This story is by Andrea Donnelly and was part of our 2023 Fall Writing Contest. You can find all the writing contest stories here.
Rain fell from the gray sky. Honeysuckle bushes stood out in the meadow, attracting the curious three-year-old filly. The filly thought to nibble the leaves, but the scent of the flower caught her muzzle, and she sniffed in the sweet fragrance. A movement above caught her eye and she looked toward it but saw nothing. She lowered her muzzle toward another flower to draw in the sweet scent and noticed another movement. Jerking her head quickly this time, she caught a glimpse of a small, winged creature. It was too quick for her to catch a clear view and she twisted her head to find it. Sitting inside a clump of straw and twigs was a tiny bird with a long beak. Her feathers changed colors as she moved within the nest. The tiny hummingbird peered down at the horse. “What are you doing here by my honeysuckle bushes?” she asked. The filly said she was enjoying their fragrance. The hummingbird pleaded that the horse not eat the plants as it provided food for her. Especially when she had to travel a long distance to the rainbow waterfall during the unicorn coloring event. The honeysuckle nectar gave her the strength to make the journey. The horse agreed to not eat any of the sweet plant and offered to take the hummingbird to the forest since she could run long distances quickly. The hummingbird knew she would need all her energy to dry the unicorns as they emerged from the waterfall to lock in the magic. The hummingbird explained that without locking in the magic it fades quickly. The filly had to follow the rest of the herd as they left but told the hummingbird she would visit again.
A few weeks later the herd returned to the meadow. The tiny hummingbird was busy collecting nectar. It was hard for the filly to find her. She never seemed to stop but flitted from flower to flower. She noticed the filly and flew to greet her. She told the filly the coloring event would be in a few days and she was building her wing strength. All the hummingbirds gathered to flap their wings as quickly as possible to lock in the magic. This is how the unicorns retained their special magic. The filly was excited to see the event and began to wonder what it would be like to have magic like the unicorn. The hummingbird explained that the event was deep in the forest and secret. Only those with a part in it would be allowed to watch. The young horse was disappointed to hear this. Horses don’t have magic.
The day came for the event and the filly returned to the honeysuckle bushes to pick up the tiny hummingbird and head to the forest. The forest grew darker the deeper they traveled but the bright moon provided enough light for them to make their way to the clearing beneath the waterfall. The filly had never seen a waterfall with all the colors of the rainbow. It was spectacular and the filly’s excitement grew as she sensed the magic in it. The hummingbird had to remind the anxious filly to keep in the shadows. The filly slowly backed into the shadows of the forest while watching the waterfall change colors . . . red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, purple, continually changing.
The filly was so mesmerized by the changing colors she did not notice the clearing filling with unicorns, some young but mostly adults. The trees filled with thousands of hummingbirds, flitting quickly with excitement from branch to branch. Everyone was giddy with excitement for the event to start. The filly didn’t notice that a young unicorn had emerged from the waterfall until the hummingbirds surrounded it flapping their tiny wings as fast as possible. The unicorn was covered in assorted colors which seemed to sink deep into its hide as the hummingbirds’ wings locked in the magic of the water. It was truly amazing. The filly longed to enter the waterfall but knew she had to remain hidden. Suddenly, a unicorn matriarch approached the filly and softly said “you’re not supposed to be here little one.” The filly looked around to find a place she could hide but she had already been spotted and knew there was no place to hide. She dropped her head toward the ground not daring to gaze into the clearing. The filly realized she would never be able to capture the magic of the waterfall.
The little hummingbird flew to the unicorn matriarch and explained why the filly was there. The matriarch understood the disappointment of the young filly. “Wait here a moment,” she said and walked over to the largest, pure white unicorn and spoke to him. She nickered softly toward the young horse waiting in the shadows but the large stallicorn scowled and shook his flowing mane indicating he did not approve. The mareicorn did not give up however and followed the stallicorn. The stallicorn gazed at the little horse, said something quickly to the maricorn, then walked away toward a group of young unicorns waiting to enter the waterfall. The mareicorn smiled as she returned to the hiding horse and told her and the hummingbird that, once all the unicorns had gone through the waterfall and been completely dried, the little horse could walk through. She could not promise there would be magic left or that it would work on a horse, but she was welcome to try. The little hummingbird was full of joy that her friend might receive a small portion of the waterfall’s magic.
It seemed the line of young unicorns were endless. The young horse began to worry there would be no magic left for her. Just before the sky began to lighten with the dawn, the last unicorn emerged. It took effort for the filly to wait while the hummingbirds furiously flapped their wings to lock in the magic. The filly looked to the unicorn matriarch for approval to enter the waterfall. The rainbow colors were already beginning to fade as the sky grew lighter. Finally, the matriarch nodded to the filly, and she eagerly entered the rainbow waterfall. The water felt more like a light mist surrounding her tiny body. She wondered what, if any colors, would appear on her when she emerged. She stayed in the waters until her hummingbird motioned it was time to retreat. As she exited the waterfall, the hummingbirds surrounded her and furiously flapped their wings. The filly thought she felt something in her long tail and around her delicate hooves. It felt like being wrapped in warm dry moss. She felt herself growing giddy with anticipation to see what would linger after the drying and how it would affect her. Would she be much different? What type of magic would remain? This was the only time a horse was permitted to walk through the rainbow waterfall.
When the hummingbirds flew back away from her, she turned to look. The only color she could see was on her tail and hooves where she felt the warm softness. The colors seemed to be changing as did the colors of the hummingbirds. She felt disappointed as it began to fade into her tail and hooves. The unicorn’s color stayed after they trotted away but hers was already fading. The matriarch unicorn approached her, noticing her disappointment. “You must understand that this magic is intended for unicorns” she explained to help ease the disappointment. She had tried. Even the experience of walking through the magical waterfall was more than any other horse would ever know. And she had made a new friend in the hummingbird. Even if the magic did not last, their friendship would. She was happy about that.
Her heart was light as she moved swiftly through the lightening forest, her friend sleeping securely in her mane, as they returned to the meadow. Was it just her? She seemed to be moving much more quickly than she had ever moved before. And she was not tired. She felt like she could run all day with ease. The herd was grazing in the morning light when they arrived. When they noticed the filly, she heard comments such as “Isn’t she beautiful?” and “how special.” The filly was puzzled by all the attention until she looked behind her and saw the most colorful long tail flowing in the breeze. She looked down at her hooves that also sparkled with changing color. She could not believe her luck! The magic had lasted! She was not imagining that her speed was increased. She truly was running faster and with little effort. She was so excited she jumped high into the air and appeared to be flying almost like the hummingbird. The filly would never reveal the secret of the rainbow waterfall nor the unicorns.
THE END
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