Cimarron and Lell



When Lell awoke she felt refreshed and cool. Her coat was dry, and, thanks to the seaweed, clean. She lifted herself up of the bed of seaweed and looked around. The sun was high in the sky and Lell was hungry. She got a drink from the pool and was happy to discover it was clean and not salty.

Cantering back along the beach alone, she thought again of Cimarron. Though she was sad that he had left her, she was surprised to find that she was not overly troubled. A few hours later, after exploring the rest of the beach, she was feeling lonely. All the unicorns were gone. She was the odd one out.

In the woods birds sang and chirped, but on the beach it was deathly quiet. Even Lell's footfalls were muffled by the sand. A twig snapped somewhere in the woods, and the birds too became silent. Lell looked toward the woods. Cimarron stood watching her run, and as she changed her course to run towards him, he started to move too, until they were both galloping towards each other. She swept past and, laughing, came around again to join him on the beach. She rubbed her neck along his and chewed at his mane. He returned the favor and scratched her itchy withers. Turning, so they were both facing the ocean she said, "I was worried you weren't coming back."

"I know," he said. "I watched you all morning and made you the bed of seaweed so you could stay clean after you played in the water."

"Why didn't you just stay with me?" she asked. "I would have liked it more if you had been with me."

"I'm - I'm not ready to . . . commit yet." he said.

Lell leapt away from him. "Then get away from me!" she said, her eyes flashing. She galloped across the beach, her flight fast and frenzied.

Cimarron galloped after her and started to overtake her, but she had too much of a lead.

Galloping into the woods, Lell slowed to a canter, still going way too fast for a forest. She caught her hoof on a root and went sprawling into the center of a clearing.

Cimarron came trotting up to her and nuzzled her with his nose. "Calm down, Lell, you don't leave the Summer Sea for a few weeks. Give me time."

"Cim . . . I don't have friends, you know that. The closest I get to a friend is Jan, and he's my brother and a prince. I'm friends with you, and - and I love you. I won't be able to stand it if I'm alone forever." Lell was close to tears.

Cimarron started to back away.

"Cim, please, please don't leave me. I love you, don't leave."

Cimarron froze, unsure whether to run away or to Lell, who was still on the ground. He chose Lell.

Walking slowly at first and then trotting to her, he lowered himself to the ground and she lay flat against him, crying. She sucked it up and looked up at him, his regal head angled to look at her.

"Lell, I'm sorry "-

"Stop it!" Lell yelled at him. He jerked away from her. "You keep saying you're sorry and then you do it again! Mean it for real when you are going to say sorry, and make sure you don't do it again!" With that she jumped up and ran back to the beach.

Cimarron was angry this time. He chased after her and caught her, his anger making him fast. He leapt in front of her, knocking her to the ground. When she caught her breath he growled, "Do you think this is easy for me? I try to love you and apologize for my mistakes and you yell at me! I'm not perfect and that's why I'm not ready to commit to you"-

"I know you're not perfect! I don't care! Just stop leaving me! I told you I can't stand to be alone, so don't leave me, or at least let me know before you go away." Lell lowered her voice. "Cim, I get scared because I'm alone, do you want what happened to your sister to happen to me?"

Cimarron closed his eyes, trying not to remember his sister's awful death.

"Cim? Cim, I know it's awful, but, look at me, I'm little. I need protection. If pards would attack a big mare like your sister, then I would make an easy target. I'm little Lell, remember?"

"Little lovely Lell, you could take on a thousand pards with that voice of yours but yes I remember." He rubbed his muzzle along her neck and down her back. She stood up. Walking slowly back to their end of the beach, they were content to gaze at the sunset in silence.