The Unicorn

The sun shone into Jane´s room. She woke up with a smile. Holidays! In a minute she got dressed and ran down the stairs into the kitchen. Her mother was already awake. “Good morning!” she said, but Jane didn´t hear her. She grabbed two apples and ran into the stable
Her parent´s horses were hungry and Jane fed them quickly. Then she went to her favourite horse, Flower Growing, and gave it an apple. While she ate the other one, she said: “Let´s go riding, Flower.”
The forest was alive and Jane could spot squirrels and birds. Suddenly she saw a strange path, trailing away from the main brindle path. Curiously she followed it. As they walked deeper into the woods, Flower shook her head, unwilling to go on.
“It is okay. Let´s turn back.” Jane whispered, because she didn´t feel good, either. But as her horse tried to find its way back, they got lost.
Panic rose in Jane´s throat, but she swallowed and said: “It´s okay. I know this forest and I can find the way back home. We are not lost, Flower.” But still deep in doubts, she rode her white horse through the trees.
It got darker, though it couldn´t be evening already. With a jolt of fear Jane realized, that the trees got black and seemed to cut their way off.
But then the light became brighter and Flower entered a clearing. Wild flowers grew on the grass and looked beautiful. They reminded Jane of her horse and the brown and golden patches on her coat. But she had never seen the clearing before and still didn’t know how to get back to her parent´s ranch.
Suddenly there was a flash at the edge of her vision. Jane tried to work out what it was.
“Come on, Flower. Let´s see what that is.” She urged her horse. She needed to prod her several times until she went on. “It isn´t good time for one of your moods,” she scolded Flower.
As they came nearer to the place where Jane had seen the light, another flash was just visible, farther away. It caught her attention and the girl let the horse follow it.
When they reached the place of the second flash, a third appeared. Even Flower quickened her pace as if she wanted to know what it was. The same sequence of events went on and on: Notice a flash, follow it, and see the next flash...
Jane wondered where the creature that made the light would go, if it was a creature and not just her fantasy. Maybe someone reflected the sunlight in a mirror and fooled her. But at one spot she spotted mud, which covered the ground. And next to Flower´s hooves, there were other hoof-prints, much bigger than anyone Jane had ever seen.
She counted the eleventh flash, when the forest brightened up. Just before it disappeared, a white coat shone in the light. Jane wondered if this was a white horse from her parent´s ranch and if she should follow it, but then she decided to look at the place where the horse had brought her more closely. It was her parent´s ranch!

Sometimes it wondered how people could be so stupid. It had let a girl and a horse back to their home, while it asked the horse for its name.
“My name is Flower.” It heard in its head. “Why are you helping us?” Flower asked. It shook its head and answered: “It´s the only thing I can do here. By the way, have you seen a white person being with huge black eyes?”
It really hoped that the horse had seen the human being. If not... it didn´t dare to think about it. “I´m sorry, but no.” The mare answered to its disappointment. “What is your name?” She wanted to know. “Horses call me “Cesin”, but people just say “Moonlight”. That is the word in your language.” It let brighten the light between its eyes for a last time and thought: “You´re there.” Flower said thanks and stepped out of the forest. Cesin decided to look for a brook and follow it. With fast steps it disappeared.

By the time Jane reached the farm, her father, Mike, was visiting the foals. They had six foals, two female and four male. Only two of them still needed their mother. Flower stopped at the fence and touched her nose with her black daughter´s.
Night Coming didn´t need her mother anymore, but she was still a foal. Her dark eyes glanced up to Jane. “I´m sorry, Nighty, but I haven´t got any carrots for you.” Mike laughed and said: “Tomorrow I´m going to sell some horses. You haven´t got school, so you may come with me.” “Really? Great!” Said Jane and was happy. She loved the horse-market. “Which one are you going to sell? Do you want to buy a horse? I am so happy!” Mike´s daughter exclaimed.
“Stay calm”, he laughed again. Then he pointed to the oldest foal. “Maybe this one will be right. Or do you think I should rather sell Birdie?” Birdie, his full name was Bird Flying, was a really cute brown stallion. The oldest foal was a bright gray mare, her name was Light Glowing. Jane thought the people would like Light more than the stallion because of her glowing fur, but Birdie was so cute, some other people would buy him straightaway.
The girl thought some time and decided: “Let´s sell Light. She´s the oldest and is really beautiful, but her sister has got the same shiny pelt. We could sell her and won´t lose a great mare. Birdie´s fur is beautiful too, and he will have great foals, so I wouldn´t dare to sell him.”
So they decided.
Jane was very excited when they reached the market the next day. It was early, but many people were already there. Mike left Jane with the horses and asked for three boxes. Then he took Light and Sandy, a cream-colored mare, and led them the way to their boxes. Jane followed him with Dark, a horse with a dark coat. They had tried to sell him four times, but no one had wanted him.
While Jane stroked his fur, she said: “I don´t know why nobody wants to buy you. You´re the nicest horse here.” The auction would only be in two hours, so Mike and Jane left their horses in the stable and looked around. “Do you think this one would like Moony?” Mike asked her, as they watched a ginger stallion. Jane thought of Moon Rising, a kind horse. “Yes, I think they would get nice foals.” She answered.
An hour later some different auctions started. Jane and her father fancied a white mare and tried to buy her. But then the prize got too high and they gave up. When Jane turned to go to their own horses, she saw a woman. She was wearing white clothes and had a pale skin. Even her hair was white. With dark, big eyes, which had a frightened look, she watched the horses.
“Can I help you?” Jane asked. The woman answered with an anxious voice: “Have you seen it? The wonderful white horse? Have you seen it?”Irritated the girl said: “Here are many white horses. Ask those people, if you know the name.” The woman stared at her, then at the men Jane pointed at. They had a list with every horse there. “Thanks”, whispered the white woman and disappeared.

