Author's Note: I do not own any of the worlds, terminology, or characters that are found within the world of Ragnarok Online. They belong to Lee Myung-Jin and Gravity Corp. However, all original characters and ideas are my own creation.

The Roses of Legend : Prologue

It was a cold night in the middle of winter. The kingdom of Rune-Midgard would be celebrating tomorrow, as a new king was to be appointed. However, no matter how much the rest of the kingdom would be celebrating when the sun rose in the morning, at the moment two love stricken souls were filled with grief.

The snow was falling all around the young couple as they held each other in their arms. The young man sighed and softly lifted the girl's chin. The street lights reflected her tears, making her face glow with a sorrowful radiance.

"Please don't cry, Melody," the young man said, smiling slightly in an attempt to cheer the girl up. He turned and looked around the small town. The couple was in Lutie, the town of eternal Christmas and home of the giant Toy Factory. Here, every day of the year was filled with presents, caroling, and sleigh rides. The town was almost always filled with tourists.

In the middle of Lutie there was a giant Christmas tree that was on display every night of the year. It was under that tree that he first met the woman he loved, and it would be cruel irony that it would be near the same tree that he would have to say goodbye.

"But Aelros, once the sun rises I know that we'll never be together again. You probably won't even remember me after tomorrow," she sobbed quietly.

"That's not true and you know it. I will always remember you, and I will always miss you greatly." He hugged the girl tighter, listening to her attempts to stifle her sobs. He ran his hand down the back of her head, stroking her long, brown hair softly. He was Prince Aelros, and this time tomorrow he would be known as King Aelros. This would mean that he would not be able to be with his love, Melody, anymore. Rune-Midgard had chosen to follow the much heard of law that royalty should only marry royalty.

Melody hated this law. However, she knew that this day would come ever since she first found out that he was a prince. Still, she hadn't expected the day to come this soon.

"If only I was a high-ranking priestess, like that Kamiya is," she mumbled with a hint of jealousy in her voice.

"Kamiya? We've been over this," the prince sighed. "The royal family has always had the best healers to care for us. Kamiya is nothing more to me than a family friend," he explained.

It was true that the royal family had its own supply of priests. They helped take care of the family and servants, but they were not servants themselves. Kamiya was the youngest of the royal priests, being a year older than Prince Aelros. Because of their closeness of age, they were often seen together in public.

"Maybe I'll become a priestess. I know that I'll have many years of training, but if I can get good enough, maybe I can become one of the royal priestesses," she said desperately.

"Heh, that would be quite a challenge, seeing as how you are still just a novice," he said, ruffling her hair slightly.

At this comment, Melody pulled away from him.

"So, you don't think I can do it?" she asked defensively. While it was true that she was still just a novice and had not made up her mind about her job path, she felt that she could more than handle the physical and mental training she'd have to endure.

"No, that's not it!" the prince explained quickly. "It's just . . . I don't want to get my hopes up. I don't want to be waiting on a wish that will never come," he added quietly. This was not how he had hoped their potentially last meeting would go. He looked up at the sky and realized it was getting to be early in the morning.

"It's getting late, Melody. I'm going to have to go back soon . . . " His voice trailed off into nothingness. The pain in his heart was making his voice quiver, and he didn't want to make things any more sad than they already had to be. However, he knew that there was nothing he could do to stop the pain in their hearts, so he sighed and accepted it, pulling Melody into his arms once more.

Melody hugged him tightly, closing her eyes and biting her lip gently as tears began to once again stream down her cheeks. Aelros embraced her tightly. He did not want to let her go, but he knew that soon enough, he would have to.

"Before our time together is up, there is one thing I want you to have, Melody. I found this one day while I was training, and it made me think of our love. And there's no one I'd rather give this to than you." He reached into the pack hanging off of the side of his waist and pulled out a beautiful rose.

"This is . . . !" Melody gasped quietly in awe. She knew what the rose was very well. The bloom was a deep scarlet red, the color that most people associate with passion. The stem was long and sturdy, as if the flower would not crumple or bend even under intense pressure. With the snowflakes falling lightly on the petals and then melting into small drops of water, the flower looked even more beautiful than she'd ever seen in any picture.

"Aelros, this is a. . . . " her voice trailed off, trembling slightly.

"So you've heard of it before. This is called a Witherless Rose, and it's one of the roses of legend. Its bloom will never wilt, so it is used as the symbol of everlasting love. As long as you keep this rose close to your heart, you'll know that my love for you will never die." He placed the rose in her hands and leaned close to her face. She really did look beautiful, and he wished more than ever that he didn't have a trace of royalty in his blood.

Melody looked into his deep brown eyes. She knew that he was leaning close to her lips and she knew what was going to happen. The kiss came before she could take a breath in preparation, but she didn't pull away. This was the man she loved, the man she'd probably never see again. This kiss that they were sharing she'd never stop. She knew that she would never forget the way she felt as he placed his lips on hers for the first (and possibly last) time. She'd also forget neither the look on Aelros' face when the sun rose an hour later, nor the pain in her heart when they said goodbye for the final time and he crushed the butterfly wing that sent him home to Prontera.

Once he was gone, she collapsed in the snow, sobbing loudly until her voice became dry and hoarse. Clutching the rose that Aelros had given her, it was then that she made up her mind. She had decided that she was going to do whatever she could to make sure that she would spend her life next to the one she loved.