Pearl the Proper Unicorn

by Sally Odgers

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  Table of Contents

  About the Author and Illustrator

  Copyright Page

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  For Imogen Grace. - SALLY ODGERS

  To Maik, I wouldn’t be able to do this without you. Thank you. xxx - ADELE K THOMAS

  Chapter 1

  It was a sunny morning in the Kingdom and Pearl was practicing her magic.

  Making magic was easy for Pearl. But making the right magic was not so easy. Still, she was the only magical unicorn in the Kingdom and her friends, Olive and Tweet, loved it when she made treats for them to share.

  Olive was an ogre. She laughed a lot and she ate a lot, and if there was a problem, Olive knew how to fix it.

  Tweet was a firebird. She was small, but she could fly very fast.

  Together, the three friends could do just about anything.

  “I’ll make pink strawberry pops today,” Pearl said. “I’ll try hoppity-toss. Then I’ll add stamp-stamp.”

  Hoppity-toss-stamp-stamp went Pearl.

  Nothing happened.

  “Popping parsnips!” Pearl said. She wiggled her head twice and stamped her hoof. Wiggle-wiggle-stamp.

  Oops. A shower of pink roses tumbled out of the sky and hooked themselves in Pearl’s mane. How had she made roses? She’d been trying to make strawberry pops!

  At least they were pink and sweet.

  Pearl shook her mane and swished her tail to get rid of the roses. Their sharp prickles kept them in place.

  “Bumpy balloons!” Pearl stamped and wiggled her head as she swished her tail again. Stamp-wiggle-swish!

  She looked up. No strawberry pops. No roses, either.

  She was about to try again when someone called her name.

  “Pearl! Quick!”

  It was Tweet. She zipped over the low trees and into the meadow.

  Tweet dived and landed on Pearl’s horn. Then Tweet lost her balance and dangled upside down from her claws.

  Pearl squinted at her upside-down friend. “What’s the matter, Tweet?”

  “Come quick!” the firebird said.

  “Sizzling soup! Is something wrong?” Pearl asked.

  Tweet flipped into the air and zipped off like an arrow.

  Pearl forgot all about strawberry pops and galloped after her tiny friend.

  Pearl caught up with Tweet on top of a hill. “Where’s Olive?” Pearl asked, peering around.

  Olive popped out from behind a big tree. “Pearl, you’re not going to believe this! Just look!” She pointed down at the path winding through Big Rock Valley.

  “Hiccuping hippos!” Pearl said.

  It was another unicorn.

  Chapter 2

  The unicorn in the valley pranced along the path on shining hooves. Pearl couldn’t believe it!

  “Aren’t you going to go down and meet him?” Olive asked.

  “Pickled plums, of course I am,” Pearl said. “But what will I say? I’ve never met another unicorn before. What if he doesn’t like me?”

  Olive gave Pearl a big ogre hug. “Why wouldn’t he, Pearl? You’re the nicest unicorn in the Kingdom.”

  “I’m the only unicorn in the Kingdom,” Pearl said. “I mean, I was until now.”

  “Just go and say hello, the way you would to any friend. We’ll come and say hello later,” said Olive.

  Pearl nodded. Then she took a deep breath and trotted off toward the path.

  Down the hill she went, faster and faster. She couldn’t wait to meet the new unicorn.

  But Pearl was so excited, she didn’t see the patch of mud on the ground.

  “Sour strawberry pops!” Pearl cried as she tumbled down the hill. She came to a stop, right behind the new unicorn.

  The unicorn peered down at Pearl. “Pardon me, but proper unicorns never tumble down hills,” he said.

  Pearl jumped to her feet. “I’m sorry.”

  The unicorn was white, with a blue mane and the longest tail Pearl had ever seen. His horn sparkled.

  “Stop staring,” the unicorn said. “Proper unicorns never stare.”

  “You’re so—” Pearl was about to say beautiful, but instead she said, “I thought I was the only unicorn in the Kingdom.”

  The unicorn laughed. “I don’t live here. I’m looking for an important quest.”

  “Ooh!” Pearl loved quests. She and Tweet and Olive always went on quests. “What kind of quest are you looking for?” she asked.

  “I haven’t found one yet. His Majesty King Primus the Proud sent me to look for one,” the unicorn said.

  Then he looked Pearl up and down. “Do you always wear roses in your mane?” he asked.

  Pearl wasn’t sure how to explain that her magic didn’t always work, so she just nodded.

  “My name is Prince Percival the Positively Perfect Prancer,” the unicorn said proudly. “My friends call me Prince Percy.”

  “That’s a beautiful name,” Pearl said. “I’m just Pearl.”

  “That won,t do,” Prince Percy said. “Unicorns are special, so you need a special name. I’ll call you Princess Pearl Pretty Pants.”

  Pearl looked behind her, confused. “But I’m not wearing any pants,” she said.

  “So, Princess Pearl Pretty Pants, what are you doing today?” Percy asked.

  “I’m trying to make pink strawberry pops for my friends,” she said.

  Prince Percy smiled. “Splendid! Show me.”

