“Papa, come see my new sister," Lightning shouted breathlessly as he galloped up to meet his father.  “You’re not going to believe this!”    

     Thunder had been out on a hunt with the rest of the king’s horses when his new daughter Ria was born.  “What is it, Lightning?”  He asked.  He was a bit concerned because Lightning seemed a little upset.  “Is there something wrong?”

          “Just come and see Papa!”  Lightning said as he turned to head for home.

          Thunder was excited to hear he had a new daughter.  He decided Lightning was acting strangely because he was excited.  After all, what could be wrong?  Everything was fine when he left for the hunt.    

     Thunder remembered talking to his wife, Ral, early that morning before he left.  They were going to name their daughter Ria.  Thunder thought it was funny humans believed they thought up horses’ names.  Really, humans just named them what their parents had already decided.  Still, if it made humans happy to think they were in control, he was not going to argue.

          Thunder was so excited he could hardly contain himself and began galloping for home.  His rider, Sir Grembal, did all he could to slow Thunder down, but it was no use.  Thunder and Lightning seemed intent on galloping and nothing Sir Grembal did would stop them.  He finally gave up and prayed he would not fall off.    

     When they arrived at the stables, Thunder was galloping so fast he almost ran head first into the wall of his family’s stall, but he didn’t like pain and stopped just before he hit it.  Unfortunately, Thunder stopped so fast that Sir Grembal flew out of his saddle and all the way over the wall.

          Thunder rushed around the wall of his home and found Sir Grembal staring wide-eyed at his new daughter.  One look at Ria told Thunder why Lightning had acted so strangely.  Lying there in front of him was a beautiful little filly.  She had a beautiful white coat and was perfect in every way.  That is, she was perfect except for her rainbow colored mane and tail.  She also had two wings on her back. 

          Sir Grembal found his voice and declared,  “What kind of black magic has created such a creature?  The king must be told at once!”    

     Thunder, on the other hand, was more upset.  “What has happened to my daughter!” he shouted.  “What has done this to my little Ria!" he snorted as he stamped out of the stables.

          “Oh dear, little Ria,” Ral whispered to her daughter as she nuzzled her neck.  “I’m afraid it may take some time for your father to get used to you.  Don’t fear little one, all will be well – I hope!”

          News of the strange little horse spread fast throughout the castle.  The people of the village thought her birth was a wonderful miracle.  However, the knights of the castle saw Ria’s coming as a bad sign.  They urged the king to destroy Ria before her evil spread through the kingdom.

          Just about everyone living in the castle thought Ria was bad, except Princess Anne, King Leo’s only child.  She was excited and every day after Ria was born, Anne would beg her father to let her see Ria.  Fearing the people in the castle were right, the king always said no.  He would have sold Ria, except he was afraid Princess Anne would hate him for it.  He adored his little daughter and could not stand the thought of losing her love.

          Princess Anne continued to pester her father about Ria until, one night, she could wait no longer.  After her father, mother and the rest of the people in the castle went to sleep, she very quietly sneaked out of her room.  After dodging the night guards, a few startled chickens and several noisy dogs, she made it to the stables.

          Afraid she would make too much noise and wake the other animals; Anne very slowly and very quietly walked toward Ria’s stall.  After what seemed like forever, she finally made it there.  When she saw Ria, Anne was so startled she nearly shouted with surprise.  She could not believe what she saw.

          Ria was asleep with her head on Ral’s side and a moonbeam shining directly on her rainbow colored mane.  Ria was absolutely the most beautiful little horse Princess Anne had ever seen and the moonbeam made Ria seem almost magical.  Much like the unicorns in the stories Anne’s teachers told her.

          Anne bent down and quietly crawled over to Ria and patted the little horse on her neck.  Ria woke with a start and jumped to her feet.  Anne was so surprised she fell back and nearly bumped her head on the wall.

          Ria was about to whinny very loudly when Anne jumped to her feet and put a hand on Ria’s nose.  She gently patted the little horse’s nose in an effort to calm her down.  

          “Quiet, little one.”  Anne whispered.  “I won’t hurt you.  How could I hurt such a precious little thing as you?”

          Ria continued to look at Anne suspiciously, but settled down a bit.  She decided she would wait to see what the human had to say before she did anything else.

          “I am Anne.  I am not supposed to be here, but I just had to see you.  You’re more beautiful than I ever imagined!”    

     OK, Ria thought to herself, at least this “Anne” person has good taste.  She lay back down, still suspicious of Anne, but willing to listen for a while.    

     Ria did not really trust anyone because all the animals and humans made fun of her.  They called her all sorts of bad names and laughed at her.  Even her father and brother did not want to have anything to do with her.  The only one who loved her and was never mean to her was her mother.

