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Chapter 2: Learning and Comfort

As Life Heart awoke she felt a warm embrace surrounding her, she sighed happily and snuggled closer to the warmth. Eventually she opened her eyes to find her vision obscured by iridescent blue fur and the events of the previous day came rushing back to her. Life Heart struggled to hold in her tears, and failed. She began to shake as she hugged Sage Heart more tightly and took in his scent.

The extra pressure woke Sage Heart up. He opened his eyes to see Life Heart snuggling up to him. He gasped as she squeezed him again, "Can't...breathe..."

Life Heart started and released her grip, "Sorry. You're still here!" her face suddenly lit up in a wide grin and she shot up, jumping, spinning and twirling around like a mad hare. Sage Heart just stared at the display before him with his mouth agape. How could this be the same quiet and blubbering unicorn from the previous day?

Dawn had fully broken by the time Life Heart calmed down. She blushed a deep crimson, "Sorry, I just kind of got away from myself there."

Sage Heart just waved her off, "Don't worry, let's just get some food."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Life Heart had another emotional overload as they ate, trying one of every type of fruit of vegetable she could find in the grove. One could have sworn she was about to burst into song had she not been busy stuffing her mouth with food. However, the energy of a unicorn was far from limitless and after eating more than her fill, Life Heart collapsed for a post-meal nap.

While Life Heart was dozing, Sage Heart was standing nearby, his right hand on his chin. "Control the elements around me?" he asked aloud. The star's words echoed in his head as he stared at his hands. "How do I even start?" Sage Heart paced in a wide circle as he mulled this and other questions over in his head: What were the "elements"? What other Care Bear abilities was he supposed to learn? His head spun and he was forced to lean up against a tree with a hand on his forehead as he stared up through the branches towards the sky. A moment later he looked down as the emblem on his belly and prodded it with a finger. Maybe this was where he should start.

Sage Heart placed both his hands over his tummy symbol and tried to feel it. It just looked like an odd fur pattern at first but then he started to feel something? But what? An odd sensation was tingling deep down and he fought to catch it, closing his eyes so he could feel it better. There it was! He could practically see it, a small dot of light, or was it light? Sage Heart pushed onward, trying to reach it. The light grew as he got closer, and closer until.

Sage Heart Bear opened his eyes and looked down. His tummy symbol was glowing bright white. The light began to fade as he stared so he reached out for the strange feeling again. The light grew brighter and Sage Heart filled up with emotions so much he felt he might burst. A bright beam of light shot out from his glowing tummy symbol, knocking him back into the tree. It faded and instant later which left Sage Heart dazed but uninjured as he steadied himself on his feet.

"That's new," he said.

"What was that?" Sage Heart turned his head to see Life Heart sitting up where she had been dozing.

"Something I just figured out," Sage Heart said, "I wanted to see if I could make something happen."

"Can you show me how to do that?" Life Heart stood up and practically bounced over to Sage Heart. Had she been a dog, her tail would have been wagging.

Sage Heart took a step back and breathed deep before he replied, "OK, just calm down a bit first." Life Heart nodded and took a deep breath then let it out slowly until she was breathing normally.

Sage Heart took Life Heart's hands in his own. "First, close your eyes. Now feel, search inside for a... speck of light deep down."

Life Heart scrunched up her closed eyes for a moment then lit up, "I can see it!"

"Good. Now follow it, reach out for it and catch it!" Sage Heart couldn't help but feel excited as Life Heart's tummy symbol started to glow just as his had mere moments ago.

"I have it! It feels so good," Life Heart's body relaxed as she opened her eyed. "Oh-oh my!" she saw the bright glow from her tummy symbol.

"There you go," Sage Heart smiled and lit up his own tummy symbol, "Now just squeeze it out and, whoa!" The beam of light shot out from his symbol, knocking him to his rear again. Life Heart started giggling and accidentally fired off an energy beam of her own, which launched her on to her back. Life Heart's giggles became uproarious laughter for a short time before the light faded and she was left alternately panting and giggling.

"Are you feeling alright?" Sage Heart stood over the still giggling unicorn and offered a hand to help her up, which she accepted.

"Heeheehee, sorry. I just felt so happy all of a sudden," Life Heart said as she stood up.

"Well that's one new thing we've learned, so now what?" Sage Heart asked. Life Heart gave him a puzzled look and Sage Heart continued: "Yesterday, after you ran off, The Great Wishing Star said we would have 'Care Bear abilities' and I think we just used one. What else can we do?"

"Did it say anything else?" Life Heart asked.

"Well... it did say I would be able to 'control the elements around me' but I don't even know where to start with that." Sage Heart sighed, life used to be so simple.

"Control the elements?" Life Heart repeated. "That sounds like elementalism."

Sage Heart blinked several times then tilted his head to the side, "What?"

"It's a kind of magic that humans used ages ago. They drew in mana from the world around them, changing it into magical elements which they conjure and manipulate." Life Heart said.