“She must be here. She must!” Thought the white horse. It had been in this forest for years and hadn´t found her. The light between its eyes began to fade already, but how could it get back without her and strengthen itself? “It is not hopeless”, it told a squirrel. The animal stared at the horse and ran away. “Am I getting crazy?” It wondered. It knew it should get out of the woods, but it also knew, that this was dangerous. How could it find her?

Satisfied, Jane went home by car. The ginger horse was theirs now and they had also bought a promising foal. It was pale brown with a white mane and tail. His calm eyes looked clever. They had managed to sell all horses they had brought. “Why weren´t you there the last times we tried to sell Dark Being?” Mike had to laugh again, he was happy. Jane smiled and said: “Why do you think it´s my achievement, Dark´s sold?” Mike explained: “You groomed him so well that his pelt sparkled!” His daughter laughed.
Then she git serious again. “How will you call the new ones?” She asked. Mike said: “The foal is reminding me of Light´s mother.” Suddenly silence broke out. Light´s mother was a wonderful horse and Jane´s father loved her much. But then she git ill and died. Mike shook his head to chase away the sad thoughts and continued: “So I will call him Hope Loving.” Jane knew that Light´s mother was called “Hope Rising”. She swallowed and asked: “What about the other one?” “That´s your decision.”
Excitement flooded Jane again. She loved it to choose horse´s names. Carefully she pictured the ginger stallion. Its pelt looked a bit like a fox. “What about “Fox Sneaking”?” She asked. “That´s a great name”, Mike said.
At home it was late afternoon and dark clouds appeared in the sky. “There´s a storm coming. Let´s get all horses in the stable, or they will run into the forest if thunder is in the air”, said Jane´s mother, Hanna, after they had told her about the market.
Mike took the young horses and the adult stallions, while his wife took the adult mares and Jane went to the foals. When they met again, all horses were in and it started to rain. They went into the house and talked about the new horses, until Jane went to the window, because the wind was howling loudly.
“Oh no!” She called to her parents, shock rising inside her. “The fully-grown stallions!” They were still outside. The rain was more heavily and the first lightning brightened up the sky. As the thunder roared the horses threw their heads up and began to run, heading to the woods. Hanna looked at her husband and asked: “Haven´t you brought in the horses?” Mike said: “I thought you would do that!” “Whoever was supposed to bring in these horses, we have to catch them now!” Jane interrupted her parents.
They nodded, put on their rain-clothes and ran into the storm. Most horses were still there, but some of them had managed to jump over the fence and were in the forest. Mike said to Jane and her mother: “Take in the horses, I´m looking for the ones having disappeared!”Jane wanted to o with him but she saw that the stallions here were so upset, they could follow her father next time. So she took two horses that stood near the fence and led them to their box.
The third time she got back, most horses were in the stable. She went to River Flowing and Storm Ending. “May your name come true, Stormy”, Jane whispered, but the wind took away her words. She met Hanna in the stable.
“Only Thunny is missing”, her mother announced. Thunder Breaking was the oldest horse here. Jane knew he was very strong and proud. “I´ll help dad.” She offered. Hanna tried to hold her back, but she was too late. Jane raced into the forest.

It looked for shelter desperately. The storm was howling and the darkness almost blocked out its light. Cesin just found a boulder which could be big enough to keep out the wind, when it heard horses. They sounded terrified and with a trained eye he looked for them and sent them back. He also sensed a human being in the woods and ran towards the noise the human made. But its hope faded, when he saw that it was a man. He seemed to search for the horses. Should it help him?

