I honestly don't think deer see anything as fear. It usually comes down to if a deer treats anything as a threat. Once they arrive at that conclusion, they make a quick decision to move away from it.

Fires may or may not be seen as a threat and they will act acccordingly. Some will, some will not leave. The same goes for any other situations the deer has learned over the years. I can have deer watch me from my back yard and never think twice about me. But let me try to get that close during hunting season and it's a different ballgame. It's how each deer reacts to different situations, especially the older and wiser they get.

JMHO.

I get deer in the yard & neighbors yard all the time while sitting there with a small campfire going.