     This human named Anne seemed different, though.  Ria could sense that Anne actually like her.  This was a new experience for her and she did not know what to think, but for now, it felt good to have someone like her.  If she could have talked, Ria would have thanked Anne for her kindness.

     Anne and Ria just sat quietly looking at one another.  Neither one could quite believe the beauty of the other.  Anne, of course, looked at Ria’s outside and thought she was just a beautiful, magical animal.  Ria, though, saw more deeply into Anne.  Not only was this human pretty on the outside, she also was beautiful on the inside.  Ria, being a horse, could sense that Anne was a kind, gentle and loving human.  A nice human was a new thought to Ria.

     Ral woke up for just a moment and found the two together.  She quietly watched them for a moment.  She could sense a mutual respect between the two.  Even better, she could see in Anne’s eyes a sincere and genuine love for her daughter.  As it would with any mother, this made Ral very happy.  Now, she really believed everything would work out fine for her daughter. 

     As she laid her head down, drifting back to sleep, Ral was finally at peace about her daughter’s future.  She slept very well that night.

     After a few more minutes, Anne thought it best to leave.  She did not want her mother and father to catch her.  Adults got very upset when children broke the rules and Anne did not want to make her parents mad.

     Every night after that, Anne slipped out of her room and visited Ria.  She would bring Ria a carrot, apple or some other snack.  Ria always accepted the gifts eagerly and eventually the two became good friends.    

     Anne continued to badger her father about seeing Ria.  Finally, after a long time, the king gave up and took Anne to see Ria.

     When the two came to the stables, Ria ran up to Anne looking for her treat.  She stopped when Anne gave her a look that seemed to say there would be none for now.

     Although Ria was a little disappointed, she was still happy to see her friend.  She walked over to Anne and nuzzled her.  Anne, in turn, gently patted Ria on her head.

     The king was surprised to see the two become friends so easily.  He was pleased to see his daughter so happy, but he could not help but worry about the castle nobility.  It would be very hard to please them and his daughter at the same time.  Still, for now, Anne would have the freedom to see Ria as often as she wished.

     Anne took advantage of her new freedom.  She visited Ria early every morning, brining her table scraps and any other treats she could find.  After her daily lessons, Anne and Ria took long walks in the meadows around the castle.

     Both Ria and Anne love the lush green grass and wild flowers of the meadows.  Anne loved the beauty of the meadows.  The whites, yellows and purples of the flowers made Anne feel all warm inside.  Listening to the blue birds chirp and the bees buzz from flower to flower made Anne happy. 

     If she could talk, Ria would have agreed with Anne.  But, while she loved Anne very much, she sometimes thought this human was a silly creature.  Ria just could not understand how Anne could keep from eating such wonderful grass and clover.  Not wanting to see so much good food go to waste, Ria always tried to eat enough for both of them.    

     Anne spent hours on end telling Ria all about her dreams.  She told Ria all about the handsome prince she would marry and the children she would have some day.  Judging from the way Anne treated her favorite doll, Ria felt sure Anne would make a very good mother.    

     While Anne dreamed about being a wife and mother some day, this was not the only thing she wanted.  What she really wanted was adventure.  The stories of Merlin and other wizards and all the dragon stories Anne heard made her dream about going on adventures of her own.  Ria wasn’t exactly sure what “adventure” was, but if it had anything to do with making her parents mad, she was pretty sure Anne was well on her way to a life of adventure.    

     The times they spent together were the best times of their lives.  Their friendship continued to bloom past the cool days of spring well into the hot rainy days of summer.  When Anne was not in school, the two were always together.

     All this changed early in September.  After months of arguing with the nobility, the king finally gave in and decided he would have to get rid of Ria.  However, what was he to do with Ria? 

     If he sent her away forever, or destroyed her, Princess Anne would never speak to him again.  Anne had told her father as much.  He could not bear the thought of losing her love.

     On the other hand, if he did not sell Ria to someone who would give her a good home away from the castle, the nobility would eventually kill her.  This, he thought, would hurt Anne more than her friend leaving would.  He could not allow Ria to be harmed in any way, but still he had to do something to keep the nobility happy.  It is hard for a king to be a king if nobody does what he says.

     When the fall circus came to the castle, the king had an idea.  He would sell Ria to the circus.  Since the circus came to the castle four times a year, the king thought he might be able to convince Anne to let Ria go.

     He was wrong. 

     After the king had sold Ria to the circus, he called Anne to his room.  “Anne,” he began quietly.  “I know you won’t understand, but I have to send Ria away.”

     Anne began to say something, but the king cut her short.  “My precious child, I had to do it.  Even kings can’t always have what they want. 