Jane ran into the woods. The dark shapes of the trees looked odd. Fear crept into her heart. “Dad? Thunny!” She shouted. But it was desperate. Suddenly she saw a flash. First she thought it had been another lightning. But then she remembered the ride through the forest. It was the “thing” that had helped her.
Excited she tried to follow the flash, because she knew that it would lead her home- or to Thunny, she hoped. But she didn´t know what the “thing” really wanted to do.
It didn´t take her long to find a clearing. Another flash took her sight, but when she could see again in the dark, she couldn’t believe her eyes.
Right in front of Jane there was the most beautiful horse she´d ever seen. Its fur glowed as white as snow and its mane and tail were in a bright silver-colour. The horse had its back turned to her, so it couldn´t see the girl. A bright light made her see the old black horse in front of the wonderful one.
“Thunny!” Jane had just whispered the name, but the white horse turned around and froze. The girl couldn´t move either. It was a unicorn! In front of her was standing a unicorn!
The horn on its forehead was flashing again, and suddenly, Jane heard words, inside her head: “Hello. My name is Cesin. Is that your horse?” The girl was amazed as she saw, that the unicorn was really pointing at Thunny, who stood still and watched them.
“I must be dreaming,” she wondered, “Yes, it is my horse!” The horn flashed again. “I will send Thunder back, if that´s OK.” Jane nodded her head and watched her proud Thunny disappearing. “You... you helped us yesterday?” Jane hadn´t thought that she would get an answer and was surprised when she heard: “Yes, I have helped you. But I need your help now. I´m from another world. The portal can only be passed, if a special human being is with me. I came with a woman, her name is Rabin. She looks completely white and has got huge eyes. I have lost her and now I´m searching for her desperately.”
The girl couldn´t find words. The story of Cesin echoed in her mind. Another world? That was impossible! But if the unicorn needed her help... Suddenly she remembered the horse market. “I´ve seen Rabin. I think, I can find her. Maybe, we could meet again tomorrow?” She asked.
The light of the stallion brightened up, so Jane couldn´t see anymore. Cesin was really grateful- she just hoped she wouldn´t disappoint him.
The next day, she woke up in her bed. It took her a few seconds, till she remembered everything. The storm, the forest, and... the unicorn. It had led her back to the ranch. By the time she had arrived, Mike and Thunny were back and she fell fast asleep. Or has it just been a dream?

The hope gave Cesin new strength. He washed away his doubts, that the girl hadn´t seen Rabin at all, and was just happy to leave this world soon. “I don’t even know how long we were away. What has happened?” He wondered. Maybe it should just relax and get a rest. The storm wasn´t so bad anymore and the air got dry. Then the unicorn felt tired and headed for the boulder. This forest wasn´t dangerous, because it knew that nothing would hurt it. Cesin slept peacefully.

Jane didn´t know, when the next horse-market would take place. So she had to find the woman today. Maybe her dad knew something.
She found him at the stable. “Is everything OK?” Mike asked her. “Yes, it is. But I want to know if today there is a horse-market.” Her dad needed some time to think, before he responded: “There is a market. Why? We don´t need to sell any horses.” Jane made him believe that she just loved it to stroll through the stables with all the horses that could be hers, so Mike took her to the market.
The girl got to the white horse´s stable straightaway. She hoped, Rabin would look for Cesin today. If not, she didn´t know what to do.
“I´ll see you later, Dad.” She went on alone and entered the stable with a pounding heart. There weren´t many people inside: A woman, two men and... another woman with a strikingly white skin!
Jane wanted to go to the woman, but then she wasn´t sure. Hadn´t she dreamed last night? Maybe that woman was just crazy and the unicorn wasn´t real. “Stop that, Jane! Just try and find out,” she told herself and forced her legs to walk.
“Er, excuse me, what´s your name?” She asked the woman who looked at the white stallions. The huge eyes looked at her, when she replied: “My name´s Rabin. Why?” Jane´s breath quickened. It was true! “I´ve found Cesin,” she told her immediately, “He´s in a forest.”
Rabin couldn´t believe her ears. “Really?” The girl told her, how to get to the woods near her ranch and the woman ran off.
In the evening Jane got back to her home. She just wanted to know if Rabin had found her way, so she walked into the forest. Everything was dark, she wasn´t sure if someone was there. She didn´t recognize the forest anymore.
Suddenly there was a light. It shone through the trees and directly at her.
Rabin was sitting on Cesin, when Jane saw them step out of the trees into a clearing. The woman looked more beautiful than ever. “We´re so thankful,” she said. The girl didn´t know that to reply, so she stayed in silence.
“We´re leaving your world now, but we will always open our doors for you to come,” the white stallion told her in her mind. “Thanks. I hope, you two won´t get lost again.” Jane smiled. “May the moon and the sun together light your steps and let the stars guide you in the darkest night,” Rabin said. Jane didn´t really understand these words, but they sounded great. “You too,” she said quickly, before a great light swallowed the shapes of the two and darkness arose again. But Jane wasn´t lost.