The False Prince

12 | Help From The Hobbits

Having missed out on their sleep, the group had become extremely exhausted. To get respite for their tired bodies, they stopped and sat down by a small river. Just a short distance away, a young man was peacefully drinking from it. Oliver looked closely at the man, realizing that he had the same sandy blond hair and roughly the same height as Tabazan and his brothers. I couldn't be a coincidence.

"Hey, you! Come here!" Fake Tabazan called to the stranger.

Shocked, the man stood up and ran vigorously toward the group. Without one consideration of personal space, he pulled Rasadain, Isilor, and Oliver into a giant hug.

"Brothers, oh, how I have missed you!"

"I am just as glad to see you, too, Zor." Isildor, the oldest, grinned.

"Same." Muttered Rasadain, sarcastically.

"I have another surprise!" Zor told them. "Kajjkatt is here, too!"

"Unbelievable!" Fake Tabazan chimed in. The world seemed to be turning in his favor. Even the guards looked pleased, knowing that the quest was getting closer to an end.

Zor lead the party past the hanging branches of a large willow tree and into a tiny meadow. There, a boy sat in the grass, playing with a herd of wild unicorns. There was something rather odd about this particular group of creatures. Their horns were turning an unusual violet colour like bruises, and their eyes were crimson instead of brown. They seemed as if they were suffering from a rare kind of infirmity.

Kajjkatt soon noticed the brothers and smiled. He was much shorter than them and had softer features but still shared the family's wavy, sandy locks.

"Now that we have found you, we must take you home." Pronounced a guard.

"I don't think that's a good idea." Oliver warned.

"Why not?"

"These creatures have dire unicorn syndrome." The wizard in disguise remembered. "Their magic is turning evil. They need help from an apothecary."

"That's not our problem." Barked Rasadain.

"No," Demanded Zor. "I'm not leaving until we save them." There was no arguing against the prince's orders. The guards knew that.

Oliver volunteered to guide the way, and they were off to save the unicorns.

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Since they traveled by unicorn, it wasn't too long until they found the apothecary. It had a short roof, too short for a person to stand. They understood the reason for the building's tiny size when a bearded hobbit stepped out through the round, wooden door.

"Greetings, Sir," Fake Tabazan rushed over to the little man. "We have sick unicorns, and I was hoping you could help."

"Ah, dire unicorn syndrome... Just a minute!" He hopped back in and out of his home, carrying a rainbow coloured jar. He waddled over to the first unicorn and tried to hop on its back but failed because his legs were too short. "Some assistance?" He hinted to Oliver.

Carefully, the false prince lifted the wrangler up onto the creature's back. The tiny man vigorously rubbed some cream from the jar into the unicorn's mane, massaging it with his calloused fingers. They repeated the process until the whole herd was covered in rainbow cream.

"In a few hours, the unicorns will be back to their regular selves." Stated the hobbit.

Oliver handed him a bag of coins for thanks and continued on his journey, leaving the unicorns to go where they pleased.

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