     I hoped by selling Ria to the circus, she would have a good home.  Since the circus comes here each season, you will be able to see Ria at least four times a year.”    

     “I know why you are doing this!”  Anne said angrily through her tears.  “It’s those mean knights.  They say Ria is bad, but she isn’t.  She’s the most wonderful horse in the world.  They’re stupid and I hate you!”  Anne shouted as she ran out of the king’s room toward the stables.    

     She got to the stables just in time to see two men trying to put a harness on Ria.  Ria was not very happy about this and was making an awful noise.  Anne ran up to the men and started hitting them.    

     While an eight-year-old girl’s punches do not hurt a grown man much, they can be a bother.  One of the men, being a bit too bothered, pushed Anne out of the way.  Anne fell to the ground beside Ria just as the king ran into the stables.    

     “What is the meaning of this!” he shouted.  “How dare you lay a hand on my daughter!  Guards!  Arrest these men.”    

     “Pardon, sire," Said the older man.  “But we didn’t know she was the Princess Anne.  She just ran in here and began hitting us.  We were just trying to take our new horse back to the circus.  We truly meant no harm, my lord.”    

     “Is this true , Anne?" asked the king.    

     Still sobbing, Anne admitted the men were telling the truth.  “Please don’t send Ria away father,” pleaded Anne.

     “Leave us,” commanded the king.  Everyone left Anne and the king alone.

     “Anne, I know you love Ria.  I know you will miss her.  However, I have given these men my word and I will not break it.

     You may have a few minutes to say good-bye to your friend.  When the men come in again, you will tell Ria to go with them.  Is that clear?”

     “Yes, father.” said Anne in a sad voice.

     As her father walked out, Anne moved toward Ria.  “Ria, my father is sending you away.”  Anne could see what looked like tears coming out of Ria’s eyes.  “Please don’t be mad at me.  I tried to make him keep you, but those mean knights wanted to hurt you.  At least, this way you will be safe.”  Anne hugged Ria and cried a short while. 

     When the men came back, Anne made them give her the harness.  Gently, she placed the harness on Ria and gave her one last kiss.

     “Come on Crystal Rainbow, time to go to your new home," said the younger man.

     “Her name is Ria, not Crystal Rainbow," shouted Anne.

     “Not anymore your highness.  She will be called Crystal Rainbow from now on.  It’s a much better name for our new star attraction.”  The older man said.    

     Anne was about to protest when her father placed a hand on her shoulder.  She looked up at him and saw his look that meant he would allow no more argument.  She looked at Ria and gently said, “Good bye my friend.  I will see you soon.”

     As the men took Crystal Rainbow to her new home, Anne shook her father’s hand off her shoulder, shouted, “I hate you!” to him and ran back to her room.  When she got there, she closed and locked the door.  She lay on her bed and cried the rest of the day.

     Crystal Rainbow left that afternoon with the circus, but she was very unhappy and would not eat.  She was so unhappy; she did not eat for several days.  Eventually, though, she decided she would find some way to get back to Anne.  Until then, it would do no good to starve to death.

     A month later, Crystal Rainbow woke up one night from a bad nightmare.  She had dreamed Anne was lost in a dark forest.  In this forest, there were all sorts of bad creatures.  Ghosts, goblins, trolls, witches and the like lived in the forest.  In the nightmare, everywhere Anne went these bad creatures chased her.    

     So bad and so real was the dream that Crystal Rainbow woke up and began fighting her ropes.  She made so much noise, she woke up the circus owner and he ran to her tent to see what was wrong.  When he got there, he found Crystal Rainbow had broken the ropes and was about to run out of the tent.  He would have tried to stop her, but he did not think one man stood a chance against an angry horse Crystal Rainbow’s size.    

     Crystal Rainbow galloped out of the tent as fast as she could.  She ran so fast that she did not see the cliff in front of her until it was too late.  She ran right off the cliff and began falling toward the sea below her.  As the sea rushed toward her, Crystal Rainbow was convinced she was about to die.  Just as she thought this, her wings spread out and right before she hit the jagged rocks; she pulled out of her fall and began flying.

     The men who were watching her could not believe their eyes.  A horse that could fly was nothing short of magic.  Crystal Rainbow was surprised herself.  She had never heard of a flying horse.  No matter, she thought, at least now, I know what these wing things do.    

     She flew higher and higher into the night sky and farther out to sea.  As she did, she felt the wind blowing through her mane and lifting her higher and higher.  It was a wonderful feeling to be able to fly like the birds, but she was afraid she would fly so far out that she would not find her way back. 

