A.N: Hey, none of the characters in 'Unicorns of Balinor' belong to me and nor do the places. I'd really like to know what you think so if you could R/R it would be good, thanks!

"The inn keeper was very kind to let us stay here." Rayel said as she shovelled the muck from the stall. The smell of straw and feed filled the air.

"Master Samlett seems to trust us, which is wonderful considering we look so different." Having claimed we were from the North the owner of the Unicorn Inn decided to see what we could do to pay for food and board. It appeared that even with full help there were chores skipped over. Because Diego and Gem were with us the stables had been handed over to our care after testing our skills. The paint unicorn looked at us quietly.

"You're not from North are you?" He asked. Rayel jumped, startled.

"We are. Why do you ask Unicorn?" I replied. He shifted his hooves uneasily, his brown and white coat shifting as he fidgeted.

"They say there are bears up North and that there's a river that carries off luggage. You don't look like they did and you haven't said anything about bears." I frowned, this was not looking good. Diego stepped forward and almost touched muzzles with the paint.

*There were two girls, a hornless unicorn and a dog. He thinks that the servant was nobler born than her mistress. He doesn't remember their names.*  The sun was setting slowly and the Inn was beginning to light up with candles, lanterns and laughter. Darkness began to shadow the clear night.

"What is your name Unicorn?" Rayel asked, her eyes taking on a glazed look.

"Orchard Shadow, but everyone calls me Apples." We waited. The black haired girl shook her head.

#No one mentioned names.# I almost laughed. We had for a moment an idea of how to act and then none at all.

"Apples we need your help. We were sent to find some important people here and were told there would be four of them. Two girls, a dog and a hornless unicorn, can you help us?" He shuddered violently and his eyes began to roll in his head, the whites showing. The stalls turned an icky black tinged with yellow and a foul smell entered the air. Diego screamed. A bloodshot lidless eye glared at us and the voice sent shivers down our spines.

You're next wanders. Arianna, Arianna, Arianna… The voice trailed away and the unicorn fell to his knees. Instinctively I tried to help him, Diego spread his massive wings, tips slightly touching the sweat-drenched coat.

*Keep away Lady, you must never touch one such as this. There is the mark of Darkness on this one.*

Cluttering buckets alerted us, Rayel spun around. The round Inn Keeper stood in the doorway.

"What's been happening in here? I say in here?" He caught sight of Diego's almost folded wings. "What, I say what is that?" I looked to Rayel, her eyes were totally glazed and Gem was barely keeping her upright.

"We need your help Mister Samlett, something is wrong with this unicorn."

                                ****************************************

                We had told the kind Innkeeper everything we could  about the paint and then about ourselves. He listened and asked questions but didn't seem to take much of it in. He was almost as out of it as Rayel who was lying on the softened old sacks.

"So you see Mister Samlett we must find the two girls, the dog and the hornless unicorn. If it si as we fear then not only are the party in danger but there is little anyone who has no Gift can do to help and your Gift of Truth-listening is only of help here and not on their journey. We must help in some way."

He sat quietly for a time. All you could hear was the ragged breathing of the paint sprawled on the stall floor, not even Samlett would touch him.

"Well now, I say well now, I don't know what to say to that now do I?" Diego whinnied anxiously as a dark cloud moved across the sliver of moon. The stable began to shrink around us but Samlett was unworried by it, he seemed not to notice at all. Suddenly a soft lavender light flooded in, scooping everyone except Samlett up into the sky.

Sleep travellers, you need not fear now. The soft bell-like voice soothed the worries from my mind, Rayel's eyes closed and her body relaxed. Diego wuffled my hair.

*It's alright, she says she is called Atlanta, the Dreamspeaker.*