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The Heart Menders
A girl runs through the woods,
Not caring where she's going
And not bothering to look back.
She runs for hours
But eventually stops and gives up,
Her injuries weighing her down.
But the injuries are on her heart,
Not on her body.
The darkness of the night surrounds her.
She lies there,
Trying to hold back months of tears.
But the force is too great,
And the dam on her eyes finally breaks.
The tears flood from her eyes
And down her face.
The first starts to fall to the ground,
But wait -
It doesn't hit.
The girl opens her eyes
And sees that her tear has transformed into a diamond
On the tip of a spiral horn.
She follows the horn
And sees it attached to the forehead
Of a silvery-white equine creature.
The fact hits her like a speeding train -
She is staring at a unicorn.
She dares not blink nor turn away,
For fear that the magnificent animal will vanish.
The unicorn takes a step closer
And begins to nuzzle her cheek.
The girl slowly wraps her arms around the unicorn's neck
And hugs it tightly.
She buries her face in the unicorn's mane
And begins to cry again.
She cries until her tears dry out.
The unicorn waits patiently,
Still nuzzling her cheek.
the girl stops crying
And looks into the unicorn's eyes.
She sees warmth and comfort,
A loving and mother-like look.
She stands up
And slowly walks to the unicorn's side.
She places her hands on its back
And jumps up
And swings her leg over.
The unicorn waits patiently
Until the girl has wrapped her hands into its mane,
Then starts moving through the forest.
Slowly they start to move faster
Until the unicorn is galloping through the trees.
They ride for hours upon hours,
And as the sun comes up
The girl looks around.
She sees other unicorns,
All with children or young teenagers on their backs.
Each of the children and teenagers
Has a tear-stained face
And a haunted, depressing look in their eyes.
The girl is absolutely certain
That she looks the same way.
More unicorns join them,
Carrying a child or teenager -
All with the same look in their eyes.
They ride for an hour or two more
Until they come to a large and beautiful valley.
Clear, clean water streams out of the trees.
Emerald grass grows everywhere,
Almost drowned out by flowers
Of all shapes, sizes and colors.
A town rests in the middle of the valley
And the unicorns begin to walk towards it.
In the town the girl sees many people:
Children, teenagers, and young adults.
All are dressed in clothes the same silvery-white color
As the unicorns that follow them around,
One for each person.
"What is this place?" the girl thinks.
"This is the dwelling place
Of the heart menders,"
A voice answers in her mind.
The voice is soothing, almost musical,
And the girl looks around for the source.
She looks forward
And sees that the unicorn she is riding
Has turned its head to look at her.
"You can speak?" she thinks.
She dares not say it aloud.
"Only to you," is the answer,
"And only in our minds.
We, the unicorns, are the heart menders.
When we reach the age of maturity,
We are sent out into the human world
To find those with broken hearts
And bring them back here to be healed."
The girl looks around her at the people of the town,
Who have gathered to see the newcomers.
Many of the younger ones
Have the same haunted, depressing look in their eyes
As those that have just arrived.
"They have not been here for long
And have only just begun to heal,"
The unicorn explains.
The girl looks at the older ones,
And sees a bright, joyful look in their eyes.
"They have finished the healing process
And will soon be leaving."
The girl looks around again
And sees some with a mix
Of the haunted, depressing look
And the bright, joyful look in their eyes.
"They are the ones that are not quite broken
But not fully mended either."
"Why can we only speak in our minds,
And why can you only speak to me?"
"When we go out to the human world,
We are to find one person with a broken heart.
When we find them,
And touch a part of their broken soul,
We become connected to that human
And that human alone.
We then bring them back here to be healed."
The girl wonders for a while
What the unicorn meant by
"A part of their broken soul."
She then remembers her diamond teardrop
On the tip of the unicorn's horn.
She looks around her
And sees that several of the unicorns
Also have a diamond teardrop
On the tip of their horns.
"What about those without a teardrop?" she asks,
"Have they not found a human?"
"No," the unicorn answers,
"When the heart of the human who shed the tear
Has been mended,
The diamond falls off.
Look closely at those who are healed."
The girl obeys,
And sees that each of the healed humans
Wears their diamond teardrop
Around their necks.
"When those unicorns take the humans back to their world,
they give them the diamond
As a reminder of their time here.
Once you are healed,
And I take you back,
You will have one as well."
"But what if I forget?" the girl asks fearfully.
"You won't," the unicorn replies,
"Wearing the diamond allows you to remember
Every lesson you learn here,
And when you need it the most."
"What if I take it off?"
"You won't be able to,
No matter hou hard you try.
And I will always be there to help you."
The girl thinks about the unicorn's words,
And looks around at all the broken, mended
And half-healed hearts.
A feeling of hope comes over her
And for the first time,
In a very long time,
She smiles.
"Are you ready to be healed?" the unicorn asks.
The girl takes her time to answer,
Reflecting on the last year
Of heartbreak and pain.
After a while she finally answers,
Leaning down to hug her unicorn.
"I've been ready for a long time."