"What... how do you know this?" Sage Heart scratched his head.

"I've seen humans use it, over a few hundred seasons past," Life Heart said.

"A few hundred- how old are you?" Sage Heart asked.

Life Heart had to stop and think before she could answer, "I don't know, I've seen hundreds or maybe thousands of seasons pass. I remember seeing humans back before they had cities, back when they first discovered magic..." She trailed off, gripping her upper arms with opposing hands.

"Can you show me?" Sage Heart jumped in, trying to forestall another emotion overload.

Life Heart shook her head and looked up at Sage Heart, "Sh-show you?"

"How to do elementalism," Sage Heart said. "The star said I could so I want to know how."

Life Heart brightened up, "OK!" she squeaked, "First you need to know how to feel mana, here." She took one of Sage Heart's hand in both her own and lit up her horn. "Watch." The light from her horn spread out, illuminating hundreds of blue energy lines floating in mid-air. Sage Heart stared open-mouthed at the lines and webs of energy.

"These are aether strings, the conduits of magical energy that flow throughout the world and regulate the flow of mana, which is the source of life energy and magic." Life Heart's blinked away a tear, "They aren't as... charged as they once were." She shook her head rapidly for a moment then continued, "They can form together into massive lines of energy across the planet called ley lines, which can intersect to create nexus points. Magic of all kinds is more potent on a ley line, even moreso on a nexus point. Every unicorn grove was built on a nexus point."

"This is... I mean..." Sage Heart stammered slightly.

Life Heart giggled at Sage Heart's expression, "Just take it in for a moment. I didn't create these strings they're always here, I just made them easier to see and feel. Give it enough time and you can see them on your own."

Sage Heart nodded and took a deep breath, he could almost hear the aether strings humming. He reached out with his free right hand and touched one of the strings. As his hand passed through the aether string he felt a tingle along his finger and shuddered.

"Every living thing has mana in it and the aether strings carry it around to make sure that no place becomes devoid of it. If you want to be an elementalist then you need to learn how to manipulate this mana, both in yourself and the world around you." Life Heart released a breath, the aether strings vanished and her horn stopped glowing. "First, you need to be able to sense mana on your own. Now close your eyes."

"O-OK," Sage Heart took another deep breath and closed his eyes.

"Don't focus inward yet, focus on the world around you. Focus on the trees, on the insects, the birds flying over the barrier. Focus on me, try to feel the life emanating from every living thing. Try to feel the energy humming in the air around you." Life Heart's voice had become softer, almost ethereal as she spoke.

Sage Heart stood still, trying to feel the energy around him for quite some time. At first there was nothing. Minutes passed and for a time there still was nothing.

Then he felt it

It was faint but a there was a dot of magical energy in front of him. It was just a spec but it had the same tingle as the aether string he had touched. Then more lights, fainter than the first, began to illuminate around him. Sage Heart opened his eyes to see that Life Heart's horn was glowing again. He stared at her, opened his mouth to speak several times, then shut it, unsure what to say.

"Sorry." Life Heart extinguished the glow and hung her head, "I thought if I showed you what the energy felt like, it would be easier."

Sage Heart made no reply but took a deep breath and closed his eyes again. This time there was no dot of energy in front of him and it was all inert, but then he began to sense it. It wasn't as prominent this time but he could feel the tingly energy in the world around him. He opened one eye, just to confirm that Life Heart's horn wasn't lit up, then closed it again.

"I can feel it. It's like tingly light all around me," Sage Heart said.

Life Heart lit up, extinguishing her shame in an instant, "Wonderful! Just keep at it, and try to reach out for it like you did with that energy inside you earlier."

As the morning wore on, Sage Heart slowly walked around the area, sensing each tree, bush, and even the grass beneath him. It was as though he were a blind man suddenly gifted the power of sight. Somehow he knew that the tingles he could feel from every living thing had always been there. Only hunger put a stop to his practise and he and Life Heart sought out an apple tree to take their lunch.

Sage Heart ate a dozen apples before he was satisfied, then sat back against the tree.

"Tired?" Life Heart asked.

Sage Heart nodded.

"Keep practicing and you'll get better," Life Heart said.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

As spring turned into summer both Sage Heart Bear and Life Heart Unicorn continued to learn and teach each other. Each day Sage Heart would delve inside himself and try to discover a new ability with their tummy symbols.

Sage Heart didn't let up on learning elementalism either, even though it often left him too drained to do anything except eat and rest by the middle of each afternoon. When the time came for him to choose an element to focus on he chose earth.

It was one day in the middle of the summer season, when he awoke before Life Heart, that Sage Heart decided he was going to visit the humans on the mainland.

Because of the heat they hadn't been sleeping close to each other so Sage Heart was able to slip away without waking the unicorn up, grabbing some breakfast as he walked. Now he stood on the beach that faced the mainland as the sun was just rising over the horizon, taking deep breaths to calm his nerves.

