Arielle Rainbow

by Yumoyori Wilson

  "Arielle, you can come out now," Magnor announced. I jumped at the call of my name, and Magnor opened his eyes to look my way, a broad smile forming on his lips.

  Celestia glanced toward me and our eyes locked. It felt like everything clicked and joy blossomed through me.

  "ARIELLE!" Celestia cheered, running towards the tree I was in.

  "CELESTIA, BRU!" I sang, jumping off the branch and soaring to her. She outstretched her hands to give me a platform to land on and, in seconds, I was pressed against her cheek as she twirled us around.

  "You're back!!! I missed you so much," she sobbed.

  "Miss you too, Bru," I replied, letting my tears of happiness fall as I nestled right against her.

  She held me for a long time and stopped spinning. She pulled me back to look me up and down, even turning me around to ensure my button was still securely on my back.

  "Not a scratch. I'm so happy you're okay," Celestia whispered, cradling me to her chest. She turned to Magnor who had a gentle expression on his face as he watched us.

  "How did you know Arielle was there?" Celestia asked.

  "I sensed her in the forest the entire time. You didn't go far now did you, Arielle?" Magnor asked.

  I lifted my feathers to hide my face as I mumbled. "No, Bru," I replied shyly.

  "You should have come home, Arielle," Celestia pointed out.

  I lowered my wings to look up at her. "I didn't want to be a burden, Bru. Your home, not mine, Bru."

  Celestia shook her head and pointed to the large house. "That's OUR home now. You, me, and Magnor. You’re a part of my family!"

  Magnor cleared his throat, and we both turned our gazes to his raised eyebrow expression. "I don't remember saying yes," he pointed out.

  We gawked at him, and he snickered before he began to full-on laugh at us. Celestia blushed and pouted her lips. "Magnor! Don't tease us!"

  "Ya, no teasing, Bru!" I agreed, fluttering my wings that began to light up with blue and pink flames.

  "Oh!" Celestia moved me back as a reflex but stared at me in confusion. "Wait, it didn't burn me?"

  "A phoenix’s fire only hurts when they're afraid of you. Arielle won't hurt you with her fire. Even when she grows older and can shift into her larger forms, she won't harm you," Magnor explained.

  "SO COOL! Arielle, your flames are pretty. You're beautiful like me. Right, Magnor?" Celestia asked.

  "Yes. Arielle is beautiful and so are you, Celestia," Magnor agreed. Celestia giggled, and Magnor smiled at us both.

  "Arielle. You are free to be a part of our family. I'll need to prepare Celestia to finalize your bond with her, but that shouldn't take more than two weeks. Once that's done, you'll be able to depend on Celestia's power, and she can use your power to defend herself as well. She'll be your Mistress. The goal of a familiar is to protect the human or shifter they bond with. Will you be willing to do that? If you say yes, you won't be able to go to the hybrid nest anymore."

  I took a long moment to think about what he was presenting to me. I looked up at Celestia's hopeful eyes, but I also saw something else. Confidence.

  "BRU-REE!" I announced in excitement, my flames growing bigger as I outstretched my wings in agreement.

  "I think that's a yes!" Celestia giggled.

  "YES, YES, YES. BRUUUU!" I replied, flying up and landing on Celestia's left shoulder. I leaned in to nestle my cheek against hers and she laughed, lifting her left hand to pet my head.

  "Arielle Rainbow. Now it's really official!" Celestia announced with pride.

  "Welcome to the family, Arielle. Now, shall we go inside before it begins to-" Magnor began but was cut off by a loud sound of thunder.

  Within seconds, water fell from the sky. "AH! Why is it raining?!" Celestia whined and ran to Magnor who heaved a sigh.

  Magnor let out an ‘oomph’ from the impact as Celestia practically tackled him, wrapping her arms around him in her hurry to show her appreciation. "Celestia, I know you're happy, but can we hug in the house and not in the pouring rain?"

  "Sure, but I'm actually hugging you because you’re gonna do that cool spell that shelters you from the rain. You still have to teach me!" Celestia reminded him.

  Magnor shook his head and snapped his fingers. The rain instantly stopped hitting us but was still hitting the ground around us.