  Right, Pearl thought. She took a deep breath.

  Hoppity-toss-stamp-stamp went Pearl.

  Nothing happened.

  Hoppity-toss-stamp-stamp she went. Oh, why wasn’t it working? She stamped her hoof again. Stamp.

  Then down fell two pink strawberry pops right on top of Prince Percy’s nose.

  “Thank you!” said Prince Percy. Then he picked up both of the strawberry pops in his teeth.

  “But—” began Pearl as Percy crunched. “I made those for my friends, Olive and Tweet. Olive’s an ogre and Tweet’s a firebird, and they love strawberry pops.”

  “You can’t be friends with an ogre and a firebird!” said Prince Percy. “It isn’t proper.”

  It isn’t? thought Pearl.

  Chapter 3

  Pearl tried to magic up some more strawberry pops for Olive and Tweet anyway.

  Hoppity-toss began Pearl.

  “That’s wrong for a start,” Prince Percy interrupted.

  Pearl stopped. “What do you mean?”

  “Princess Pearl, unicorns don’t make magic by hopping around,” Percy said.

  “I do.” Pearl tossed her head twice and swished her tail. Wiggle-wiggle-stamp!

  More pink roses tumbled down.

  Now Percy had roses in his mane, too.

  Pearl thought he looked perfectly handsome. But Percy didn’t think so.

  “Oops,” Pearl said.

  Percy held his head high. “The rose goes,” he said. Then all the roses disappeared!

  Pearl jumped back in su
rprise. “How did you do that? You didn’t stamp or swish or anything.”

  “That’s proper magic,” Percy said. “All that prancing and swishing and stamping is just silly. Proper unicorns are never silly.”

  But Pearl loved being silly! It was one of her favorite things. She knew her magic didn’t always work the way she wanted it to. Maybe Percy could help her? “Can you teach me?” she asked.

  “Of course. Watch.” Percy closed his eyes.

  Pearl wondered if he was falling asleep, but after a few seconds, Percy opened his eyes again and said, “Clip, clop, pink lollipop.”

  A pink lollipop popped into view, sticking up from the grass like a huge pink flower.

  Percy ate it. “Yum,” he said. “Much better than the ones you made.”

  “Toppling turnips!” Pearl said. “I’ve been trying to magic up strawberry pops all afternoon. That was so clever, Percy! It just popped up like a flower.”

  “That’s because I did it properly,” said Percy. “Now you try.”

  Then Pearl heard heavy footsteps stomping down the hill.

  Percy paused. “What’s that horrible noise?”

  “That’s Olive,” Pearl said. “She’d love to see your magic.”

  “Show an ogre magic? I don’t think so. If that ogre is coming, I’m going,” Percy said.

  “But you were going to teach me—”

  “Meet me by the big rock when that ogre has gone,” Percy said as he trotted away, his blue mane bouncing in the air and his tail flying in the wind.

  Chapter 4

  As she watched him leave, Pearl wasn’t sure what to think about Prince Percival the Positively Perfect Prancer.

  Olive stopped stomping and slid in the mud down the rest of the hill. Tweet flew behind her.

  “Did we miss the unicorn?” Olive asked. “We brought him a welcome present.” She held up a basket of apples, covered in mud.

  “Unicorn run?” Tweet asked.

  “He had to leave,” Pearl said.

  “What’s he like?” Olive asked as she took a bite of a muddy apple.

  “His name is Prince Percival the Positively Perfect Prancer,” Pearl explained.

  Olive sighed. “Prince Percival the Positively Perfect Prancer. What a perfect name!”

  “He calls me Princess Pearl Pretty Pants,” said Pearl.

  “Pretty Pants!” Tweet squawked, tumbling over on the ground. She giggled. “Pretty Pants…”

  “So, when can we meet him?” Olive asked excitedly.

  Pearl couldn’t think of a polite way of saying Percy didn’t want to be friends with a firebird and an ogre. Then she remembered. “He’s looking for an important quest. And guess what? He’s going to teach me to do proper magic!”

  “You can do magic already, Pearl,” said Olive, confused.

  “Percy says I shouldn’t swish my tail and stamp my hoof and toss my head. He says that’s not proper.”

  “It’s the way you do it, so it’s perfectly proper,” Olive said.

  “Proper magic?” Tweet asked.

  Pearl closed her eyes. “Lollipop,” she said, because that had worked for Prince Percy.

  She opened her eyes. Nothing happened.

  Tweet and Olive looked at each other.

  “Lollipop,” Pearl said again.

  Still nothing happened.

  “Lollipop. Lollipop!” Pearl got so mad that she did a little hop, tossed her head, and stamped her hoof three times.

  A small lollipop fell out of the sky.

  “Yum!” Olive caught it in her hand and looked down at it.

  “Very small,” said Tweet.

  “Still good,” Olive said, taking a bite.

  “Jumping jellyfish!” said Pearl. She hadn’t made the lollipop appear the proper way. She had to have another lesson with Prince Percy if she was ever going to be a proper unicorn.

  Chapter 5

  Pearl was about to head back to Big Rock Valley to find Prince Percy when Tweet flew up and perched on her horn.