"I can do this," he reassured himself for what had to be the thousandth time that morning. Sage Heart took one last deep breath and reached both his hands out, palms forwards. He gritted his teeth as a patch of brown dirt formed in front of him, finally solidifying into disk just large enough for him to lie on. Sage Heart stepped on to his platform. "Here goes nothing," he knelt down and placed his hands on the platform which moved slowly into the water. It nearly sank until Sage Heart created legs of dirt under the water that walked the platform, with him on it, towards the opposing shore.

The sun had fully risen by the time Sage Heart set foot on the mainland's beach, his platform dissolving without him to keep it intact. He cast a glance back at his island home then turned back to face the human town. "Just a short visit, that's all."

The town itself wasn't too large, mostly a wide paved path with larger buildings on either side and smaller dwellings that spread out on smaller dirt paths from the main concourse. Almost all of the buildings had a sign in their windows that said "CLOSED". Sage Heart walked up to each one and peered inside those with unblocked windows. Most were empty but one of them had people inside setting up chairs and tables. One occupant of the building turned to see Sage Heart and started, dropping a glass tube it was carrying that shattered on the ground. Sage Heart took off before the human could see him again.

Sage Heart slowed to a walk panting slightly, "I think most of them are still asleep." He turned to look up at the building he had stopped in front of. It was an older building painted grey-white with few windows, most of which had colorful displays in them of what looked like thick bound pictures. Sage Heart looked up at the words written over the entrance which read "PUBLIC LIBRARY". Intrigued, Sage Heart entered.

It was eerily silent inside the public library, so much so that Sage Heart tread softly as though he might wake a sleeping beast if he were any.

"Good morning- what?" the voice belonged to a young human woman standing behind the front desk near where Sage Heart had entered. She had short brown hair and eyes and was wearing a yellow blouse and long grey skirt. She and Sage Heart stared at each other until the audible *clunk* of a wall clock snapped them out of their stupor.

"What are you?" the woman asked.

"Oh uh... I'm a Care Bear," Sage Heart grinned nervously.

"What's a Care Bear?" The woman leaned over the desk to get a better look at Sage Heart.

"Well umm... I don't know really. I was a normal bear until spring and then I was like this." He raised his hands and examined first the palms then the backs before he looked up at the woman. "My name's Sage Heart Bear."

"Sage Heart?" The woman cocked an eyebrow. Sage Heart nodded. The woman cracked a smile then gave a short laugh, only for man nearby to shush her which made her flush slightly. "You can call me Miranda. So what brings you to the library today."

Sage Heart scratched his head, "That depends, what's a library?"

"This place. It's where we store books for use by the public, like this," she produced a paperback book from a bin below the counter. "Can you read?"

Sage Heart took the book and opened it, which felt oddly natural in his paws, and skimmed the pages, reading a few lines in his head. "I can, I just don't know what some of these words mean."

"Well I can show you around if you like. What would you like to read?" Miranda stepped out from behind the desk, smiled, and offered a hand to Sage Heart, who only came up to the top of her stomach.

"Well, I would like to know more about the world and humans. I've never been this close to one before," Sage Heart lit up.

"I think I can help you with that," Miranda led him towards the non-fiction sections.

Sage Heart spent the next few hours reading frantically. His mind absorbed knowledge like a sponge, so much so that by noon he had to stop and just digest what he had read while staring up at the ceiling to give his eyes a break. He looked at the stack of books nearly as tall as he was, piled up on the reading table. Units of time, technology, and one book in particular that he had just begun to dig into: a book on medieval swordsmanship.

Sage Heart's stomach gurgled and he looked up at a wall clock, doing some quick addition in his head. He had come in when the small hand was at the 8, so... he'd been here four, hours? He felt dizzy as he reminded himself of all these time units that humans used. He was so used to just marking the days and seasons in his mind.

"I should get home, Life Heart's probably worried." Sage left his book pile on the table as he headed for the front door. There were a few gasps and some children's shouts at his passing, which were shushed by other librarians or parents. There were a lot more people in the library than when he had entered; most of them had assumed that Sage Heart was just a big blue teddy bear that someone had left sitting at the table.

"I'll be back later," Sage Heart said to Miranda, who was at the front desk again.

"Don't you want to borrow any of the books?" Miranda asked.

Sage Heart stopped by the doors and turned around to face her, eyebrow raised, "Borrow?"

Miranda couldn't resist a giggle at the Sage Heart's confusion, "Yes. You can take books from the library back home, as long as you sign them out and bring the back in good condition in a week."

"Oh well... maybe later. I need to get home." Sage Heart waved goodbye and headed outside.

The streets were much more lively. Though the small town hardly precluded what one would call "crowds" enough people stopped to stare at Sage Heart as he first walked, then jogged back towards the beach. All these eyes bore into him as he dodged around a man in a business suit and nimbly dodged a little girl who tried to grab him, starting to cry as he passed and asking her mother for a big teddy bear.

