eia swung on her swing from underneath the shade of the large oak tree. I'm so bored she thought to herself. Her silver gauze dress fluttered in the breeze. She glanced around her only to see her Nurse, Nan was carefully hiding a box in her lap.

Leia snatched the box from her and asked, "What is this?"

"Oh nothing much it's just something to keep me cool," Nan answered as beads of sweat dripped down her forehead. She was short and stout woman.

Leia opened the box and exclaimed, "Why it's a box chocolates and it's half empty."

"Give them back Pet, please don't tease."

"They're bad for you and you're already too fat." Leia took a candy and bit it in half. Bored with teasing Nan, she threw back the box back on the old woman's lap and began to pace up and down the garden inside the palace wall.

"Your Highness you'll make yourself sick, come back and sit down underneath this nice shade."

Leia ignored the anxious voice. "I'm bored...bored...bored. The word seemed to fit the secluded garden, the carved stone of the walls, the pitiless blue sky and the tremendous heat which wrapped around them all like a never- ending blanket. Halfheartedly she glanced at the magnificently blaring white palace that beckoned to her with its temptingly cool atmosphere.

Unable to resist its pull she went swiftly up the steps into the archway of the palace. All was dark and cool. Fans whispered through the blanched halls. Another arch at the main entrance mirrored the one through which she had just come held up part of the vaulted ceiling that ran up the full length of the building. Beyond it lay the glaring white of midday. Servants moved softly about, with their embroidered slippers flapping against the tiled floor.

Leia tiptoed past the Queen, Aunt Sankatha's chambers. She tiptoed quietly, but swiftly to the main entrance when Bvoak the doorkeeper stopped her saying, "Princess, his majesty the King wants to see you in the counsel chambers right now."

"Oh tell him I'll see him later O.K. Bvoak."

Out of the shadows, a chubby, small, bearded man stepped out and said," I said now Leia."

"Uncle, I didn't..."

Before she could finish her uncle, the King began to walk quickly to the counsel chambers. Leia scampered after him.

In the chambers, he sat behind his desk. Leia stood in front of the desk waiting to be told to sit down.

"You may sit down Leia. Now you might be wondering why I called you here. Since your parents died in the hunting accident eight years ago, I took you in as my own. As you know, in Kolimant and Komilant culture the daughter of one, who is of the royal family should be married after the age of eighteen. Since you turned eighteen a few weeks ago, I have decided that you should start thinking about marriage. Your Nurse has started making your wedding gown already. Oh yes I almost forgot this."

He lifted up a beautifully carved box and took out a gold necklace, which had the symbols of the twin continents Kolimant and Komilant; and of Rhoan the desert country hanging on it.

"This was your given by your father, my dearest brother to your mother. And please be there tonight. That will be all," he said as he gave her the box containing the necklace.

Leia walked out in a daze. She was stunned. She knew that she didn't want to get married for three reasons; Number one: she wanted to marry for love, but being a princess she would have to have an arranged marriage; Number two: She would loose her freedom; Number three: There was no eligible man within the twin continents who was equal or came close to equaling her status therefore she would be unable to keep her inherited power to rule. If she married the Prince of Rhoan, which was out the question because the Rhohim are considered, by those of the twin continents, as outcasts, she would not be able to rule because she would essentially belong to her husband, who would rule in her stead.

She acknowledged to herself that she had no choice in the matter. Everything was probably already arranged, since her timid little uncle even bothered to tell. She decided that she would try to find out from Nan whom she was going to marry. She found Nan where she had left her.

"Nan do you know who I'm going to marry ?"

"Pet, how am I suppose to know ? I'm only a nurse."

"Nan I know you well enough to know that you know. You gossip with the attendants who attend my uncle and aunt. You give them worthless news while they unwittingly give you the information that you want."

"Ah, dear, don't say such lies. Just because they can't keep from babbling, doesn't mean that I commit the crimes just accused me of."

"Nan! Get to the point !"

"My goodness, you should just take a look at you face. I really don't think that making that face is very good for your looks. And that throbbing vein on your forehead. I pretty sure that that's going wreck that sweet face of yours."

"Nan!"

"Okay…okay… no need to become so fussy. All I know is that you are going to marry the Prince of Rhoan and that you are going to be introduced to him formally, tonight, at the masquerade ball. And…"

I'm not going to marry him even if it means that I have to runaway, Leia thought to herself. She then said stiffly, " Prepare my things for the ball dear."

The day went on quickly and as evening arrived, she found that Nan had decided that she should dress up as a butterfly nymph. She had on a dress that went to her ankles made of gleaming white gauze, which had gold embroidery on the sleeves, and at the bottom of the dress. Nan tied a thin gold belt around her tiny waist. Attached to the dress were two large wings made of clear gossamer silk with gold trimmings. On her feet, she had on tiny white slippers that seem to shine. Her raven black hair was put up and on her head, she wore silver tiara with diamonds embedded in it. The gold butterfly mask, which covered her eyes, complimented her beautiful cream face.

Nan exclaimed, "Dear no one would recognize you. You look prettier than ever."

