It has been many moons since the sinking of the Rainbow Isles and just as long since Dapple, Caltara's dolphin friend had returned to the reefs which he and Caltara played at. He and Caltara still met up together and talked as they swam together, not to mention that her lovely Egyptis was growing ever beautiful every day.
One of the days he spent on his own Dapple decided to go exploring. He swam much farther than usual and when he surfaced for air he realized how dark it had become and that he had no clue where he was! He heard voices and dove under swimming towards the voices. Surfacing again he was confronted by a large boat docked on the edge of an island and a group of dirty men parading on and off the island with loads of things they had found abroad.
One man was leaning against a tree with a group of men crowded around him. He was boasting about finding a cocoon like thing in the brush. Dapple swam closer and gazed up onto the shore to see. Sure enough it was what he'd thought it was, one of those small Egyptan cocoons. The man smiled and pulled out a switch blade.
"Let's cut it open and see whats inside. Ain't no butterfly!" That got a roar of laughter from his friends. Dapple however knew what was inside and didn't like the idea of this man cutting it out. He slaps his tail against the water getting the men's attention from the sound [and to mention splashing them]. The man with the switch blade dropped the cocoon and as if it knew where it was going rolled straight to Dapple! With a gentle nudge of his long dolphin snout, Dapple scooped up the cocoon and began to swim away. From behind him he heard the men shouting obsecinities at him. He only smiled and kept swimming until he was safely away from them.
He finally found a place to rest, in a large cove near the old reef that had once surrounded the Rainbow Isles. He smiled and rolled the cocoon onto the shore. Resting his head beside it, soon he had fallen asleep.
After a while he awoke to the sound of something moving along the shoreline. He looked up to see a beautifuly coloured Egyptan walking towards him. The Egyptan gave off a soothing aura.
*So you are the one who rescued this cocoon from those awful humans?* Dapple nodded slowly and the Egyptan continued. *Well then. I would like you to keep this cocoon as a reward and a token of my appreciation. Also...* He trailed off and closed his eyes seeming to concentrate. Then in an instant there was a brilliant flash of white light and floating above the water appeared a lovely carousel. Dapple gasped, he'd seen magic before but the carousel was beautiful! "Thank you." Dapple said softly. The Egyptan nodded. *Nothing of an unpure heart will be able to see or touch the carousel and it is a gift for your Egyptan.* Once again the Egyptan nodded then turned and vanished all together.
So Dapple lifted the small cocoon with his tail and set it upon the carousel. He'd go to tell Caltara of his find as soon as the Egyptan hatched.
...To Be Continued...
Background from Unicorn Universe
*Tons of credit to my Cousin, Mav, for being so unbelievably kind and sharing his link scheme with me*