  "Bruuuu?" I hummed, unsure what he did. Celestia grinned in delight.

  "Magnor knows this cool spell where he can make the rain not touch him. He promised to show me, but he said I have to wait till I'm OLDEEERR."

  "Yes, when you’re sixteen," Magnor huffed.

  "Sixteen! You said when I was eleven," Celestia argued.

  "You must have been half awake."

  "Was not! Hmph! At least when I'm sixteen, I can have a boyfriend," she declared.

  "Who said you'll have a boyfriend?" Magnor raised his brows, then narrowed his eyes at Celestia.

  "The internet."

  "I need to cut your usage down," Magnor mumbled.

  "When can I have a boyfriend?" Celestia asked.

  "Never."

  "What?!" Celestia asked, devastation written on her face.

  "Who would you choose? A boyfriend or Arielle?" Magnor asked. Celestia looked to me before lifting me off her shoulder to cradle to her chest.

  "Don't take Arielle away from me. I don't need a boyfriend anymore," Celestia mumbled. Magnor grinned and offered his hand.

  "Good. Let's go home you two. Dinner is ready."

  Celestia smiled widely and placed her hand in Magnor's. I sat proudly in my new Mistress' hold as we headed to my new home.

  Mom, Dad, Aaron, Alec, and Mary. I found a new home with people who will love me. I still miss you and will always love you, but it's nice not to be alone anymore.

  I finally have a family again, and I'll grow strong to protect them.

  "Today is Oath day, Arielle!"

  I opened my left eye to see Celestia's face close to mine. It didn't scare me that she was so close, especially since I'd been living with Celestia for two weeks.

  Being with Celestia was a lot of fun. She was a burst of energy from the moment she opened her eyes, and she'd been keeping to her promise to train harder in an effort to keep me.

  Every day at six in the morning, she got up and went out for a run around Magnor's large property before she conducted exercises called Yoga. She said it would help her be flexible when she was older to use the cool fight moves like those she watched in movies and shows.

  I hadn't known what a lot of these items she referred to were, but over the last ten days, Celestia had explained everything in the house, how to use it, and what was her favorite and least favorite things to do, eat, and train for were.

  She also told me about things that made her sad, like Magnor having to travel a lot. He'd been gone since last week but reassured us he'd be back today for our familiar oath.

  Magnor was not only a teacher but a strong magic caster. Celestia explained that he traveled to a different dimension to help get rid of the growing darkness.

  Darkness or Forsaken were beings created by the evil within humans, animals, and shifters. When Celestia had explained her dream in detail, which included her describing how the Dark birds looked, Magnor was able to confirm those were tainted animals who were on the border of becoming forsaken.

  With Magnor being absent to do his work, it left Celestia alone in his large house. It was a cozy place and, even though I hadn't lived here for long, it felt nice and comforting. However, I could see why she was so lonely.

  Celestia's parents were far away, her Mother in a different dimension that didn't allow her to communicate much and her Father was a gatekeeper.

  A gatekeeper helped humans and shifters travel through different dimensions, and it was a role that many looked proudly upon. However, it required the individual to work for long periods of time, and the result left Celestia alone here in this place called Versa.

  She told me how hard life was befo
re Magnor had taken her in. She was bullied relentlessly and still had some of the scars to prove it. She said Magnor was going to a specific dimension to grab a special cream that she could put on her skin to remove the lingering scars, but she was still afraid of leaving the grounds or going to the market alone.

  I reassured her that I'd always tag along with her, so she was never alone. My vow had made her really happy, and she couldn't wait to share the news with Magnor when he returned.

  Celestia explained the reason she'd gotten bullied to begin with, was because she was a unicorn shifter. I had heard about unicorns from Mother and the stories she would tell me. We'd seen posters that had the horse-like beings with gold horns, but those pieces of paper were hunting signs, or that's what Aaron had said.

  I couldn't believe there were humans and shifters who hunted down the majestic beings. I knew how to read just a bit, and Celestia would read to me every night before bed, so I was able to read all the unicorn books she had and see the magnificent pictures of the creatures that were almost extinct.