In the ballroom, Leia tried to figure out who was who. She managed to recognize everyone except for two people. When she was talking with her friend Mirthra when someone bumped into her.

He said, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you."

"Oh it's O.K !" she said. When she identified him as one of the people she hadn't yet figured out who he was, she stared at him full of curiosity.

"Excuse me for asking, but I'd like to know where the gardens are?"

"I'll show you where they are if you want," for at that moment Mirthra had joined up with a group of girls Leia didn't like.

"I'd like that."

They didn't talk much as they went. Leia couldn't help glancing at him from time to time. He had light brown hair that was going blond because it had been bleached by the desert sun. He had a smooth hawk like face and two piercing blue eyes that looked as if they could see like the magnificent eagle. He didn't look much older than herself.

As they walked into the garden he looked at her and asked, "How old are you?"

"Eighteen. Why?"

"I just wanted to know."

"Who are you?"

"That's for me to know and you to not to know."

Remembering that she was a princess, in a stiff formal voice she ordered, "Tell me, now."

He looked at her with twinkling amusement in his eyes. "I can't tell you Miss Impertinence, so please stop ask me that question," he said firmly. "So this is the garden," he said thoughtfully, as he gazed at the wide expanse of trees and flowers, full of wonder. "How am I going to provide her all of this?" he thought out aloud absently to himself.

When Leia heard this, she thought that she was standing beside a madman. She said, "Uh I think I better leave."

"Please don't. I was just thinking what I'm going to do about a personal matter."

"Do you want to go and see the fountain of the three brothers?"

"Sure. I've heard so much about it!"

"Do you live in Kolimant or in Komilant?"

"Neither, I live in Rhoan."

Before Leia could react to what he had said, they were at the most beautiful fountain in the Twin continents. He gasped as he saw the fountain spurt gleaming silver water and exclaimed, "I've heard so much about this fountain and it's majesty, even in my Rhoan. I never imagined it so dazzling. I have made up my mind on what to do."

"What are you talking about ?"

Ignoring her question, he flashed the rings on his fingers in her face and said rather arrogantly, "I'll give you one of my rings if you will just keep quiet and keep that tiny mouth of yours shut. Don't go blabbing about anything I just said. Or even pretend to that we didn't meet."

"I don't want anything !"

"My dear I know how much you need something to support your family so I'll give you this one and I insist that you keep it."

Until then Leia thought she was talking to someone who knew that she was the Princess. She knew that he thought of her as being a common housemaid. Her elegant clothing hadn't made a difference. She didn't know what to say or do until he forcibly took her hand and tried to put a ring on her middle finger. She took the ring, which was on her finger and threw it in his face saying, "You sir are the rudest person I've ever met !"

She then ran away. The young man followed her until he caught up with her and grabbed her arm tightly till it hurt her so that she couldn't run away. He asked arrogantly, " Who do you think you are, to act this way to me and to refuse my gift?"

"Let me go!" Leia yelled as she yanked herself out of his grasp and slapped him so hard that it left a pink handprint mark on his face. She went into the ballroom and lost herself in the crowd. As the young man tried to find her he heard someone calling him, "Sorin, Where were you all this time?"

It was his brother Davvi. Although they were twins, they were looked very different from each other. Sorin had light brown hair and he had gleaming blue eyes, which changed hues with his temperament. Davvi had hair the color of ebony and raven black eyes.

"Davvi I was in the garden and I've decided on what to do about the princess. I'm going to let you have her as your wife. I just met another girl. She's probably a servant girl because she doesn't have any manners but she does have a lot of spunk in her."

"Is she here and what's her name?"

"All I know is that she is here but I don't know her name."

"Can you recognize her? "

"All I can tell you is that she has shiny raven hair and the softest and tiniest hands that I've ever seen. She was quite pale like the others of this country and so small. Only a girl of lowly status could have picked such an indecent dress that revealed so much, for a ball, since the cloth itself seemed to be practically transparent. I'd recognize her anywhere."

"Well it seems like you've decided that I've got to marry the princess. You're awfully lucky that I'm such a kind brother. You owe me big. I guess we'd better tell her uncle."

As Leia escaped into the crowd, she looked at the assembly around her with rage in her eyes. "I… have to… keep calm …I cannot … have a ... tantrum here," she thought to herself. Looking around her fearfully, she decided that she should go to the Royal Maze to think carefully and to release her anger. Her arm was still throbbing. Hiding her arm in the folds of her dress, she serenely walked out, keeping watch for that horrible boy that had attacked her.

She finally reached the other end of the garden, which held the maze. It was getting dark, but she didn't care. She needed to find a place to be by herself and to think and that place would be located at the center of the maze. Taking the turns to go to the center absentmindedly, her mind kept going back to that boy. She couldn't keep his face from appearing in her mind's eye and the sound of his voice from kept ringing in her ears. Reaching the center she fell to the ground and started to cry.

She kept murmuring to herself over and over again, "Oh Lord, please send someone to help me through all of these problems."

Suddenly the air seemed to become hazy and thick. A bright light flashed and everything was still. All that could be heard were two distinctly different voices.

"Mr. Darcy, what's going on? Where are we?"

"Miss Bennet, don't worry. Everything is going to be all right."