How the Unicorn Got Its Horn

There once was a unicorn named Sprinkles, who lived in a magical forest called 'Rainbow Woods'.

Sprinkles' home was a shimmering crystal cave which was hidden behind a beautiful waterfall.

Sprinkles had angel feather wings and a bright white coat, sprinkled with swirls of stardust.

In fact, that's why Sprinkles was given the name 'Sprinkles', because of the stardust which was sprinkled on her back.

Yes, Sprinkles was like all of the other unicorns her age— except for one thing— she didn't have a horn.

In order for Sprinkles to be able to receive her unicorn's horn, she had to possess a special power, other than flying, used to perform acts of kindness.

Sprinkles, however, didn't have any magical abilities other than flying... at least, not anything she was aware of, that is.

Sometimes, Sprinkles didn't always feel like she fit in, especially while attending 'The Academy of Mystical Wonders, Magic, and Merriment', which was where all of the young unicorns went to school.

It wasn't that the other unicorns were mean to Sprinkles; it was just that unlike the other unicorns, Sprinkles didn't get the chance to receive her unicorn's horn.

All of the other unicorns in Sprinkles' class passed the 'Flying Creatures, Goodness-seekers' exam, which was a test given to every unicorn so that they might be able to grow their own horns.

One day, Sprinkles told her mother, Cinnamon, that she didn't want to go to school..

"Why not, sweetie?" Cinnamon asked, feeling concerned.

"Because everyone in Mrs. Sugarplum's class has already done a good deed and received their unicorn's horn." Sprinkles replied, sounding sad.

"I understand. But, Sprinkles, a unicorn's horn isn't what makes the unicorn special; it's the unicorn's kind heart which makes them special." Cinnamon remarked, nuzzling Sprinkles with her brown velvety nose.

Later that morning, Sprinkles headed to school, where all of the other unicorns in Mrs. Sugarplum's class were reading their reports about how they were able to use their magical powers, over the weekend, to perform good deeds.

First, Cupcake— a unicorn with a gold coat and a bright pink mane— stood up in front of the class to give her report.

Then, Lightning bolt— a unicorn with a smoky black coat and a fiery red mane— read his report to the class.

When the time came for Sprinkles to give her report, she started to cry and told Mrs. Sugarplum that she didn't have a report to read to the class yet.

"There, there, dear!" Mrs. Sugarplum— a unicorn with a lavender coat and a blue mane— replied, consoling Sprinkles.

"You can have more time to write a report about your special gift and how you use it to perform good deeds." Mrs. Sugarplum continued, smiling softly.

"Thank you." Sprinkles responded while wiping the tears from her eyes.

That afternoon, when Sprinkles arrived home from school, she told her mother what Mrs. Sugarplum said.

"That's wonderful news, Sprinkles!" Cinnamon exclaimed.

Just then, there was a knock on the cave door-- "I'll get it!" Sprinkles hollered to her mother as she was making her way down the cave's hallway to get to the front door.

Sprinkles saw Cupcake and Lightning bolt standing at the door, where they asked her to join them at 'Sprite Springs' for a swim and a game of 'Catch the fairies'.

Excited by the invitation, Sprinkles asked her mother if she could join her friends for an afternoon of fun-- "May I go out and play, Mom, please?"

"Sure, but be back before dark." Cinnamon instructed Sprinkles.

"I will!" Sprinkles replied with a smile.

When Sprinkles, Cupcake, and Lightning bolt arrived at Sprite Springs, they chased their fairy friends around the forest in a game of 'Catch the fairies.'

The fairies were the fastest creatures in all of Rainbow Woods; they could move faster than a fly! The fairies could also camouflage themselves so they could blend in with the rainbow-colored tree, bush, and plant leaves, making it difficult to see where they were hiding.

"Come out, come out wherever you are!" Cupcake called out, her voice echoing through the air.

"Hmph! These fairies are sneaky!" Cupcake continued, frustrated by the quickness of the fairies.

