A Unicorn Adventure! (3 page)

Pippa's mouth fell open. Dropping down on the leafy ground, she covered her head with her arms. A bird-sized creature darted overhead, red flames shooting from its mouth.

“Help! A dragon!” neighed Stardust.

Honey almost fell over her pink hooves laughing. “A
dragonfly
,” she said. “Stand still and stop panicking. Dragonflies won't hurt you, though accidents can happen if you get in their way.”

Pippa's heart beat rapidly. It was all very well for Honey to tell them to stand still, but knowing what to do and actually doing it were two very different things. She slowly stood up and stroked Stardust's trembling neck. Stardust whinnied softly. The dragonfly circled above them. In a whirl of electric-blue wings, it spun away.

Pippa exhaled in relief. “Wow!”

Chevalia was full of magical surprises. Yesterday she'd met talking horseflies, and now here was this amazing fire-breathing dragonfly. What would she see next?

The music was growing louder. It made Pippa think of tinkling raindrops and colorful rainbows sparkling in the sunshine. She hurried on, eager to discover where it was coming from. The mist began to thin out. In places it hovered around her waist so that she felt like she was swimming through it. Pippa was so wrapped up in the magical surroundings and the sweet melody of the music that she almost missed the dog crossing the path ahead. It was only when Honey shouted out that she looked up.

“Goldie!” Honey called.

The creature bucked, kicking out its back legs, and Pippa realized it wasn't a dog at all. It looked more like a tiny pony, rose-tinted brown with a flowing blond tail.

Honey took off, galloping after her.

“Wait for us!” shouted Pippa and Stardust.

Pippa's heart hammered against her ribs as they raced into the trees after Honey. What if they lost her? How would they ever find their way back out of the enchanted Cloud Forest? Fallen branches snapped under her feet and damp leaves were kicked up in her face. Pippa pushed herself to run harder, determined not to be left behind.

After a long chase, she and Stardust burst into a small clearing carpeted with mossy flowers, their golden petals shining like the rising sun. Honey stood at the base of a tree, its trunk twisted with age. She was speaking softly to someone, and Pippa looked around to see who it was.

A low branch stretched, like a twiggy arm, from the tree into the clearing. Perched gracefully on the middle of the branch was the strange, rose-tinted brown pony. Its silky tail flowed down like a waterfall. It had soft brown eyes and a blond mane. Pippa couldn't help staring at the creature's forehead. She blinked but it was still there. The creature definitely had a gold spiraled horn in the middle of its forehead. Pippa's breath caught in her throat.

“A real unicorn,” she whispered, blinking to check that she wasn't imagining the beautiful creature.

“This is Goldie,” Honey said, turning around to face them.

“Hello,” Goldie said, her voice like the tinkle of bells.

“Hello,” Stardust said, curtsying.

Pippa curtsied on trembling legs. Her voice stuck in her throat and she couldn't speak. The unicorn was a smaller, more delicate copy of Honey! Not wanting to be caught staring, Pippa lowered her eyes.

“Hello, Stardust. Hello, Pippa,” said Goldie. “Honey's just been telling me all about you.”

“Hello,” Pippa said, finally finding her voice.

The unicorn was much smaller than she had expected—not that Pippa had ever expected to meet a real unicorn. But then she had never expected to meet giant seahorses or talking ponies either. On Chevalia it seemed that just about anything was possible.

Pippa was amazed by the tiny unicorn, her golden horn shining brightly in the patchy light of the forest. Pippa's gaze flicked to Honey. There was no denying it. Honey and Goldie were almost identical.

“I'm so glad you came today,” Goldie continued in her sweet, tinkling voice. “Strange things have been happening here in the Cloud Forest. This morning when we sang our waking song, a tree sang back to us.”

Honey was puzzled. “A tree sang back to you?” she asked.

Goldie nodded, dipping her head. “The others are still singing to it.”

“A singing tree,” Pippa wondered aloud. It sounded like magic—the sort of magic that might come from a very special horseshoe. “Where's this tree?” she asked. “Can you take us there?”

Goldie looked uncertain. “I could, but it's in the very heart of the forest. And my family might be surprised to see you—they've never seen a real live girl before. Are you sure you want to make the journey?”