Once at the beach Sage Heart barely had to think to recreate the platform of stone that walked him back the island. As he stepped back onto the island he looked back at the shore. Some humans had watched him depart but now had gone back to whatever they had been doing as though he was never there. He waited a couple minutes, did a little dance on the shore, and was relieved to see that the humans paid him no attention. At least Life Heart's claim about them being left alone seemed to be true.

"Sage Heart!" Life Heart's cry caused Sage Heart to whip around, seeing her standing at the edge of the beach. Her eyebrows were furrowed and her teeth visibly clenched as she dashed over to him and grabbed his shoulders. "Where have you been? I woke up and you were gone! I searched the whole island for you... I..." her eyes suddenly widened, her mouth fell open and she began tearing up again, "I though you had di-disappeared and left me alone!" Life Heart started to sob and then clung to Sage Heart, shaking so hard she slid down to her knees on the sand, "I don't want to be alone, not anymore, I can't handle it..."

Sage Heart couldn't move, it felt like Life Heart might fall apart if he tried. Life Heart looked up and Sage Heart looked down. Her eyes were puffy and red-rimmed and her gaze was far-away. "Life Heart... I'm sorry."

Life Heart's face lit up and she pulled her arms around Sage Heart's legs in a tight hug, "But now you're back, I'm just so... Why didn't you tell me you were going to go I..." Life Heart's face shifted from joy, to rage, to sadness and fear again in only a few seconds. "I feel so... I just feel!" Life Heart held her head, "I can't take it anymore, all these feelings and emotions now I!"

Sage Heart stared at her as she shook and finally fell to the sand and spasmed while she held her head. Then she scrunched up her eyes and screamed, "HELP ME!"

Sage Heart snapped out of his stupor and was on the ground at her side in an instant. He leaned forwards and put a hand on Life Heart's arm, which she instantly swatted away. Sage Heart set his jaw, narrowed his eyes, grabbed Life Heart's shoulders and wrenched her up into a kneeling position. "Snap out of it!"

Life Heart stopped shaking and stared at Sage Heart, her eyes teared up again, "S-Sage Heart, wh-why are you-"

Sage Heart just hugged her, trying to stop her shaking. "I'm sorry, Life Heart. I hate seeing you like this, sad, angry, scared. I want to help you."

"Then why did you yell at me!" Life Heart shouted before she started bawling again.

"Just calm down, take a deep breath," Sage Heart said as he held her at arm's length.

Life Heart drew in a shuddering breath and her bawling stopped. Though tears still leaked from her eyes. She looked Sage Heart in his green eyes, which now softly looked back into hers. Life Heart took another, steadier breath as she finally relaxed. "Oh Sage Heart..." she practically fell forwards into a hug with the bear, who just knelt on the sand and hugged her back. "How can I do this? I haven't felt this overwhelmed since we met." Though her voice was calm, Sage Heart still felt her trembling.

"It's alright." Sage Heart rubbed her back, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have left without telling you."

"I thought you were gone, that you v-vanished like the other unicorns, that this whole new life was a lie I-" Life Heart choked.

"I promise, I won't do anything like that again," Sage Heart said.

They remained there, nearly motionless for several minutes before Life Heart spoke. "What do we do now?"

"We keep learning," Sage Heart stood and brought Life Heart with him. He calmly wiped from tears from her eyes as he stared back into them. "You keep teaching me magic and I'll show you more of this... Care Bear stuff. I promise I'll always be here if ever you need anything."

Life Heart's smile lit up her face, "Thank you, Sage Heart. I'll always be here for you too."

The mood having calmed, the bear and the unicorn headed inland for their lunch. Sitting near some grape vines they plucked a few bunches and idly munched on them in the shade.

"So, what is it like? The human settlement?" Life Heart asked, fiddling with a grape in her fingers.

"It was quiet at first. I didn't really get to see any humans until I came back. But I did get a chance to look in their library." Sage Heart stuffed several green grapes into his mouth.

"That's where the humans keep their knowledge, correct?" Life Heart asked. Sage Heart nodded, his mouth still full. "I've never been in one but I know humans have used them since they had cities. I remember seeing them, poking little sticks into tablets of clay. Now they use books mostly for the same purpose."

Sage Heart swallowed, "Have you ever read anything?"

Life Heart shook her head.

"I could take you there if you want," Sage Heart said.

Life Heart shuddered, "I'm s-sorry but I can't. I'm scared..."

Sage Heart reached over and took her hand in his. "I'll be with you, I promise. We can't just hide forever."

Life Heart popped another grape into her mouth, chewed, swallowed, then took a deep breath. "I-I'll try." Sage Heart smiled, squeezed her hand, then went back to his meal.

The following day in the early morning, Life Heart Unicorn and Sage Heart Bear stood, holding hands, on the beach that faced the mainland.

"Are you ready?" Sage Heart turned his head to face her.

Life Heart took a deep breath and held it for almost a minute before she exhaled, "I... no... but if you're here I can manage."