  “Splash in pond?” she asked hopefully.

  Pearl wanted to see Prince Percy, but splashing in the pond was one of her favorite things. The water was so cool and clear and the grass that grew around the banks was extra sweet and juicy.

  “Let’s go,” Olive said.

  Olive hopped up on Pearl’s back and the unicorn galloped happily up the hill.

  Tweet flew off ahead of them. Pearl wondered if the firebird would pop out from behind a bush or drop a bunch of daisies on her head.

  When they were almost at the pond, Pearl bounced to a stop.

  “What’s wrong?” Olive asked.

  Pearl flicked her ear. “Can you hear that noise?”

  Olive listened with her ogre ears. “I hear splashing.”

  Suddenly a scared Tweet shot toward them through the trees.

  “Gobble-uns! Horrible gobble-uns!” she squawked.

  Pearl laughed. “That’s funny, Tweet.”

  “Not trick! Gobble-uns

  in pond!”

  Pearl stared at her. “Cackling cakes!”

  Quickly, Pearl, Olive, and Tweet raced toward the pond.

  When they were close enough, the three friends stopped and peered through the bushes at the pond.

  Three gobble-uns had set up camp by the pond. They were splashing around in the water. Usually the pond was clear and sparkling. Now it was the color of old pea soup.

  Tweet pointed with her wing. “Told you!”

  The smell of stinky magic made Pearl sneeze, but the gobble-uns had started singing, so they didn’t hear her.

  “Stinky wand,

  Gobble-un pond!

  Stink up the place,

  For the gobble-un race!”

  “Ugh,” Olive said, wrinkling her ogre nose. “Look what they’re doing!”

  With each burst of stinky magic, the gobble-uns threw more stinky stuff into the pond.

  It was too much for Olive. She jumped out of the bushes and stomped over to the edge of the pond. “Stop stinking up the pond!” she roared at the gobble-uns.

  The gobble-uns laughed.

  “It’s OUR pond,” said the biggest one. “We need stinky water to cook our stinky stew.” He pointed a finger at a pot bubbling over a fire.

  “It’s everyone’s pond,” Pearl said, trotting over to stand next to Olive. Tweet followed, too.

  The gobble-uns ignored her. The tallest one jumped out of the pond and started the others in a song.

  “Go, ogre, go,

  Or we’ll stinkify your toe!

  Go over there,

  Or we’ll stinkify your hair!”

  He raised one arm to throw stinky magic at Olive.

  “Sneaky socks!” cried Pearl. “Let’s go!”

  Olive, Pearl, and Tweet raced away from the pond as fast as they could.

  “Magic?” Tweet asked Pearl.

  “What about hoppity-swish-stamp? Would that work?” asked Olive.

  Pearl was about to try when she remembered what Prince Percy had said. “That’s not proper magic. Proper magic works every time.”

  “Try?” Tweet asked.

  “Blundering bicycles! Make gobble-uns go,” Pearl said.

  She waited. The gobble-un song continued. Pearl stamped her hoof twice and swished her tail, ending with a flick. Stamp-stamp-swish-flick!

  “Yay!” yelled Olive as a horn tumbled from the sky and clonked on the ground. Olive picked it up, filled her lungs with air, put it to her lips, and blew.

  It made the rudest noise Pearl had ever heard.

  Tweet clapped her wings over her ears.

  “Maybe this will scare the gobble-uns away,” said Olive. “You’re so clever, Pearl!”

  “I wish we knew someone who could do proper magic…” said Pearl. Then she remembered—they did!

  “Wait right here,” Pearl said to Olive and Tweet. “I’m going to find Prince Percy!”

  Pearl raced off through the meadow.

  Chapter 6
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  Pearl galloped as fast as she could, straight to Big Rock Valley to find Prince Percy.

  “Prince Percy?” Pearl called.

  Prince Percy poked his head out from behind the rock. “Are you alone, Princess Pearl Pretty Pants? Are you here for your lesson? I can show you how to make a pink cupcake.”

  “Never mind cupcakes, Prince Percy. Come to the pond. I’ve found you a proper quest!”

  “A quest!” said Prince Percy.

  “I’ll explain on the way!” said Pearl. She galloped away from the big rock and Prince Percy followed.

  As they got near the pond, they could hear Olive’s horn.

  Percy flicked his perfect ears. “What’s that noise?”

  “That’s Olive and her new horn,” Pearl said.

  went Olive’s horn again.

  “Come on!” Pearl trotted closer.

  Percy sniffed the air with his perfect nose. “There’s a horrible smell, too.”

  “That’s the gobble-uns!” Pearl explained.

  “Ew! Gobble-uns!” said Percy in disgust.

  “Cackling carrots! Prince Percy, getting rid of the gobble-uns is your important quest!”

  Percy stopped. “I don’t think so.”

  Pearl stared at him. “But my magic isn’t the proper kind! Just come and meet Olive and Tweet.”

  When they found Olive and Tweet, Olive bounced up and gave Pearl a hug. Then she stomped toward Percy, grinning.