“Yes,” said Pippa. Turning to Stardust, she explained her thinking about the magical horseshoe.

Stardust whinnied with excitement. “We must look at this tree!” she exclaimed. “Please, can you take us there?”

Goldie gracefully sprang down from the branch. “Yes, follow me.”

Chapter 3

The deeper they went into the Cloud Forest, the scarier it became. Sometimes the mist swirled around them so thickly that it was impossible for Pippa to see her own feet. Shivering a little, she wondered what the royal ponies thought about their sudden departure from singing practice. Would they come looking for them if they failed to return?

The ancient trees were enormous, and branches brushed against her like gigantic spiderwebs. But with Goldie leading the way, her horn shining brightly in the gloom, Pippa's courage came back.

After a while she heard the roar of water. The trees thinned and they came to a huge, raging river of muddy brown water. Goldie stopped on the squishy bank and waited for everyone to catch up.

“We're not going to cross that, are we?” Stardust asked nervously.

“It's quite safe if you know how.” Goldie tried to reassure them. “Follow me closely and only put your hooves where I put mine.”

Stardust nudged Pippa's arm and asked, “Would you like to ride on my back?”

For a second Pippa was tempted, but it wasn't fair on Stardust to make her carry extra weight. She shook her head. “Thanks, but I don't mind walking.”

“This way,” Goldie said, moving upstream.

She stopped at a slender tree branch that had fallen into the river. Pippa eyed it carefully. The branch only reached halfway across the river.

“There are stepping-stones from the middle to the other side,” Goldie said, easing her concern. She gracefully jumped onto the branch and walked to the middle. “Follow me,” she called.

Honey went first, and Stardust made Pippa go next.

“So I can jump in and rescue you if you slip and fall in,” she said, smiling.

“What if
you
fall in?” asked Pippa.

“I won't.”

“Then I won't either,” Pippa said.

She took a deep breath, then stepped onto the tree branch. It was slippery with spray from the river. Pippa hesitated. Then she remembered a PE class she'd had at school in which the teacher had asked them to walk along a low beam in the gym. “Find something to look at straight ahead,” the teacher had told them. “Focus on that and don't look down.”

With the teacher's words ringing in her ears, Pippa inched her way along the branch until she was balanced over the middle of the river. The next part was even scarier because Goldie was expecting her to step down onto a rock in the river. The water roared past with an angry hiss.

“It's easy,” called Honey, who had already reached the other side.

Carefully, Pippa stepped off the branch and onto the first stepping-stone. She wobbled as she landed, but using her arms, she managed to regain her balance. After that it was simple. The stepping-stones were bigger than she'd thought, and she quickly made it to the other side.

“That was fun,” Stardust said, jumping onto the bank beside her.

The mist was starting to thin out even more. Pippa stared around her, marveling at the beauty of the ancient woodland and the huge trees soaring above her. As Goldie wove through the forest, the singing grew louder. It rang in Pippa's ears and made her want to dance and skip. Goldie led them on, until she finally reached the biggest tree Pippa had ever seen. It had a tall, redwood trunk that was dented and grooved like a muddy track. Its branches stretched stiffly out with a fan of whispery green leaves. Circling the tree was a herd of tiny unicorns, their golden horns gleaming in the darkness. Their heads were held high and they were singing loudly.

Pippa gulped back tears. The music was so special it made her want to cry.

“Listen,” Stardust whinnied softly. “Can you hear that?”

Pippa nodded. “The tree's singing back to the unicorns.”

Every line the unicorns sang, the tree sang back to them like an echo.

“Isn't it marvelous?” Stardust's face glowed with excitement.

The unicorns clearly loved it too. They sang on, their voices high and pure.

Squinting, Pippa looked up the huge, red tree trunk. She was sure one of the golden horseshoes must be hidden in the branches, but where was it?

Suddenly she noticed that one of the singing unicorns was watching the ponies curiously. Pippa smiled, and the unicorn snorted and looked away. A few seconds later it looked again. Pippa stood very still. The unicorn stared at her; then, breaking the circle, it cautiously trotted over. Pippa caught her breath. In the same way that Goldie and Honey were very similar, so were Stardust and this unicorn. The unicorn planted her hooves in the ground, swishing her snow-white tail as she stared up at Stardust.