"Alright," Sage Heart raised his left hand and concentrated, forming the stone disk he'd used for transport the previous day. "Just hold onto me and everything will be fine." He escorted Life Heart onto the disk and they set off towards the mainland.

Life Heart took her first shaky step onto the opposing beach and let go the breath she'd been holding for the last minute of the trip. She scanned the beach, "No humans, thank goodness."

Sage Heart squeezed her hand still in his own, "Don't worry, I'm here." Life Heart smiled and let Sage Heart led her towards the town.

The streets weren't nearly as deserted as they had been the previous morning and a few people stopped to stare at the blue bear and green unicorn walking upright hand-in-hand down the sidewalk. Life Heart kept her gaze forwards as she felt the stares digging into her; she clung to Sage Heart's arm when they walked right past one of them who just rolled her eyes at the pair.

"Here's the library," Sage Heart said as they stopped in front of the grey-white building. Life Heart still clung to the bear's arm as she looked up at the building. Sage Heart pulled the door open and led Life Heart inside.

Once inside Life Heart visibly relaxed. She released her hold on Sage Heart's arm and allowed herself to look around the inside of the building. Shelves upon shelves of books, she'd never been this close before.

"Good morning." The voice made Life Heart jump and she immediately hid behind Sage Heart, gripping his arm, peeking out at Miranda who stood at the front desk. "Who's your friend, Sage Heart."

"This is Life Heart," Sage Heart looked back at the unicorn trying to hide behind him. "Life Heart, this is Miranda."

"H-hello," Life Heart whispered. She managed to look Miranda in the eyes and Miranda smiled back at her.

"Do you need any help today?" Miranda asked. Life Heart shook her head. "If there's anything I'm here to help," Miranda said.

"Thank you," Sage Heart said before he and Life Heart moved into the library.

As they passed by the front desk Life Heart gazed at the book-filled shelves around her, "There's so much. Where do I start?"

"Over here." Sage Heart led Life Heart down an aisle, "I read some books from these shelves yesterday. Let's see how do I find them again?" He tracked his finger along the lower spines of the books, checking each printed number. "I think this is one," he pulled the book out. "Try reading this, it was a big help."

"O-OK," Life Heart opened the volume and began to read as Sage Heart pulled a few more books off the shelf.

Later when the library became more crowded, more people took notice of the two seemingly living stuffed animals seated at a table by a large window and pouring over a small stack of books they had gathered throughout the morning.

One little girl, being led around by her mother, pointed at Life Heart and shouted in a squeaky voice, "Look mommy, a unicorn!"

Her mother shushed her, as did a couple others close by, "It's rude to point," she said. She couldn't help but look where her daughter had pointed. It was indeed a unicorn, moss green and humanoid but the horn and body shape were unmistakably that of the legendary creature.

The mother had inadvertently released her daughter's hand just for a moment, but that was enough for her to get away and dart over to where Life Heart and Sage Heart were still absorbed in their books. Both had been too engrossed in their reading to notice the girl until she spoke again.

"Are you a unicorn?" she asked, staring at Life Heart with wide eyes.

Life Heart looked over from her book and stared back at the girl for a moment. She smiled and answered, "Yes, I am."

"I'm sorry," the mother came forwards and took her daughter's hand. She looked up at Life Heart, her eyes coming to rest on her horn.

"See mommy, she's a unicorn," the little girl said, pointing at Life Heart's head.

"I see," the woman said. "Let's go." She carefully led her daughter away.

"Are you alright?" Sage Heart had set his book down and gave Life Heart a concerned look.

"She could see me..." Life Heart was still staring at the mother and her daughter.

"I can see you," Sage Heart said, deadpan.

Life Heart shook her head, "Humans can't see a unicorn's horn, unless they still believe in...us," she swallowed hard at the end of her sentence, "most children can see us but her mother..."

"Maybe she still believes in unicorns," Sage Heart reached out and took Life Heart's hand in his own.

"Maybe..." Life Heart looked cross-eyed up at her horn for a moment then she turned and looked out the window.

Sage Heart followed her gaze, then upwards where dark clouds were gathering in the sky. "Looks like rain. Want to head home?" he asked. Life Heart nodded.

The clouds overhead rumbled as Life Heart and Sage Heart sped through the city, first walking and then jogging as the clouds rumbled closer. Life Heart looked back over her shoulder and her face paled, for the dark clouds were now a gloomy purple color and two bright red eyes glared angrily towards them. Life Heart shrieked and broke into a sprint as did Sage Heart. Not a moment later a bright purple bolt of lightning struck the ground where they had been standing not two second prior with a thunderous boom that only leant more speed to their feet and hooves.

"What... is...that!?" Sage Heart shouted between pants.

"Run!" Life Heart shouted as they made it to the beach and more lightning danced at their heels.