"The fairies aren't that fast, Cupcake." Lightning bolt replied.

"Watch and learn." Lightning bolt continued on, boastfully.

Lightning bolt used his magical speed to leap up into the air and disappear into the clouds, where he could see the entire forest.

As Lightning bolt began descending from the sky, he shouted, "I can see the fairies! I can see the fair"-- CRASH!

"Well, that'll teach you not to brag, Lightning bolt." Cupcake remarked while helping him out of a thornbush.

When Cupcake helped Lightning bolt out of the thornbush, she shook about, releasing some of the angel feathers from her wings, into the air.

Cupcake's angel feathers wafted over to Lightning bolt and began swirling around him, forming bandages which started covering his wounds.

(Cupcake's magical power was her ability to heal others.)

Sprinkles, seeing this, wanted to do something to take her mind off of the fact that she still hadn't discovered any special powers of her own, suggesting a swim in Sprite Springs with their fairy friends.

After playing in Sprite Springs for a while, the sun started going down, and Sprinkles and her friends decided it was time to go home.

When Sprinkles started to walk home, she heard someone crying, so she followed the sound, and it led her into an unfamiliar area of the forest.

Sprinkles found herself standing before a bubbling swamp, and next to the swamp, sitting on a stump was a-- no!

It couldn't be what Sprinkles thought it was, could it? Sprinkles had only heard legends of such creatures existing, so she couldn't believe what she seeing.

To Sprinkles' surprise, she saw a... a child!

Sprinkles slowly approached the child, who— if she remembered correctly— was wearing what humans call a 'dress.'

This human was wearing a purple dress with white tights, black dress shoes, and pink pigtails in her blonde hair.

"Are you okay?" Sprinkles asked nervously as she nuzzled the girl's face.

The girl— sitting with her knees pulled up to her face, and arms wrapped tightly around her legs— slowly looked up from where she sitting, to see Sprinkles..

"You're... you're a unicorn!" The girl exclaimed, hardly able to believe her eyes.

"I thought unicorns were only real in fairytales. Am I in a fairytale?" The girl asked, still surprised.

"What? Fairies don't have tails, silly!" Sprinkles answered with a giggle.

Sprinkles then asked the girl why she was crying and how it was, that she arrived in Rainbow Woods.

The girl said that she was going for a walk with her parents before dinner, and got separated when she ran too far ahead of them.

"Don't cry, little girl. It's okay, I can help you." Sprinkles offered, smiling.

"You can?" The little girl asked, sounding hopeful.

"Yes, little girl. I would love to help you!" Sprinkles answered cheerfully.

"Thank you! And... my name is Emily." The girl replied, sounding grateful.

"You're welcome. Okay, Emily, hop onto my back." Sprinkles instructed, now kneeling down.

"But... I can't see where I'm walking, Sprinkles. It's too dark."

Sprinkles— having forgotten that the sun went down— looked up at the sky, wondering how she lost track of time.

Sprinkles was feeling discouraged; she couldn't figure out how she would be able to fly if she couldn't make her way through the night sky.

Just when Sprinkles was about to give up hope, the sprinkles of stardust on her back began to glow, illuminating the whole forest, causing every unicorn, every woodland creature to come out and see what was going on.

"I... I can't believe it! How...?" Sprinkles wondered in excitement.

At that moment, a glittery silver horn grew from Sprinkles' head.

"Great job! Way to go!" Cinnamon, Sprinkles' mother (and every other creature in the woods), shouted.

Mrs. Sugarplum trotted over to Sprinkles, congratulating her; she also explained to Sprinkles, that she just passed the school exam.

Suddenly, Emily's parents— having followed the light from Sprinkles' stardusted back— emerged from the thick grove of trees, happy to be reunited with their daughter (and surprised by all that was going on, and by everything they were seeing.)

From that day on, Sprinkles never forgot what it meant to truly be a unicorn; it's all about the goodness within, not the horn on the head.

-The end-