Rudolph (Empath stories)

Rudolph is a reindeer that Empath and the Smurflings have encountered in the Smurf forest in the EMPATH: The Luckiest Smurf story "Empath And The Red-Nosed Reindeer". Like his popular namesake character, Rudolph was born with a red nose that mysteriously glows, which was an accident bestowed upon him by Mother Nature at birth, and thus was shunned by other reindeer, which caused him to live alone in the forest. Empath sympathized with the reindeer's situation and took him home to the Smurf Village where they hoped they would find a suitable home for the reindeer. On Christmas Eve, when Chlorhydris had cast a thick fog upon the entire region that would prevent Nicholas from flying through the air with his team of reindeer to deliver toys unto the children, Empath noticed that Rudolph's glowing nose was able to be bright enough to cut through the fog. Realizing this, he and Rudolph traveled to Nicholas' workshop where the reindeer was accepted by the toymaker and made a member of his reindeer team, given the name Rudolph in memory of a child. On Christmas Day, Empath discovered that Rudolph had found a female reindeer who was attracted to him and had become his mate, and while Mother Nature appeared to offer Rudolph a normal nose for all the trouble his red nose had caused him, Empath pleaded on the reindeer's behalf to let him keep the nose, and so Mother Nature relented.