Sage Heart's mind was filled with fog as he overtook Life Heart and he desperately tried to create their earth platform while running, only to step in a shallows pool and fall to the sand. Without stopping Life Heart poured out her magical energy catching Sage Heart where he lay and lifting the both of them up over the water encased in a field of green energy. Their momentum increased as they arched up over the water and onto the shore of their island home.

Sage Heart rolled onto his back to get a look at the red-eyed purple storm cloud that still chased them. Both sat frozen, fear and exhaustion rooting them to the spot as more purple lighting gathered in the cloud and lanced out at them, only to be stopped in mid air as it struck an invisible wall more than three meters from where they lay.

"The grove's protection, it still works," Life Heart said. Both flinched as the cloud itself seemed to bellow at them and renewed its assault on their home, but each bolt stopped by the barrier.

Instinct galvanized Sage Heart into action as he took Life Heart's hand in his own. "We need to use that beam."

"What?" Life Heart just stared, open mouthed, at him.

"That light beam from our tummy symbols, we need to shoot it at that cloud!" Even as he shouted Sage Heart was able to get his symbol glowing. Life Heart was a bout to protest when another bolt struck the barrier, this one more than twice the strength of the previous.

Life Heart gathered her courage and stood up with Sage Heart. Their symbols glowed brighter and they fired off their beams of light straight into the cloud. The cloud roared in pain as the twin beams of light struck it. It writhed in pain and threw off more scattered bolts striking the barrier once more, but it held. The barrier held as did the beams of light until the cloud shrunk to half its original size and floated away, the glowing red eyes still fixed on Life Heart and Sage Heart as the attack ended. The unicorn and bear barely managed to get inside the border of their forest before they collapsed, completely drained.

They lay there for a good five minutes before Sage Heart spoke. "What was that thing?"

"I... don't know." Life Heart managed to inch closer to Sage Heart and put and arm over his back, "Will it come back?"

"I don't know," Sage Heart said. He rolled on to his side in order to face Life Heart, his eyes softened towards her. "But if it comes back, we'll chase it off again."

Life Heart just nodded, and then fell asleep. Sage Heart following suit soon after.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The brown pig creature stumbled in his sweeping duties as he heard his master returning "B-b-b-boss, what happened?"

The wizard glared at him. "Be silent! They were more powerful than I anticipated, this amulet is useless to me now!" He threw the red-gemmed triangular amulet against a nearby wall, where it crumbled to dust upon impact. "That barrier will not let me inside, but perhaps one of their own kind..." he turned to a shelf filled with spell books. "Beastly! Go and retrieve what was left of that group we got to first. I may need their remains."

"Yes lord No-Heart, shakakakakaka!" Beastly cackled as he ran down the stairs.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sage Heart brushed a yellow leaf off the pages of the book he had supported on a small pillar of earth. "OK," he took a deep breath, his tummy symbol glowed and a swatch of light streamed out into his hands. Sage Heart breathed slowly as the light formed into a long shape and dissipated which left Sage Heart holding a wooden longsword in his hands. He stumbled slightly with the weight of the sword for a moment before he held it securely and read a passage from the book. "Use more of your wrist," he said aloud as he took a couple experimental swings with his wooden sword.

Life Heart sat nearby watching Sage Heart's sword practise. She winced slightly when he stumbled over a tree root, but thankfully didn't fall.

Once Sage Heart stopped to catch his breath Life Heart spoke up, "Are you sure you want to keep doing this?"

Sage Heart smiled and nodded, "Yes. It's fun and I want to learn another way to fight. That purple cloud can't be the only thing out there that's dangerous."

"Maybe..." Life Heart said. As Sage Heart lifted his sword to begin again she raised her voice, "Wait! Can you help me with something first?"

Sage Heart blinked, dissipated his sword and retrieved his book from the earthen pedestal, which sunk back into the ground. "Of course, what?"

"I'll show you." Life Heart took Sage Heart's free hand and led him away. It wasn't long before they reached the top of a short cliff overlooking the sea opposite the mainland. Life Heart stopped some distance from the edge, "We need a home, somewhere safe to sleep when it gets cold."

"Or rains," Sage Heart nodded, released her hand and set his book on the ground. "How can I help?"

"I need your help to create and shape the stone for our home. A cave of some size with some other elements I can add." Life Heart scuffed her hoof on the ground, "Will you help?"

"Of course!" Sage Heart's voice made Life Heart jump slightly, but she smiled and took his hand again.

"Alright," she pointed to the clear area ahead of them, "Create and raise as much stone as you can there. I'll help you to shape it."

