"Snow Shine, look! There's a horse on the border," Orange Blossom exclaimed. He ran over quickly to see a brown pelted horse standing right on the border! It had a glossy black mane, with huge black eyes, and it seemed to be a she. Snow Shine started to think about the fact that his parents were never with him. What if they had been horses?! But at least one parent had to be a unicorn, because he was.

     "Who are you?" the brown horse asked, "I'm Buttercup," she added. Snow Shine didn't know what to say. If this was really his mother, was it a big deal she was on the border? Orange Blossom stepped forward. Orange is brave, Snow Shine thought, his blue gaze softened in admiration, this horse could be an unknown danger! "Um, I don't know if Queen Penny would approve if I told you..." Orange Blossom replied cautiously. "Wait, you're ruled by a QUEEN?! That must be annoying having someone tell you what to do," Buttercup said, "Us horses are free to do what we want!"

     Reach for the stars, Snow Shine muttered irritably. "Look, you're crossing the horse borders, and you're on our territory right now. We've been told"—Orange Blossom nudged him—"ahem, you must leave, or we'll report to our queen and she'll get a full patrol," Snow Shine warned. Buttercup's eyes widened in surprise. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. I wasn't trying to start any trouble. All my mother said is 'stay away from unicorns'. I didn't know there were borders."

     "I guess we'll let you go this time. Pass on the warning to the other horses," Orange Blossom remarked, and she flicked her tail to Snow Shine. They both turned and started walking away. When Buttercup was out of earshot, Snow Shine said nervously, "You dealt with her so well! I was just as angry as a bear." "It all comes from experience, you'll get it, " she replied with a smile that made him feel like the honey that flowed through the magical rivers. Snow Shine was about to respond when Minty Swirl appeared from the bushes, carrying some berries. "Hope you didn't cause any trouble on patrol. Didn't talk to any horses?" Orange Blossom and Snow Shine exchanged a quick, uncertain glance, and Snow Shine said, "...No." Minty Swirl narrowed her eyes at him in suspicion, and he noticed her gaze switch to Orange Blossom, who was looking at the horse borders. Together, they went back to camp.

＊

     Everyone had a hearty meal after the day's work, and Snow Shine had a delicious, silvery fish. From the border patrol, he felt unusually tired and fell into a deep sleep, unaware of the events going on around him.

     Snow Shine had what he'd call a nightmare: Orange Blossom was gone! At first, she was by his side, but before he knew it, a dense fog had surrounded them and she was missing. Far away, he could spot Orange Blossom's orange pelt, but as he ran towards it, he realized that no matter how fast he ran, he wasn't getting anywhere! "Noooooo—"

     "No one can even get a leaf-scrap of sleep!" Minty Swirl grumbled as she woke up. Snow Shine woke up as well. "Well, what was all the yowling about? Lost your head?!" She let out an amused snort. "It wasn't that," he protested, "Orange Blossom was missing in my dream!" Minty Swirl replied, "Yeah, right, she's right th—" She was cut off by the realization that she was wrong. "That teaches you a lesson, Minty Swirl. Just because you're so much older and experienced doesn't mean you're better than us!" Blueberry Twilight remarked. The other guardians giggled. "Hmmf!" Minty Swirl grumped, and padded out of the den. "If she's gone, we'd better report to Queen Penny," Violet Leaf said.

＊

     "Unicorns of Sunbeam Island, a guardian of ours, Orange Blossom, has gone missing. We must form a plan and take action!"

     Violet Leaf had reported to Queen Penny, and she had called everyone to discuss the issue. "Any starts?" Queen Penny asked. Snow Shine said, "I dreamed that she slipped away without me noticing." "And she looked back a lot at the horse borders yesterday," Minty Swirl added. She may be a thorn in the hoof, thought Snow Shine, but at least she's helpful. "Good," the unicorn queen replied, "We should spread out through our territory and see if we can find her."

＊

     Snow Shine felt his pelt grow warm with happiness when he found out he was sent to the horse borders. He'd definitely find Orange Blossom there! He scampered through the forest until he got there. There on the other side, close to the border, Orange Blossom was chatting with Buttercup. "Orange Blossom?!" he exclaimed. Buttercup and Orange Blossom turned in surprise. "Why'd you come here? Don't you want to stay with us?" Snow Shine asked, sadness and rejection in his blue eyes. She was about to respond when he turned to Buttercup. "And you!! You still haven't learned your lesson about borders!" he spat, his eyes suddenly blue fire.

