Midnight
Interlude
Tale As Old As Time
"No one could ever, ever, love me!"
Once upon a time, the light one and Queen of the animals lived at the edge of the forest in a shining castle, surrounded by protected zones where animals could live in peace. After the death of her mother, the dark one, the light one waited for the new dark one to claim her as his own.
But despite his power giving him everything that his heart desired, the new dark one was spoiled, selfish, and unkind.
One night, the light one came to his door. She offered him a single rose in return for shelter from the bitter cold outside. Repulsed by the she imp's sickly and scarred appearance, he turned his daughter away not knowing of her true identity. But she warned Durza never to be fooled by appearances, for beauty is found within.
When he dismissed her again, she revealed her true identity as his counterpart. Her feeble nature melted to reveal the powerful lion Queen of the animals. Knowing he would be more powerful in her presence, Durza tried to apologize, but it was too late. She had seen that there was no love in his heart for her.
Heartbroken, the beast turned away from him and retreated to her kingdom and the dark castle. Blaming herself, her illness and disability, and her damaged body and mind for the rejection of the dark one who was supposed to love her and her own biological parents, Goldenstar concealed herself within her kingdom and the dark castle. Ashamed of her broken form, she covered every mirror in the castle.
The blue fairy and those in the noble class began to spread lies about the benevolent light one, so that mankind would also see the imp as nothing more than a monster. She started to deeply distrust humanity and began to lose both her connection to the human nature she once had and her own sanity.
The rose that she had been given from that old peddler woman she had helped, which was also the same rose she had tried to gift to the dark one became an enchanted rose. It would bloom until her two thousandth, one hundredth birthday. If she could convince a dark one to love her and become her parent, and to love them in return by the time the last petal fell, she would have the chance of having a parent. If not, she would be doomed to remain alone for eternity and to completely lose her humanity.
As dark ones came and went without claiming her and the centuries passed, Goldenstar fell into despair and lost all hope.
For who could ever learn to love a beast?