  The thought of Celestia being the only unicorn shifter upset me, but it also made me feel even more connected to her. I didn't know any other phoenix harpy familiars which made me wonder if I was the only one left as well.

  Even if we were the last ones of our kind, at least we had each other.

  Once our familiar oath was complete, Celestia and I would begin training together. So far I'd been observing her training, and I did get to witness night training with Magnor before he left.

  It was nice to see her work so hard which made me want to do the same, but six in the morning was an annoying time to wake up. I closed my eyes and fluttered my feathers, hoping Celestia would let me go back to sleep.

  "Aww, Arielle, don't go back to sleep," Celestia whined.

  "Bru," I mumbled.

  "Hmmm. I'll make breakfast! That will wake you up. They should make phoenix coffee." I heard her footsteps fade, but I stayed in place, slowly falling back to sleep.

  "Arielle's still asleep?"

  Magnor's voice sounded close by, but I didn't open my eyes just yet. I just wanted to sleep.

  "Hmm? Magnor!" I heard Celestia exclaimed happily. "When did you get back?"

  "Just now. I came in from the back door. I thought you'd be asleep," Magnor admitted. I peeked an eye open to see Magnor give Celestia a tight hug.

  "I missed you! I've been training really hard. Arielle watches me train too. She's just sleepy today," Celestia explained.

  "That's understandable," Magnor replied as he released Celestia from his hold.

  "Why?" Celestia asked.

  "Remember what we talked about?" he asked.

  "Ohhh. That," Celestia whispered. I didn't know why she was whispering, but my curiosity was stronger than my urge to sleep.

  "Yes, that. After the Familiar Oath, she'll feel much better," Magnor confirmed.

  "YEA! Ah, I was too loud." Celestia slapped her hands over her mouth as she looked my way.

  I stretched my wings and yawned, my tired eyes gazing longingly at the pillow beneath me. My usual sleeping spot was next to Celestia, but since she had been training late at night for the past three days, I'd been sleeping on a pillow on her desk.

  Watching her train was nice, but I'd been really tired and would sleep right after our warm bath. Celestia walked up to me and stroked my head soothingly.

  "My bad, Arielle. Do you want to go back to sleep again?"

  "No, Bru," I replied.

  "I made breakfast and phoenix coffee! I think it is, but I'll let Magnor taste test it." Celestia hummed and picked me up.

  "I'm not taste-testing anything," Magnor grumbled.

  "Aww, don't be like that Magnor. You liked the coffee I made you last time." Magnor scrunched his face but didn't argue which made me smile. I figured he only tried it because Celestia begged him to, even if it tasted horrible.

  "Add lots of milk and sugar. Arielle likes sweet things like you," Magnor suggested.

  "Okay! Let's go to the kitchen, Arielle. I'll carry you." Celestia clapped her hands and bounced on her toes.

  "Training, Bru?" I asked.

  "Oh, right. Uh, after breakfast, maybe?" Celestia pondered out loud.

  "No need to train today. We'll do the Oath after breakfast since I'd like to go to sleep after," Magnor suggested. "It's an exhausting ceremony so you two will both needs naps as well."

  "I won't need a nap! I'm strong, but Arielle needs her beauty sleep. No coffee then! Magnor, can you make those sweet drinks you did last time? Um..." Celestia trailed off, trying to think of the word.

  "Milkshakes?" Magnor asked.

  "YES! Please?! Arielle needs to try some." .

  "I don't know if it's healthy for a phoenix." Magnor looked at me. "I'll put a spell on it so that it won't give her a brain freeze."

  "PERFECT! OFF TO BREAKFAST!" Celestia declared loudly, and Magnor sighed.

  "You're too hyper. I don't know where you get that energy from. I should talk to Harrison," Magnor mumbled.

  "Who?" Celestia asked as she made her way to the door.

  "Nobody, my little hyper student. Let's go have breakfast together," Magnor encouraged. Celestia looked so happy. I stared at Magnor who met my gaze and gave me a nod, which told me to keep what I heard to myself.

  I nodded back in understanding and turned my face up to Celestia, who sensed my stare. Her head lowered until her mismatched eyes locked with mine.

  "I can't wait for you to be officially mine, Arielle. We'll be together forever, no matter what," Celestia vowed.

