= Piper's Boutique x Ransie x Celestial Star x Dafont x Google x Nemesis =
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The unicorn's body flashed in and out of view through the patches of sun and shadow in the crisp winter air of the Fae Forest. Her hooves crunched through the snow on the frozen ground, her breathe visible in the air. Puffs of steam rose from her nostrils as she lifted her head and snorted, ears swiveling this way and that, listening for any signs of danger in the eerily quiet forest. Her brilliantly white hide rippled with the movement of her muscles underneath it as she rushed through the trees, its color helping her to blend in with the winter scene before her.
She'd gotten separated from her herd when they'd scattered as the poachers crept up on them near the stream. She and her colt had run in the opposite direction than most of their herd, but usually they were quick to double back and join them again once the danger was no longer present. This time, something had gone wrong. He'd startled as the rest of the herd broke out in loud equine screams of alarm, kicking up and galloping off on his spindly young legs into a more dense patch of the forest. Two of the poachers had rushed in between the frightened mare and her foal, and she was held back from galloping after him for a few moments while she avoided their attempts at securing her.
Luckily she'd managed to squeeze past one of them who'd stumbled during his advance towards her with a thick rope. The poachers had gotten smarter, obviously targeting the mare and the colt, or perhaps it was bad luck, but either way, she couldn't find her foal, and she was starting to panic. The mare could sense that the poachers were still tracking her. It didn't matter that much now, she was well ahead of them, what mattered most was finding her foal before they did.
She doubled back a few times in an attempt to find her colt, unable to pick up anything but a light scent of him passing this way.
She stopped her brisk canter to listen for a moment. A slight noise to her left caused her to bring her hindquarters around to the right so she could face the noise head on. It sounded like something was moving in that direction, something small and slight. She lifted her head and reared as she tried to grasp the scent of her colt from the air with an open mouth and flaring nostrils. Finally picking it up, she whinnied softly and rushed through the trees in the hopes of finding him.
She was beginning to lose hope when she jumped over a pile of snow covered rocks continued on for a few strides. She stopped and turned around in place, scanning the area for any movement. That's when she spied the him, huddled next to the pile of rocks she'd jumped over. He was shivering in a small indention in the ground. She walked over to him, nudging his neck with her muzzle, breathing in his familiar scent.
He attempted to get up, but failed, unable to put any weight on his front left leg.
She nudged him again and nickered softly, urging him to try once more to get onto his little hooves and stand.
This time he managed to stand, but only for a brief moment, toppling back onto his hind legs. He was just too cold and too weak after his escape from the poachers to get up and walk it seemed.
Anxiously, the mare looked around. Once she was convinced there were no threats in the area, she laid down next to her colt, protecting his small body with hers, in hopes of keeping him warm until he was strong enough to stand....