The Edge of the Rainbow

On St. Patrick’s day, a green leprechaun hovered along the edge of a rainbow. This was the one day a year leprechauns were able to change into their human forms. Declan Murphy didn’t believe the old stories his Nan had told him as a child. Now, staring at the impish being, he began to recall her words, ‘The only time you can see them is when they’re near their rainbow. Once they transform into their human selves, they have only twenty-four hours to find their true love, who must then join them in their world. If they don’t find their soulmate, they return home along the rainbow alone, until the next St. Patrick’s day.’

This leprechaun must have just arrived. Declan surveyed the creature, taking care not to make a sound. Its skin was a dark, forest green, and it wore a dress of ivy. Its hair was red and long; Declan couldn’t help but feel it was a female, though there were no overtly feminine distinguishing features. She knew of his presence. Though he’d been as quiet as he could manage, her senses were finely tuned to detect a human’s presence. She could not change into her human form while he was there; leprechauns are only able to transform when alone or with their soulmate. She hoped the strange man would continue on his way, though she was almost as curious about him as he was about her.

She could have easily employed her camouflage magic, but consciously chose to be seen. Declan saw her boldness as she turned to lock eyes with him. Kneeling to his knees, he inched forward, his heart thumping in his chest. Everything inside him was rebelling, telling him this was a hallucination. How could this possibly be real? The little green lady smiled and reached out a hand, beckoning him to come closer. As their hands clasped, a shiver of energy ran through the twosome. Her lavender eyes flashed. She dropped Declan’s hand and her body began to vibrate and flicker in and out of existence. 

He almost turned to run. Almost. Then, before him, just where the lady leprechaun had stood, was a tall, gorgeous redheaded human. He gasped. Her smile captured his heart in an instant and he knew his Nan hadn’t been making anything up to entertain him. All these years, he’d wandered through life, searching for someone to love. Here she was. She held out a hand again, this time her slender fingers curled compellingly, urging him to join her. He doubted he’d be able to return if he accompanied her across the rainbow. But, honestly… who could pass up an opportunity like this?! He took her hand and, fingers intertwined, they strolled up the rainbow path, disappearing into the sunlight.