Title: Desert Rose Prologue: The Nightmare's Beginning

Author: Sorceress Fantasia

Pairing: 1+2, 3+4, 5+M, 5+?, 13x6

Warnings: Slight angst, evil Relena and Hirde, unsympathetic Trieze, OC

Archive: http://www.gwaddiction.com/levlair/index3.htm

Disclaimers: I may own a lot of things, but the GW guys aren't included. So yeah, the characters do not belong to me. I'm just borrowing them for a little fun.

Once upon a time, there was a king called Treize. He had a wife, Zechs, whom he loved dearly and a son, Duo. Treize loved both of them more than he did so himself, so when Zechs passed away, he was devastated. All the love he had for his dear wife was now showered upon Duo. Therefore, he felt that his son should get only the best things in life, and he gave his son everything he wanted. However, the death of his beloved caused him to be afraid, not to mention burn a fuse in his mind, that he would lose Duo the way he lost Zechs. He wanted to keep his son safe and sound forever. So, a castle was built in the middle of the desert under his orders.

This was no ordinary castle. It was constructed by the best architects and designed by the one of the best interior designers in the entire kingdom. Apart from that, it also had a spell cast on it by the powerful sorceresses Relena and Hirde. The spell caused the castle to disappear and appear at random spots in the desert, and it was seen only as a mirage. The only way to get in was to break the spell with your own magic. Moreover, the castle was protected by many mystical creatures that could break all your bones if you tried to get near. The natural barrier and protection of the desert made it even harder to get into the castle. And so our dear Prince Duo was locked up in the castle.

Prince Duo wasn't happy with the plans. Not a bit. In fact, he was so bitter and upset about it that he tried escaping on several occasions. But all were futile attempts. Finally, King Treize decided to have the two sorceresses cast a spell on his son as well. The nature of the horrible spell was that Duo could never leave the castle that was meant for him. Otherwise, he would die by the next sunrise. It was cruel, but it would at least keep the prince in the castle. And now, he thought, he would be able to keep Duo by his side forever. Yet, King Treize never expected the way things would turn out…

Sorceress Fantasia @ 18th April 2000

Last revised 4th September 2000