Sage Heart nodded and reached out his free left hand. He concentrated as the loose rock hardened into a solid stone floor and then more stone rose from the ground forming a tall rocky hill in front of them. As the hill rose Life Heart channeled magic into her horn and directed it at the forming hill. Sage Heart felt the course of her magic and let her guide his actions. As the rocks rose, a cave formed opening wider than the two friends and growing deeper. Life Heart turned her attention to the ground near the entrance and displaced the rock, forming an empty pool in the rock, deep enough at its center to be up to their chests with a small run-off drain that lead to the cliff and down to the sea below. With the pool finished Life Heart turned her attention upwards to the new plateau. Sensing that his role was finished, Sage Heart stopped and looked up. A pale blue glow emanated from the top of the rock hill and a moment later water began to stream down over the side in a small waterfall down into the pool Life Heart had created, flowing through the run-off into the sea as it became full. For a final touch, grass and flowers sprouted up all around the pool and over the rocky hill.

Life Heart exhaled and fell back, completely winded. "There... all done," she panted.

Sage Heart smiled and helped her stand, "It's beautiful, but..." he looked up at the source of the waterfall, "Where is that water coming from?"

Life Heart smiled, "Magic. Creating fresh water is simple magic and a permanent source isn't much harder." Sage Heart nodded and helped her in the cave, where she immediately sat down.

Sage Heart took a moment to survey their new home, not that there much to survey. The cave was spacious and took a sharp left turn at the back before stopping at a flat dead-end. Simple but functional. Sage Heart walked past the still resting Life Heart, "I'd like to get back to my lesson. Do you want to watch?" Life Heart shook her head. Sage Heart nodded then left.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Winter's approach was much too soon for their liking, but even Life Heart's grove could not keep the changing season at bay.

Life Heart brought and arm load of fruit in and set it on the pile that she had gathered at the back of their home. She directed her horn at the food and shivered as her magic enveloped it. "This should last... me a few months." She looked out at Sage Heart, who was regarding an overlarge pile of fruit with fruit pits littering the ground around him.

Sage Heart lay back and patted his full stomach. "Not as easy as last year," he mumbled. He reached for a handful of berries but stopped and groaned.

"You don't have to do this." Life Heart placed a hand on Sage Heart's shoulder.

"I can't exactly stop torpor, it's part of being a bear." Sage Heart raised a hand to touch Life Heart's own. "I'll still be here."

"But... you'll be asleep... for almost three months." Live Heart took a deep, shuddering breath but said held it in, "I need to gather more food."

Sage Heart watched her go then turned back to the food and sighed, "Maybe later." He stood up, unsteady on his feet, and headed for the mainland.

The late autumn wind sent shivers up Sage Heart's spine as he walked up the beach and through the town with the manual of medieval swordsmanship tucked under his arm. The townsfolk only gave Sage Heart a quick glance or waved in his direction, to which he responded in kind.

Sage Heart entered the library and set the book up on the returns counter. Miranda smiled over at Sage Heart and she retrieved the book. "Here to renew again?" she asked.

Sage Heart shook his head, "No, just a return. I'll be back for it in spring though."

"Oh right, hibernation." Miranda opened the book and retrieved the card from the inside cover, replacing it with a clean one.

"Torpor actually, I don't stay motionless and under the whole time. I wake up from time to time and it's just a long sleep..." he scratched his head. Reading about his own species' biology from a human perspective brought up odd questions for him.

Miranda just nodded a she placed the book on the cart of books to be re-shelved. "How's Life Heart?"

Sage Heart looked down at his feet, or rather and his full stomach that blocked the view of his feet, "She's alright, just gathering her own food for the winter. She doesn't want me to sleep though."

"Makes sense, I wouldn't want to spend all winter alone on an island." Miranda said.

"She can always come into town right?" Sage Heart asked, he looked up at Miranda almost pleadingly.

"Well... she could but I doubt she'll see much. Not many kids because of school and most people just stay indoors unless they're shovelling their walks. Winter gets bitter out here," Miranda mused.

"Right..." Sage Heart sighed, "Well, I'll see you in spring." Sage Heart turned and left the library. Miranda stared at the door he had exited through for a moment before she moved to re-stock the cart of books.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

As is sometimes the case, winter's arrival was sudden. One night there was merely a chill in the air and when Life Heart Unicorn awoke the next day the whole world was white. Life Heart had the foresight to put up a magically barrier at the entrance of their cave home to keep the wind and cold out but still she sat there alone. As she ate a peach she had magically preserved she glanced over at the sleeping form of Sage Heart Bear. It had been two weeks since his torpor began and he had not budged from where he lay, sleeping in his nest of evergreen near a small fire that Life Heart kept going off and on throughout the weeks.

Life Heart had to constantly fight the urge to rouse him, if only to have someone to talk to, but she let him rest with only his soft breathing and the whistle of the wind outside for company. The birds had flown south and any other animals were asleep much like Sage Heart. As for the humans even if Life Heart had the nerve to go visit them on her own they were cooped up inside their homes, when they weren't at work or school, and amused themselves with books or electric entertainment.

Over a dozen times Life Heart had gone to sleep, hoping that she would sleep the winter away with her friend, only to wake the next day. No matter how hard she tried Life Heart could only sleep the night. When she didn't sleep she paced, practised with her tummy symbol, reviewed and tested her magic and even did what exercise she could in the spacious but still confined cave. Cabin fever was setting in but Life Heart held on, it was all she could do.

