"But Mom, what if the kids at the new school don't like unicorns?" Emma asked, her lower lip trembling a little.
Mom smiled and knelt down beside Emma's cardboard spaceship, filled with stuffed animals ready for an intergalactic move. "Oh, honey-bunny," Mom said, "There will be at least ONE kid who loves unicorns as much as you do. I just know it!"
Emma wasn't so sure. Moving to a new house in Washington meant a new school, and a new school meant new friends. And what if they thought unicorns were silly? Emma loved everything about unicorns - their sparkly horns, their rainbow manes, and their magical powers. She even had a secret hideout she called the Magic Rainbow, where she pretended to ride unicorns through the clouds!
On the first day of school, Emma clung to Mom’s hand as they walked up to the big, shiny building. It looked like a spaceship itself! Mom gave Emma's hand a squeeze. “Remember what I told you? Look for the kid with the sparkly notebook or the unicorn shirt! That's your new friend!" She pointed to a colorful mural near the entrance. It showed kids painting, playing, and reading. "Look! It even HAS a spaceship in it, just like yours!"
Emma giggled. Mom always knew how to make her feel better! She took a deep breath and walked into the school. The halls were bustling with kids, but Emma didn't see any sparkly notebooks or unicorn shirts. Feeling a bit shy, Emma went to her classroom and sat at a desk by the window. She peeked inside her lunchbox. Mom had packed unicorn-shaped sandwiches!
Suddenly, Emma heard a tiny voice, "Those sandwiches look delicious!" It came from a little girl with bright, curious eyes.
Emma's eyes widened. "Did you...did you just talk?" she whispered.
The girl giggled. "Silly, of course I talked! My name's Luna. What's yours?"
Emma, remembering Mom’s words, took a chance. “I’m Emma, and I… I really like unicorns!”
Luna's eyes sparkled. "Unicorns? I LOVE unicorns! Do you think they like space travel?"
And that's how Emma and Luna became the best of friends. They spent their days drawing pictures of unicorns in spaceships, building rocket ships out of building blocks, and reading stories about faraway planets. Emma learned that Luna was a bit shy too, but that she loved adventures just as much as Emma did.
One day, Emma decided to share her biggest secret. "I have a pretend place called the Magic Rainbow," she whispered to Luna. "It's where I ride unicorns!"
Luna’s eyes widened. "Wow! Can I come too?"
Emma nodded excitedly. "Of course! We can even fly to a new planet on our unicorns!"
And so, they did. Every day after school, Emma and Luna would meet at the Magic Rainbow, their imaginations soaring as high as the spaceships in their drawings. They discovered new planets made of candy clouds and rode on comets with tails of stardust. They even met friendly aliens who, surprisingly, also loved unicorns!
As the weeks passed, Emma realized that moving wasn't so scary after all. She had a wonderful new friend, a school that felt as exciting as a spaceship, and best of all, she had her imagination, which could take her anywhere she wanted to go! And every time she felt a little homesick, she knew that a trip to the Magic Rainbow with Luna would always chase those blues away. After all, home wasn't just a place; it was the feeling of friendship and the magic of believing in something wonderful, like unicorns soaring through space!