  "Together forever, Bru," I replied. It made me happy, but a hint of fear ran through me. What if Celestia grows older and does get a boyfriend. Won't she leave me?

  "What if you grow older, Celestia?" Magnor asked. We both looked at him and his silver eyes were focused on me, clearly reading my mind somehow.

  "Hmm? What does that have to do with me and Arielle being together forever?" Celestia asked.

  "When you're old enough, you'll have a boyfriend and one day get married and have a family. Where would Arielle go?" Magnor asked.

  Celestia had a blank expression on her face as she remained silent, looking like she was slowly absorbing his words.

  "Arielle will stay with me. Doesn't matter if I'm old or have a boyfriend or anything. She's my familiar, and I'll never leave her," Celestia declared.

  "And if Arielle finds someone to love?" Magnor asked. The question left me completely puzzled. Me? Find someone to love?

  "Then..." Celestia trailed off as she lowered her gaze to me. We stared into each other's eyes for a long time before she replied.

  "I have to meet them. Then I have to approve of them like you said you have to approve my boyfriend!" Celestia pointed out.

  Magnor snickered but held his laughter as he smiled at Celestia. "Alright, say you meet Arielle's lover and approve of him, what then?" Magnor asked.

  "Then...Arielle can start a family," Celestia replied. "But, she'll always be welcome to stay with me. She'll always have a place in my family...and my heart. We don't need to be together as in right here in my hands, but with the oath, we'll always be together, and no one will take that from me. No one," Celestia vowed, her tone so serious it left me speechless.

  She held me to her chest. "I'll protect Arielle just like she protects me, and her family will also gain my protection. I don't care how many years pass, Arielle and I will always be friends, and I'll remain her Mistress forever," Celestia stressed.

  I looked up at her in awe and turned to Magnor who had a proud expression on his face. "Excellent answer, Celestia. Now, go set up the table, I'll be there in a moment to help make milkshakes," Magnor encouraged.

  "Okay!" Celestia cheered, her happy countenance returning once more like we hadn't had a serious conversation moments ago.

  We made our way to the kitchen, but my ears picked up Magnor's last words. "Now that’s something Hellsin would say too. Jeez, she's growing far too fast for our o
wn good. I'll have to tell Charlotte soon."

  I wonder what he's talking about? I wanted to figure out what he meant, but it felt like an unsolvable puzzle like the one Celestia had that was missing a piece.

  "Milkshakes, milkshakes. Arielle, I'll let you choose which one you want," Celestia sang.

  "Bru," I replied, and a flow of happiness coursed through me. Closing my eyes, I reminisced about my Mistress' words, and my fear of being alone one day vanished.

  She wouldn't abandon me. Even if we grew up and eventually had families of our own. No matter what, we'd always be together.

  "Are you two ready?" Magnor asked, looking between the both of us. I nodded my feathered head and watched Celestia do the same.

  We were in the backyard and the sun was beginning to rise. Celestia was way too excited so Magnor gave in to do the oath ceremony.

  With sunrise painting the sky beautiful shades of orange and yellow, and its rays making the flowers in the garden and around us look extra spectacular, it felt like the perfect time to conduct an agreement, like starting the day fresh.

  Father always said that the early bird got the worm, and though it didn't necessarily fit this current situation, it made me feel that doing this oath as we started a new day would give me a good boost for the rest of the day.

  I was still struggling to stay awake, but I was doing my best to keep my heavy eyelids open. Magnor had placed these special jewels on my neck and ankle, and hung a jewelry piece on each wing. I stood on a gold stand made just for me, one of the many things Magnor had brought back from his round trip on my behalf.

  Instead of a single pole-like platform my talons were required to grip to stay upright, the stand was a flat square surface with a mini cushion embedded in the middle. I could comfortably stand on the pillow and my talons wouldn't hurt, at least until I grew older and could support myself with ease.

  Celestia was enveloped in a white dress with gold jewelry similar to mine. She wore a simple necklace with a clear stone hanging in the middle, gold bracelets, and anklets like mine.

  Her hair was left down, and she a gold crown rested on her head, making her look like a princess in the picture books she'd shown me about unicorns and fairy tales.