A wind whistled through the evergreen trees, the wind of winter, sending a chill down the spine of the Unicorn. She sighed and looked up at the starry sky, cocking her ears forward, as if trying to detect a message from the breeze. Yet it told her nothing.
She pranced a few steps then looked away from the heavens and back to the earth, and down at her family, the herd she'd been accepted in.
At least fifteen unicorns were gathered in the forest clearing, their manes rippling in the moonlight, and their horns protruding upwards, like white spears piercing the night. The unicorn smiled softly as she saw her own children among the herd, skipping and prancing. Larkyn, the unicorn's daughter, saw her mother and nickered welcomingly, while her brother, Kai, just dipped his head. Zave, her mate, stood nearby with the rest of the males. The unicorn's smile faded as she gazed upon him. When the unicorn had returned to the forest, she was quiet and withdrawn from the others; for how could they know what regret was, what she'd been through to save them?
Yet, she'd been forced by the Elder Unicorns to choose a mate, for they feared about her state of mind; if she didn't choose one, they would have picked a male randomly, no matter if she liked him or not. So, she'd chosen Zave, though in her heart she did not love him. She just had a deep respect for him; she could never love him.
Thoughts of Lir suddenly flooded her mind as she pondered about love. She wondered where he was, how he was, and if he'd taken a bride. She whinnied wistfully at the thought of seeing him again.
"I wonder if he's forgotten about me," She inquired of the night.
"If who's forgotten about you, Mamma?" A voice asked. The unicorn was startled by Larkyn's voice, but she didn't show it. Larkyn trotted up to her mother, and stood by her side.
"Who?" She asked again. Her mother just shook her head.
"No one, Larkyn. No one at all.."
Larkyn snorted.
"Don't try to lie, Mother. You know I can tell when you do."
The unicorn laughed, and the sound was like the echoing of bells. Larkyn cocked her head and looked at her mother oddly.
"If you must know, Larkyn, I was thinking about someone I knew from my Journey."
The younger unicorn's violet eyes widened. Her mom never spoke about her quest to save the rest of the unicorns from the Red Bull, and nobody dared ask. Maybe her mother would tell her more about it now.
"But you wouldn't understand my tale, my dear." The unicorn said quietly. Larkyn lowered her head slightly in disappointment. She opened her mouth to say something, but the sudden fluttering sound of wings interrupted her. An owl shot out of the sky, a cry erupting from his beak. It plummeted to earth, like a falling white star, and landed in front of the mother and daughter. Larkyn whinnied loudly, rearing up on her rear legs in surprise. But her mother just stood there, disbelieving as the form of the snowy owl melted and changed.
Feathers became flesh, wings lengthing and becoming arms and fingers. The owl's head was replaced by a human's head, and soon, instead of an owl laid a bird. The unicorn gasped as she realized who stood before her.
A/N: This is my first TLU fanfiction, so please tell me if you think the Unicorn is out of character or not. Sorry this chapter was really short, but I wanted to leave the first chapter as a cliff hanger.
Madi