     After a while, she came to some wind that helped her turn around and head back inland.  She flew all night, searching for her friend.  But, she did not really know where to look.

     At daybreak, Crystal Rainbow decided to rest for a while.  She did not understand why, but flying was hard work.  It did not seem that hard for the birds.  After eating a breakfast of grass and wild flowers, Crystal Rainbow started searching for Anne again. 

     Late in the day, she saw a very large and very dark spot on the land far below her.  When she flew down to get a closer look, she found this dark spot was in fact a large forest. 

     Crystal Rainbow landed just at the edge of the forest and walked in.  It was very dark and very cold inside the forest, but she did not care.  All she cared about was finding Anne. 

     Crystal Rainbow searched through the forest for several days.  She was beginning to give up when she saw a light far ahead in the distance.  She walked toward it until she could see the light was really a large fire.  Around the fire was a group of the most hideous trolls she had ever seen.  This was not saying much because she had never seen a troll before.  Still, the creatures were very ugly.

     The trolls were tormenting a human by threatening to eat her.  They were laughing at the human as they pushed and prodded her saying “Little humans taste very good.  You will make a good dinner tonight.” 

     When she was close enough, Crystal Rainbow could see this human was her friend Anne.  Anger welled up in Crystal Rainbow’s as she saw the fear on Anne’s face.

     Without thinking, she stormed into the clearing and started attacking the trolls with her hooves.  She caught the first troll by surprise and he did not put up much of a fight as she knocked him out.  The second and third trolls fell under her hooves just as easily.

     This gave the rest of the trolls time to get their spears and knives.  Then, they rushed toward Crystal Rainbow screaming and yelling at her.  They hoped to frighten her, but it did not work.  Instead, they made Crystal Rainbow angrier.  So angry that she wished she could just throw all the trolls high in the air and slam them to the ground.   

     Just as soon as Crystal Rainbow made her wish, the trolls did fly up in the air.  Almost as if they had all been grabbed by a big hand and thrown into the sky.  Then, one by one, they all flew back to the edge of the clearing and were knocked out.  Only Anne and Crystal Rainbow were left standing.   

     Anne ran toward Crystal Rainbow with outstretched arms.  “Oh, Ria.  I cannot believe it.  I finally found you!”

     Crystal Rainbow looked at Anne wondering what she meant.  Why would Anne look for her?  Anne knew she had left with the circus.

     Anne began to tell Crystal Rainbow what had happened.

     “Three nights after the men took you, I sneaked out of the castle and started to follow, but I couldn’t find you.  When I came to the edge of this forest, I thought you might have come through here, so I came in.  That’s when the trolls caught me. 

     Oh!  I’m so glad to see you!  Thank you for saving my life.”

     What a foolish thing to do, Crystal Rainbow thought.  Although she was a bit angry with Anne for doing something so foolish, she was so happy to see her that she just nuzzled her instead. 

     The two stood there enjoying one another’s company until the trolls started to wake up.  Crystal Rainbow immediately knelt down and Anne climbed on her back.  With that, Crystal Rainbow pictured a hole in the trees above and the blue sky beyond that.  Just as soon as she made the picture in her mind, a hole did appear in the thick trees above them and she flew effortlessly up to freedom in the deep blue sky above.

     This was, to say the least, a total surprise to Anne.  She was so surprised she almost fell off Crystal Rainbow’s back, but just as she was about to fall, Crystal Rainbow turned right and kept her from falling.  After that, Anne just held on to Crystal Rainbow’s neck.

     The two flew through the night toward Anne’s castle.  Just before daybreak, Crystal Rainbow landed outside the castle walls.  Anne climbed off Crystal Rainbow’s back and ran toward the castle gates.

     She stopped about halfway there and turned around.  Crystal Rainbow was still standing where she had landed. 

     Anne ran back toward Crystal Rainbow, but slowed down as she came near her.  Somehow, Anne knew that Crystal Rainbow was not coming back with her.

     “Ria, please come back with me,” pleaded Anne.  However, even as she said this, she knew Crystal Rainbow would not come.  With tears in her eyes, Anne said, “Where will you go, Ria.  What will you do?  Please, please stay with me.”

     Crystal Rainbow stood there for a moment then, very lovingly and gently, she nuzzled Anne again.  After a moment, Crystal Rainbow looked straight at Anne and said, “My name is Crystal Rainbow.  For now, I must leave, but I will be back.”  Then she flew away.

     Anne stood there and watched her friend fly away.  She would have cried at losing Ria - no, her name was Crystal Rainbow now, she thought - again, but for some reason, Anne knew she would have many more adventures with Crystal Rainbow.

     As Crystal Rainbow disappeared in the sky, Anne turned and ran toward home.