     Buttercup looked scared, and quickly said, "It was fun, Orange. I'll miss you." Orange Blossom nodded in sorrowful agreement, and staring at the ground, she said, "Snow Shine, let's go."

 ＊

     Back at camp, after everyone had come back, Queen Penny thanked Snow Shine for finding Orange Blossom. He saw Minty Swirl glaring at him. She clearly thought he got credit for her idea. This time, Snow Shine totally ignored her. Who cared what she said? Queen Penny herself had congratulated and thanked him for finding Orange Blossom. Later, Snow Shine had tried to comfort Orange Blossom, her green eyes no longer glowing with happiness. But it seemed all she cared about was her horse friend. Should he be sympathizing? Sure, one of his parents might have been a horse, or they would have always been there for him, but he never knew them. Snow Shine was about to continue pondering when he heard his name being called.

＊

     He was surprised to hear Queen Penny ask him, "You often wonder about your parents, don't you?" Snow Shine had been invited to speak with her, and he assumed this was why. He nodded, and she said, "I know what happened. I could tell you if you wanted me to." After she received his agreement, the unicorn queen continued.

     "Your father was once a loyal unicorn guardian of Sunbeam Island. His name was Blown Water, and we were friends ever since we were students in the student hollow. Just like any other unicorn, he was determined to protect his fellow unicorns." Queen Penny paused, and looked Snow Shine over. "He looked a lot like you, with the same mane, pelt, and determination in his eyes. But his eyes were emerald green and shone like a shooting star." Snow Shine asked, "What about my mother?" The unicorn queen replied, "I will get to that soon enough."

     "As young students, we often played a lot, and I admired his courage. Eventually, we became guardians, and he got his name: Blown Water. I was called Penny Seed. Coincidentally, he was often chosen to go patrolling the horse borders, and one time I went with him. I swore I saw something more than curiosity and excitement in his eyes as he looked at the horses prancing over the horizon. But I didn't really understand it then.

     "Before we knew it, Blown Water was leaving camp without our permission. I, for one, started worrying for him. One day, he pulled me aside to talk to him alone. I found out that he had made friends with a horse, and they talked every day. Later, we went on patrol on the horse borders, and there I met your mother. She had a golden pelt the color of honey, and eyes as blue as the Mirror Bay. Her mane was a white-blonde shade, and her name was Goldie. Never until now have I told anyone what happened, in fear of getting in trouble.

     "About five months later, Blown Water told me that he had asked Goldie to be his mate, and she had said yes. Goldie was expecting—" Queen Penny's wistful memories were interrupted by Snow Shine asking, "What's a mate?" "It's basically your best friend for life, and you have children together. Often mates have feelings for each other," the unicorn queen replied, "Now may I continue?" Snow Shine nodded.

     "Now, Blown Water's new mate Goldie was expecting, and he was away from camp even more often. I felt torn into pieces. I had strong feelings for him now, and I really cared for him also. In fact, the day he told me that, I had wanted to ask him to be my mate. But it was too late. Again, I didn't dare tell anyone, because we'd get in trouble.

     "Eventually, no one ever saw him again. We searched everywhere in our territory, but Blown Water was nowhere to be found. However, we found you—a poor colt crying for his mother. I could tell you were Blown Water's son by the way you shared his features. Rainbow Shine offered to take care of you until you were grown up." Queen Penny nodded good night, and started to settle in her nest.

＊

     Snow Shine woke up satisfied that he finally knew the answer to the mystery of his parents. So one of his parents was a horse! If they'd really disappeared though, he probably wouldn't find them anywhere on the island. Along with this discovery, he felt proud of himself for keeping Orange Blossom away from lingering around the horse borders. She might have taken a horse as a mate instead of him! Maybe that explained why Minty Swirl and Violet Leaf often went out of camp together.

     With excitement for the new day ahead, Snow Shine bounced out of the den, still feeling proud after saving Orange Blossom.