Celeste and Little One

Celeste watched over the field as the other unicorns grazed beneath the rainbow arch. She could not bear to face them. It was her fiftieth Gathering Under the Rainbow, and she still had not found her rainbow. They would brand her with the colorless rainbow for sure. She would be an outcast, a pariah.

She would rather take herself out of the herd than have them shove her out.

With one last look at her friends and family, Celeste turned and ran down the opposite side of the hill, into the dark forest.

Shadows quickly surrounded Celeste, with streaks of light blurring across her body as she darted among the trees. She had no destination in mind, no care for the dangers that lurked around every corner. So long as she avoided the paths populated by man, she knew that she could take on anything that came her way. She just wanted to put some ground between herself and the herd that she was leaving behind.

Celeste came to a sudden halt as she heard a panicked neighing close by. She knew that a human path was in that same direction, but she could not ignore the neighing of a creature in need.

She galloped in the direction of the sound until she found a pony thrashing near a mighty oak. A rope snare had caught around his back hoof, and the poor creature could not figure out how to get himself out.

Celeste cautiously trotted toward the pony, her head lowered in submission.

“Hello,” she said. “I am Celeste. I am here to help.”

The pony gave Celeste a wide-eyed stare. Assessing her worthy of trust, the pony quit thrashing and bowed his head.

“I am Little One,” the pony said. “Can you really help me?”

“Yes, I can, Little One. You just need to hold still.”

Once certain that Little One would not kick out in surprise, Celeste approached the snare and used her diamond-hard horn to cut the rope. In no time, Little One was free.

Little One whinnied in pleasure and stood on his hindlegs, kicking his front legs in triumph.

“Thank you!” he cried out as he ran around in circles. “Thank you, thank you!”

“What are you doing all the way out here, Little One?”

Little One stopped galloping and faced Celeste.

“I was traveling with my humans when I heard a wolf’s howl and got scared,” he explained. “I broke free, and here I am. What about you? What is a unicorn doing so far in human territory?”

Celeste gestured back where she had come from.

“I was in Rainbow Meadow,” she said, “but I ran off.”

Little One shook his head.

“Why? Did you hear a wolf?”

“No. I have not found my rainbow.”

“What do you mean?”

“Unicorns must find their rainbow by their fiftieth Gathering Under the Rainbow, or else they will be ostracized.”

Little One shook his head again, as though unable to grasp such an idea.

“But why?”

“It just is how it’s always been.”

Little One snorted.

“Unicorns are stupid.”

Celeste reared her head back.

“Unicorns aren’t stupid! You’re the one who couldn’t get out of a snare trap.”

“But unicorns push out those who are different,” Little One argued. “I am smaller than the horses that the humans have, but they still accept me. Unicorns are stupid.”

Celeste stamped her hoof.

“Yeah, well…at least we are not held captive by humans.”

“At least I don’t have a rainbow coming out of my butt!”

Celeste’s eyes widened.

“I…what?”

Celeste turned around in circles, a rainbow trail following her behind.

“I have a rainbow!” she said excitedly. “I have a rainbow!”

I can go back home, she thought.

Then she thought about what Little One had said. The same loved ones that would now accept her because she was like them, would not have accepted her when she was not like them. Could she really go back to them?

Celeste glanced at Little One.

“Where are you going?” she asked.

Little One looked around, confused.

“I…do not know. What about you?”

“I do not know, either.” Celeste blinked slowly. “Do you want to not know, together?”

Little One bowed his head.

“I would like that.”

Celeste and Little One walked, side-by-side, together through the forest, unsure of where they were going but knowing that they would be accepted by at least one creature wherever they went.