Chapter Text
Prologue
Once upon a time, in a faraway galaxy, a proud Quartz royal lived in a shining castle.
Although she had everything her heart desired, the royal Quartz was spoiled, selfish, and unkind.
But then, one winter's night, a run-down Sodalite came to the castle and offered her a single rose in return for shelter from the bitter cold.
Repulsed by the haggard appearance, the Quartz sneered at the rose and turned the blue gem away, but the Quartz was warned not to be deceived by appearances; for true beauty is found within.
And when she was dismissed again, the Sodalite’s ugliness and cracks melted away to reveal her true identity: a vibrant, furious Lapis Lazuli. The Quartz tried to apologize, but it was too late, for Lapis had seen that she was carrying no love in her heart, and as punishment, she transformed the Quartz into a hideous corrupted beast, and placed a powerful spell on the castle, and all who lived there.
Ashamed of her monstrous form, the beast concealed herself inside her castle, with a magic mirror as her only window to the outside world, gifted by Lapis as well. The rose she had offered was truly an enchanted rose, which would bloom for twenty-one thousand years.
If she could learn to love another, and earn their love in return by the time the last petal fell, then the spell would be broken. If not, she would be doomed to remain a corrupted beast for all time. As the ages passed by, she fell into despair, and lost all hope.
For who could ever learn to love a beast?