.
Cornelia and Moe knew that the deer were in trouble. They had no antlers for the battle on the ice.
“I will make the deer antlers,” Cornelia finally said.
“I will help you,” Moe responded.
For the rest of summer and deep into the fall Cornelia worked on many prototypes. The imitation antlers had to be as strong as real ones. It was a difficult task to make antlers for wild deer, but Cornelia felt she was supposed to help the deer.
There was a reason she had wanted to study the geodes on the island. There was a reason she moved to a green house on Olive Road. There was a reason she heard the rabbit, and met Moe, and found the box, and found the note in the box. There was a reason Mother Deer welcomed her.
Moe and Koko helped in any way they could.
Cornelia and Moe wore the prototypes and practiced battling.
Even Koko tried them on.
Eventually, the prototypes were ready to try with the deer.
Cornelia and Moe and Koko carried the imitation antlers into the forest.
They showed the deer how to wear them. Cornelia and Moe put them on and practiced battling for all of the deer to watch.
Then Cornelia slipped the prototype off of her own head, and with Moe’s help, they held the prototype up, so that a deer could easily walk into it.
Mother Deer observed, but did not move.
None of the deer moved.
Cornelia worried. She looked at Moe, but Moe was not looking back. Instead, Moe’s eyes were closed. She knew Moe was radiating trust.
Cornelia did the same. She closed her eyes. I am here to help you, let me help you, she repeated silently to herself.
She opened her eyes to the gentle nudge of a young deer sliding his face into the antler prototype.
She cheered on the inside. So did Moe. So did Koko.
The deer liked the antlers Cornelia had made.
She got to work making more.