a little wonder...

Cigam was only a tiny unicorn. Dick Whittington, a long time ago, had to leave this precious baby all alone in the countryside. Master Whittington made his first adult decision. The big city lights were no place for a little white unicorn. Unicorns cannot be leashed to stroll streets and slumber in garret rooms. And so Master Whittington took his cat to London for company. Cigam was all alone?

Suddenly, he was NOT alone. Dorothy had just arrived from the Land of Oz. She often liked to revisit that wonderland, but she had a little problem. Those fantastic red shoes were getting a little tight. When she clicked her heels, Dorothy often found that her feet were in great agony. The agony of blisters being scrunched together often brought tears to her eyes. All she could do was sit under a tree, crying in pain as she tried to ease those red shoes from her feet. However, she was not just suffering from blisters. She was suffering from the terrible disease of growing up.

Quietly, Cigam wandered over to this strange person, sitting down under a tree, weeping. He wanted someone to care for him, to care with love and attention. Most of all, he wanted someone to remember him, always. But first, he decided this girl needed some care. Gently he offered the only possession he had a soft, fluffy dandelion from high in the distant mountains. It was a rare flower. Not many flowers grew on snowy heights. When the flower touched a soul, it would soak up the pain of the soul and then die.

Cigam offered the flower. For a moment, Dorothy stopped, a little shocked, but only a little. I guess she thought she was still in the magic Land of Oz. Dorothy drew the flower close and felt sweet scents fill every fibre of her being. She felt her tears dry. The flower glowed, for just a moment, and then sank limp in her hand.

She turned to Cigam.
"I do not know who you are or where you are from. But I so wish I could care for you, as you just cared for me. I wish..."
But something strange was happening to Cigam. He was glowing with a strange aura of light.

The unicorn whispered, " I am...I am...My name is MAGIC! MAGIC!"
The final words seemed to echo and echo round Dorothy.
"You have given me something, dearest Dorothy! Yes! I know who you are! Now! You have given me the gift of caring, right from the very heart of you. You care! And at last my name means something! I AM MAGIC! I know at last! You have given me a precious gift too!"

"One more thing, Dorothy," the unicorn continued smiling. "Take a moment in your life to remember me. That's all I need. Show me you care by remembering me. Then, while you grow, I will grow with you. You will always have MAGIC with you! You will never fear growing up! And those shoes will always fit. Just remember me!"

But Dorothy was drifting. She was looking at her red shoes. They were definitely larger. And a little different! They now had shiny silver buckles on them in the shape of a tiny white unicorn.

 - Gemma Wiseman

I wrote this story in May, 2007 for the website Helium...

Thought it was time to resurrect it...