Will there be a Unicorn? and Other Tales

Will there be a Unicorn?

'Princess darling, dearest precious angel!' said the queen.
'Your birthday party's going to be the best there's ever been.
There'll be games like pass the parcel, an enormous bouncy castle,
There'll be crisps and dips and sausage rolls and jelly and ice cream in bowls.

The biggest ever yummy special chocolate birthday cake
With chocolate buttons, smarties, jelly tots and chocolate flake,
And all your friends will be there in tiaras, rings and gowns,
There'll be acrobats and jesters, there'll be conjurors and clowns . . .'

'And will there be a unicorn?' the princess asked her mum.
'I'd be a happy princess if a unicorn could come.'
'A unicorn? Of course, my precious! Anything for you.
I'll add it to the list. Oh gosh! So many things to do!'
The princess skipped off whistling. The poor queen clutched her heart,
'I have to find a unicorn! I don't know where to start!'

First she asked the farmer but the farmer shook his head,
'No unicorns here, sorry. Would you like a cow instead?
A chicken or a goat, a pig, a donkey or a duck?
But if you want a unicorn, my queen, you're out of luck.'

Next she tried the pet shop; they had puppies, gerbils, cats,
Hamsters, rabbits, guinea pigs and stick insects and rats.
'No unicorns, your majesty. You'd better try the zoo.'

The zookeeper said, 'Sorry, we've a lovely cockatoo,
A monkey and an elephant, giraffes, a kangaroo,
Lions, tigers, parrots, a gazelle and a gnu,
But we haven't got a unicorn.' The queen was in despair.
'I'm running out of time!' she bellowed, tearing out her hair.

She sent her knights out searching far and wide throughout the land.
'Bring me back a unicorn! This is your queen's command!'
They rode through forests, mountains, fields, just as the queen demanded.
They hunted high, they hunted low but came back empty-handed.
The queen sat on her throne and wept, 'Oh, what am I to do?
I promised her a unicorn, to make her wish come true.'

But upstairs at her window, Princess looked out at the sky,
And whispered to the darkness from her tower, way up high,
'Unicorn, O Unicorn, I don't know where you are.
You could be very close to me; you could be very far.
But will you come tomorrow, please and make my day complete?
Please come tomorrow, Unicorn, dear Unicorn so sweet.'

The birthday dawned, the knights blew up a hundred pink balloons.
Jugglers juggled, dancers danced and flutes played happy tunes.
The feast sat on a table by the ornamental lake,
It took a dozen knights to lift the giant birthday cake.

The princess' friends brought presents tied with gold and silver bows.
The queen was sad; she wiped her eyes and blew her royal nose.
The palace door was opened and the guests began to shout,
And cheer and clap and whistle as the birthday girl stepped out.
She saw the bouncy castle and the presents on the lawn,
The cake, balloons and acrobats, 'But where's the unicorn?

Wait! What's that in the forest, far away but coming near?
A white shape in the distance. . . getting close. . . becoming clear. . .
A shiny coat, a pair of wings, a golden spiral horn. . .'
The princess screamed and clapped her hands, 'You've come, dear Unicorn!'

The people gasped. The queen exclaimed, 'Oh gosh! What a surprise!
Is that a unicorn I see? I can't believe my eyes!'
She rubbed her eyes and scratched her head and said, 'Well, fancy that!'
The little girls ran off to give the unicorn a pat.

He let them brush his coat and tail; he let them plait his mane.
He let them ride him down the lawn and up and back again.
He took them flying way up high around the castle roofs
And landed in the courtyard with a clattering of hooves.

And when the sun was setting and the party at an end,
The princess hugged the unicorn and whispered, 'Dearest friend,
We've had a lovely time today. We've had such fun with you.
Thank you, Unicorn. You made my birthday wish come true.'

⭐️🌸🦄🎂🎁🎈🌸⭐️

Click the link at the top to listen to the audiobook version of Will there be a Unicorn?

Illustrations by Sringkhala. You can view her beautiful artwork at artlucina.com.

And here's a piece of fanart by amoeboids from her book Revolutionised Concepts of Art which I totally adore:

Please comment and vote if you liked it ⭐️ 💬🦄
I hope you enjoy the other stories in this collection too ❤️

Also why not check out Wattys 2016 Winner Mouse Stew and Other Tales as well?

Thank you for reading 😊

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