The Enchanted Woods

Hope raced through the Enchanted Woods, feeling happy. She had been over at Faith's cave. Faith was one of her unicorn friends. On her way, Hope passed the Crystal Lake. It's water was as clear as glass and mermaids lived there. Hope slowed down as she reached the Fountain of Luck. She was thirsty and the Fountain was full of clear, rippley, water. She leaned down and drank, trying not to get water on her light pink mane. Suddenly a voice said politely," Hello." Hope jumped and whirled around, splashing water on the green grass. A little faerie hovered in mid-air. "Hello," she said again. "How do you do?" (She had taken faerie etiquette). Hope tossed her head and said," I'm fine, thank you. Who are you?" Hope had seen too many faeries to remember each and every one. "I'm Sugar," the little brown-haired faerie replied. "May I ask who I have the pleasure of meeting on this fine day?" Hope was charmed and said," I am Hope. Have you seen a unicorn before?" Sugar nodded. "I'm magic pals with the unicorn Fear." She laughed at Hope's face and continued," She's very nice. She lives in Berrie Forest, right next to Dismal Forest." "My cousin, Patience, lives in Dismal Forest. Her mother is Glad," Hope said. "My aunt is deciding whether or not to come here on a visit." "The Enchanted Woods is very nice," Sugar said. "I've lived here almost my whole life. My mother, Blossom, and I used to live in Berrie Forest. Fear was my friend. But then we moved. And now we're magic pals." "What service do you use?" Hope asked. "I use Cloud Express." "I use the FLoating Mail Magic Pal service," Sugar said. "It's run by butterflies. It's very good." "I've heard of that," Hope said. "Joy and I used to use that one, but we switched." "Joy?" Sugar asked. "Joy is a unicorn who lives in the Woods of Sunflowers and Sunbeams. She loves it there." Sugar made a face. "I vacationed there once," she said. "How was it?" asked Hope. "Too many sunflowers, not enough sunbeams," Sugar answered. She giggled. "Actually, I enjoyed myself. There were just too many sunflowers." "I was thinking of going there to see Joy," Hope mused. "Is it far? How did you get there?" "I rode on a butterfly part of the way and then on a cloud the other half of the way," Sugar said. "The cloud was the best part. The butterfly went up and down and kept getting off track. It took a long time." Hope laughed. "I doubt a butterfly or cloud could carry me!" she said merrily. They both started laughing. All of a sudden a thing fell from the sky. It just barely missed the ground, swooped back up and faced the two new friends. It was a light blue cloud. "Hi!" the cloud said cheerfully. Hope and Sugar both stared at it. It was common for the cloud to talk, most clouds did, but clouds falling from the sky like stones was very rare. Finally Sugar remembered her manners and said," Hello. I'm Sugar. This is my friend, Hope." Hope tossed her mane and looked bewildered. The cloud laughed. "I'm Mistie," it said. "Sorry about the interruption. I'm learning how to hover and sort of lost my balance." "That's okay," said Hope. "Where do you clouds live?" "I live in the rainbow." Mistie replied. "It's very nice up there. Very colorful. Airy, too." Hope gasped. "I'd love to live in the rainbow!" she cried. "So would I," Sugar agreed. "It's not bad," Mistie said. "The sky over Animal Woods was fine, too." "You lived in Animal Woods?" Sugar asked in disbelief. "Once I went there to see what it was like. It was horrible. There were no magical creatures. The clouds didn't even talk!" Mistie nodded. "That's why we moved almost immediately," she said. Sugar laughed. "I have to go home," she said. "Inspector Bee is doing a tree check and I have to prepare. See you tomorrow!" Mistie nodded. "My mother will worry," she said. "I'd better go. Bye!" She floated off. The unicorn smiled. A perfect ending to a perfect day!

Copyright 1997 by Chantessy