Another two weeks passed before Life Heart's nerve got the better of her. It was a windy winter day when, after a breakfast of apples, she decided that the isolation was worse than whatever awaited her outside. As she stepped through the magical heat barrier at the entrance to her home the wind threatened to tear the fur from her body. Hastily she threw up a barrier of heat around herself, blocking as much of the wind as she could, and set off for the mainland.

One quick magical flight found her on the frozen beach, the wind even more intense without the trees to act as wind barriers. Nevertheless, she soldiered onwards to the town, hoping she could at least find someone to talk to.

Life Heart wasn't sure how long she wandered the windy streets, the wind and cold kept at bay by her magic, but even without the near whiteout she hadn't seen anyone outside. She wandered up and down the main street and down the dirt roads to the houses, peering in at individuals or families warmed by blankets, watching television, listening to music or reading books. It was all she could do to avoid crying out in envy until she returned to the main road. Was this to be her fate until the winter ended?

When she returned to the main street she just stood there, letting the wind buffet her magical barrier, briefly contemplating just letting the barrier drop. A sudden hand on her shoulder made her whirl around, horn alight ready to deal with the assailant. She gaped, "Sage Heart?"

Sage Heart stood there, shivering but strong, one arm across his chest and the other on her shoulder. "So th-that's where you w-went."

"Sager Heart, I thought you were sleeping, w-what, h-how?" Life Heart stammered, not realizing her barrier was weakening.

Sage Heart had to concentrate to keep his voice from chattering in the cold, "I was, but I couldn't sleep well. I guess even if I had to I didn't feel right just leaving you alone all winter." He shuddered, "We should get back to the cave n-now."

"No, come with me!" The muffled voice caused them to turn around, seeing a person wrapped in thick winter clothing, including a scarf that obscured most of their face.

Despite the cold, Sage Heart was instantly on guard, "Who are you?!" he demanded, struggling to use his tummy symbol.

"Miranda," the woman replied, "Hurry up before we all freeze!" Miranda took Sage Heart's hand and began to lead him away. Cold and tired but willing to trust their human friend, Sage Heart took Life Heart's hand and let them be led away. Life Heart didn't protest, she trusted both of them.

It was but a few minutes later that Sage Heart Bear and Life Heart Unicorn found themselves seated on a loveseat under a large thick blanket as Miranda brought them each a mug of hot chocolate.

"Thank you," Life Heart said, lifting her mug to drink. She yelped as the hot liquid nearly scalded her tongue and almost dropped the mug. Sage Heart regarded his own mug suspiciously before he looked up at their host.

"You're welcome, and just sip it. It will help warm you up." Miranda was out of her usual library attire, the more professional long skirt and blouse, and now wore a wool sweater and sweat pants as she took a seat on an armchair with her own cup of hot chocolate. She sipped at it as she had instructed the other two. "Why were you two out there in that blizzard?"

Life Heart had finished cooling her tongue and sighed, "I was lonely with Sage Heart sleeping so I..." she trailed off, blushing.

"And when I woke up and saw she wasn't there I went after her and... yeah..." Sage Heart sighed.

"Well we all do stupid things. You can stay here until the blizzard dies down," Miranda offered.

"Thank you, Miranda." Life Heart went back to sipping her hot chocolate. "But how did you know we were out there?"

"I saw you peeking into my window, I thought I was seeing things but... well I wanted to make sure," Miranda said.

"So do you live here alone?" Sage Heart asked.

Miranda nodded, "I used to be married, but it didn't work out for us. So I've lived on my own since then."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Life Heart finished her drink and her eyes softened towards the woman.

"It's fine. If anything I feel better than when I was married. The city was always too busy for me, but it's nice to have guests."

The next couple hours passed with light conversation as Miranda, Sage Heart and Life Heart swapped stories of their lives. By early evening the wind had died down and Life Heart and Sage Heart took their leave. Before they exited, Miranda passed them a large bag.

"Here, it's the blanket from my couch. Don't worry I have a half-dozen of these. Consider it an early Christmas present. Please come visit me on a warmer day," Miranda smiled at them.

"Thank you, we will," Life Heart said. She and Sage Heart gave Miranda a hug before they set out into the cold.

With help from Life Heart's magic they made it back to their island cave home without interruption. Life Heart sighed as they passed though the barrier covering the entrance to their home. "I guess you'll be going back to sleep," she said.

"Maybe, but not for too long," Sage Heart put a hand on her shoulder. Life Heart turned to face him, a dim light of hope in her eyes. "How about this, we can sleep together and if you want me up, I'll be there for you even if I want to sleep."

"Really?" Life Heart asked, her face brightening.

"Really," Sage Heart withdrew the blanket from the bag Miranda had given them. "I'll be here for you, always."

Life Heart and Sage Heart fell asleep, snuggled together under the blanket.