How far would you go if you were a unicorn in love with a human? How hard would you try to win her heart? Or better yet, what would you do if you found a way to be with her?

My name is Turan. I’m a white unicorn–you know, the classic breed. Gold horn, cloven hooves, silken mane, the works. Of course, the humans neglect to mention the the burs, the blood furies, the Shades constantly after your blood. It sucks, to be sure. I asked my mum if it would always be like this, but she only replied, “You males have the worst of it.” What is that supposed to mean? The mares don’t have to worry about that or something? I soon gave up asking. It was obvious she wouldn’t answer.

Now I’m almost sixteen years old, and feeling as young as ever. My horn is only a foot and two inches long. I measured it on a human’s measuring stick. It’s sad, really. I know an old blue unicorn who has a six foot horn. Of course, the poor bloke is about twelve feet tall, too. Blue unicorns are always tall.

Anyways, I was plodding along through my forest, minding my own business. The squirrels are a bit annoying, but you learn to ignore them. I was telling a particularly annoying bushy-tail to scram when I heard footsteps. Normally, footsteps cause us unicorns to either go invisble or split really fast, like light-speed fast. But obviously the person coming was either a virgin female, or an immortal, because that warning light in my head didn’t go off. My horn, however, began to glow, and I began to glitter. Yup. A virgin, all right.

“Oh my god.” The woman breathed. To tell the truth, she was the most beautiful human woman I’ve ever seen. Red hair to her waist, like a red uni I used to know, and green eyes that reminded me of the emeralds that were embedded in the base of my horn. I pranced, my tail held like a banner. So what if I was showing off? I only get to do this every once in a while.

“Aren’t you a beauty…” She whispered, blinking fast as if she couldn’t believe I was standing there. I blew in her face to assure her. She reached out and touched my neck. Uh-oh.

“It’s too bad you can’t be real.” She told me, tears in those beautiful eyes. “I used to dream of meeting a unicorn. Your probably a horse with a horn pinned on.”

I stared at her, appalled. A horse? Humph. I stopped prancing and snorted, angry. My horn flashed, telling me I could talk now. It takes a while, you know.

“I’m no horse!” I cried, my voice deep and rich. “I am what you see before you, fair maiden!”

The woman looked shocked. “Unicorns can’t talk!”

I was really mad now. How was it a human could tell me what I could and couldn’t do? She’d probably never seen a unicorn before, from the look of her. So she’d no right to say so.

“I am too a unicorn, and unicorns can too talk. It’s not like you’ve ever seen one, anyways.” I sniffed audibly. “Humans have really gone shallow lately, haven’t they? There was a time when they believed in us, and believed us when we told them we existed. Wait–this is the age of skeptics, isn’t it? Ha. That explains it.”

The woman looked hurt. “I thought unicorns were righteous, and polite.”

“We are, milady, when your righteous and polite to us. Have you forgotten when a white unicorn killed a knight? Well, he said the unicorn was a mud clod. And anyways, you said I wasn’t real. How would you act if someone said you weren’t real?”

She nodded. Then more footsteps echoed in my head, and that red light went on so fast I new I had to scram. Of course, I fought it and only went invisible. I backed away from the woman, so she wouldn’t have her hand on me. That would give me away. Thankfully, unicorns don’t leave any sign they’ve been there or here. Or everyone would have captured us by now.

“Sandy! Where are you?” A deep, throaty voice demanded.

“O-over here, Jim!” Sandy, the woman, called. The man called Jim, a great hulking fellow, crashed through one of my bushed and stomped over to her.

“I’ve been searching ever since you left, and I find you staring at thin air? What are you, daft?” He raised his hand to hit her. “Don’t you ever go out of my sight again, do you hear me?”

As he went to go hit her, I subtley put my horn between them. He stared at the air, surprised. When he tried to hit her again, he found he couldn’t get to her. I think she realized what happened, because she was starting smile and back away.

“Thank you.” Sandy whispered to me, and ran off. When the Jim bloke tried to follow, I kicked him in the ribs–and none to lightly, either.

That night, I couldn’t stop thinking about Sandy. It was a strict rule (there are no real rules, but still) that a unicorn cannot interfere with human affairs. It would rouse suspicion, and those radicals think up anything and everything. The bruise I left Jim would be in the shape of a cloven hoof, and they’d realize what happened. And I did something else that was bad; I talked to a virgin and didn’t erase myself from her memory. In the old days (all unicorns inherit the memories of their parents, so the farther a decendant you are, the more you know) we didn’t have to do that, but in this world, things were tough. Especially with the dumb humans cutting down our forests. With the hate of humans doing that in mind, and angry at the Council for not doing anything, I got to my feet and began cantering in the direction Sandy had gone. I would find her.

Sandy lived in a small log cabin just inside my woods, thankfully. Us unicorns can’t be killed in our forests, but outside them we can. So I was realitively happy with this surprise. Anyways, I found her window and looked in, careful to be invisible. She was awake, staring at a painting of a unicorn a child had done. Probably her, when she was little. I pressed my nose to the window, forgetting I breathed like mortals, and fogged up the window. Oops. Well, she noticed. She threw open the window and stuck her arm out. I let my mane brush her fingers just so lightly. It felt good, anyways, and then I left. But I didn’t go far. I fell asleep in sight of her window, invisible to the bone.

“Unicorn?” A voice called softly. I was awake instantly. It was Sandy. “Where are you?”

I loved that girl. When the thought hit me, I felt as if I could grin, if I was a human. A unicorn in love with a human. Ha.

“My name’s Turan, lady.” I called softly, and she turned towards my voice. I touched my horn to the ground, and green spread towards her. You know, like ultra-green. My forest was already really green. She followed it and touched my nose. I shivered.

“Turan?” She repeated, sitting down next to me. “Your real, then? I saw the bruise…”

I gulped. That wasn’t good.

“I wish you were human.” Sandy said suddenly. “Then I wouldn’t have to be with Jim. He hurts me so bad…”

I grunted. I hated Jim even more, and I resloved to find out how I could be human. I would do anything for her, right about now.

“Do you really wish it?” I asked suddenly, on inspiration. I could grant wishes. Yes… it could work…

“Why…” She sounded startled, and then I heard Jim coming. A blood-rage came over me, and my invisibilty began to shimmer away. Sandy noticed. “Turan, what–?”

Then Jim appeared, looking furious, and my covering went away completely. I got to my feet, swaying in a motion that made me feel even more angry. My eyes were turning red now, I could feel in. I screamed angrily, pawing the air. Jim looked scared, now. Good.

“How dare you?” I screamed again, this time in human speech. Sandy watched in horror as I charged towards JIm, my horn leveled at his chest. The moment I killed him, I was human. I collapsed, weak from the change. Her wish had taken effect.

“Turan!” Sandy called, running to me. I saw my new skin; it was pale, and the long silky hair on my forehead was an almost white blonde. My eyes, I found after looking in the mirror-like window, were silver still. I smiled up at Sandy, who was bending over me. Something bubbled in my throat, and when it burst from me, I found it was laughter. I was human. My childhood wish had come true! I was human again.

“I’m human!” I laughed, crying helplessly.

I went to live with Sandy. Turns out her touching my blood when she helped to clean me up when I cut myself on a human knife made her immortal. So guess what? We get to live in my forest forever. And if the Council grants my wish, we both get to be unicorns… for she hasn’t seen the other side yet.

🙂