Maeve and Edie's Big Adventure

A Fairytale

Copyright © by Victor Alfaro

Cover Art:  Unicorn Elm Forest © Corey A. Ford/Dreamstime.com

Little did the sisters Maeve and Edie know they were in for a big adventure when they crept out of their home that morning.  The Tree Fairies of Leinad Forest in the land of Sea Ring had told them that if they hid in the Red Berry bushes they could see the Purple-Speckled butterflies come down from the treetops to drink the early morning dew from the plump leaves of grass.  With eyes wide the sisters watched as the large butterflies with big and little spots on their wings floated down gracefully from above on beautiful wings strong as the wind but thin as paper.

As they watched they heard a rustling sound not far from them that startled the butterflies away.  Lo and behold from out of the morning mist came a unicorn but not just any unicorn, it was a baby unicorn, a very rare sight indeed.  For the unicorns always traveled in family groups of three or four.  Maeve and Edie looked at each other and rubbed their eyes just to make sure they were not dreaming.

The baby unicorn was rubbing up against a tree, scratching a unicorn itch no doubt, and as he did little sparks of sparkles fell to the ground.  And as he walked along toward the Red Berry bushes the sparkles dropped off his back and tail and mane leaving a many-colored shiny trail behind him.  He looked hungry and Maeve and Edie knew that if he ate the Red Berries, which were beautiful but poisonous, he would get very sick or worse.  So they did the only thing they could, they started to shake the bush branches.

The racket worked and the baby unicorn ran off into the forest.  Maeve and Edie jumped out and started gathering up the sparkles and putting them into a ribbon box Maeve always had with her, for they had heard the stories of the Wood Sprites and knew that unicorn sparkles had magical powers.  They followed the trail left by the unicorn and soon they were deep in the forest and they had a nice little pile of sparkles in the box.  But before long they realized that in running around gathering their prize, they had become lost.

“Oh no, now what are we to do,” cried Edie.  “We are lost and our mother and father will be so worried.”  Maeve knew that they could have followed the glittery trail back home if they hadn’t picked up those sparkles and it was too late.  She had to think.

Maeve was older and she wanted to appear strong but she was scared too, and soon she started to cry out, “What will we do, oh who can help us, who can help us,” and she held Edie in her arms.

“Who hoot, who,” called a voice from above, “hoot who hoot.”

“What was that,” asked Edie.

“Who’s there,” asked Maeve.

“Up here, I’m up here,” said the voice.

The girls looked up and saw an owl sitting comfortably high up on a tree limb.

“My name if Yram the Owl and I’ve been hooting in this forest for longer than anyone can remember, even me.”

“Wow, you’re old,” said Edie.

“Shh, that’s not polite,” Maeve said.

“I don’t mind,” said Yram, “for with age comes wisdom, and I’m a wise old owl.  Now, about your problem.”

“We’re lost,” said the girls in unison.

“How did you get lost?”

“We followed a baby unicorn,” said Maeve.

“A baby unicorn, you say,” Yram said as he furrowed his brow, “that is a rare sight indeed.”

“And we gathered up his sparkles here, in this box, see,” said Edie.