by Lady Piper

I dream of rain
I dream of gardens in the desert sand
I wake in pain
I dream of love as time runs through my hands

Jonathan of Conte, Crown Prince of Tortall, was powerful, rich, handsome and charming. He had women throwing themselves at him all the time. And yet, he was unhappy and discontent with his life. Fore his love was lost to him, lost to him and far away in the desert…

I dream of fire
These dreams are tied to a horse that will never tire
And in the flames Her shadows play in the shape of a man’s desire

Even in sleep he could not escape her. She followed him, a silent ghost in the dark of his mind while he rested, and when there were vivid images flowing into his head, she was always brighter. It had been his fault, that much he knew. He shouldn’t have expected her to be like the other court ladies who adored him, would have done anything to please him. He of all people should know that Lady Alanna was not like other court ladies…

This desert rose
Each of her veils, a secret promise
This desert flower
No sweet perfume ever tortured me more than this

The window he peered out of had veins of water running down it, blurring his view of the Royal Forest and the bland, gray sky. Alanna would hate this weather, especially if she had to ride in it, he thought sadly. How he missed her. He watched lightning strike a tall tree in the Royal Forest, half dead as it already was, it fell to the ground, crippled, destined to only be some home to a squirrel or mouse, leaned on by the occasional tired hunter. He felt like that tree; hollow, only a shadow of life left.

As she turns
This way she moves in the logic of all my dreams
The fire burns
I realize that nothing’s as it seems

It seemed that the lightning was the death of his father, striking hard with purpose. Alanna had given him the chance to live again in the first place when she saved his life, several times actually; he grew strong and tall, but when she, his love; his fire, left him, he was helpless, though he could put on a strong front, that guise could easily be won over.

I dream of rain
I dream of gardens in the desert sand
I wake in pain
I dream of love as time runs through my hands

He had never perceived losing her like he had. No, Jon had forgotten his one-time squire, one-time best friend, and one-time lover had a mind of her own; didn’t like not being in control; certainly wasn’t going to do anything without really thinking about it. He had been stupid. Extremely stupid.

I dream of rain
I lift my gaze to empty skies above
I close my eye, this rare perfume
Is the sweet intoxication of her love

And he had never thought that he could feel the way he did now. Torn in half, as if the other half of him was with in the desert with Alanna, where he could see her and feel her near him. No, the Prince had never had his heart-broken, and now he knew. He wished he could go back in time, change the way he had acted. But wishing helped little, because wishing would not bring his Desert Rose back…

I dream of rain
I dream of gardens in the desert sand
I wake in pain




I dream of love as time runs through my hands

Library

Tortall Palace

mwj

Story text © Lady Piper
© Lady Star