Prologue

In ancient times, a heroin known as Pandora began her quest to become one of the gods. She befriended the goddess Artemis and became her closest confidant. As she overcame the tasks required to become a goddess she met a selfish, vile man who went by the name of Antonio, and whom she fell deeply in love with.





As she completed her heroic acts, she was offered the elixir of the gods to make her immortal. But she was torn between her love for her new friend Artemis, all good she could do for the people of the world as a goddess, and her love for a man who only contributed nothing but a dark disease to the world.





In the end, she chose to live a mortal life so she could be with the one she loved.





Artemis was sorrowful at Pandora's decision, but she understood the want for a small amount of mortality. And so she gave her a gift of great power. A box. A box that possessed the ability to turn its contents, whatever they might be, into something immortal. So Pandora was given the box and felt such a great love for her greatest friend, the world, and Antonio, that she put her immortal love into the box, and left to be with her love.





A few years went by and Pandora had no contact with Artemis, as the gods were not to interfere with the lives of mortals. And she had been living contentedly with Antonio who treated her between poorly and fairly. But she was happy to be mortal and was at peace with her choice to stay that way, until the day when she found her lover with someone else.





She ran as quickly as she could to get away from her betrayer. She ran to her home and found the box and ran to a secluded place where she poured all of her heartbreak into the box. But the box needed balance and it took her hatred along with the pain, because her love had been greater then only her heartbreak.





After this had been done, Pandora was left with nothing. She could no longer become an immortal, Artemis wasn't allowed to have any contact with her, the one she loved was the object of her now immortal hatred, and she had no reason left to stay in the world.





Artemis watched from afar as her best friend began to die. Her heart ached for her dearest friend. She did not want to see her friends time stop and watch the world go on without her. She was still needed. She still had a purpose.





As Pandora lay down on the ground, face dirtied by her tears and with the box wrapped in her arms, a tingling sensation started in her toes. It started moving up her body, towards her head. It wasn't unpleasant, just strange. Then she realized what was happening and closed her eyes and wept for the gratitude that she felt for the friend who had not forgotten her.





Artemis looked up at her friend, who was now a beautiful, strong, grand Weeping Willow tree, and smiled. But, the Willow could not be left here exposed. It needed protection for itself and for the immortal box entwined within the roots. She smiled bigger, she knew just the place.





Artemis could have spotted the O'Henry's pure joyful aura from one hundred miles away. This place was perfect. Ireland. The O'Henry clan.





Happiness was in the air as Artemis stepped out from the dark trees. She stood on the outskirts of whatever the O'Henry clan was celebrating this time, and waited until Roiben, the leader of the clan, spotted her and headed her way.



She stiffly explained about the great tree and the box's possessions, and told him she needed a safe place for the tree to reside. She did not ask, because it was against her nature to be kind to mortal men, but she needed the purity of this clan to protect her dearest friend until the time came for the box's contents to play into the world, so she told him what she wanted as nicely as she could.



He directed her to the place at the top of an overlooking hill and told her to put it there. She thanked him and walked up the hill where her friend would spend the rest of her life and hoped that one day a person would find this tree and be worthy to bear the load of the immortal box. As she left she smiled knowing that she didn't need to hope. She already knew.



When the Irish people found the tree in the morning another celebration occurred, for they had been gifted with this magnificent tree from the gods. And plans were made to build a temple around it to magnify the glory of it.



Artemis smiled and went back to watching the world, but always keeping an eye on the Willow. And always listening.



After a couple more years rumors started surfacing about an object said to possess a great power. And object called Pandora's box. Where the rumors started she did not know for certain, but she could guess. Pandora. Out of all the things she could have written in one of those blank paper books. She guessed that Pandora had written of the box, but had never mentioned what was in it, and of course when Antonio had come to her house looking for anything she might have left that was worth even a small coin, he had found the book.

She sighed at the trouble it was to have mortal friends and went once again to Ireland.



As she arrived at the the Temple of Willow, she checked to make sure no one was around before pressing her hand to the tree and with a whispered 'sorry' a circular indentation with ridges covering the middle of it in intricate designs appeared in the bark. She stepped away from the tree and walked out of the temple and kneeling pressed her hands to the ground. After a moment the ground started shaking and the tree slowly started sinking into the ground. After the tree had sunk fully into the ground the stone temple started shaking, the roof collapsed on top of where the newly formed hole had been only moments before sealing it up, and the stone pillars crumbled.



Again she walked into the temple, which she had just collapsed and placed her hand on the ,somehow, whole roof creating the same circular maze in the stone as she had on the tree.



Once this was completed, she stood up and brushed her hands off. And headed for the head of the O'Henry house hold to explain the crippled appearance of the temple and to give a gift, actually two gifts to the young twins of the new leader for the O'Henry clan.



As she left the house and walked into the comfort of the dark trees she sighed "Now, for those rumors..."



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The twins were extremely surprised at the unknown visitors gifts to them. Lilliam the younger sister was sitting in a large wooden chair in front of their big fireplace holding the pocket sundial by its chain and with an intent expression was watching it spin slowly in circles. The elder sister Narcissus, watched as the shiny gold object captivated her sister. Something was wrong.

As the years went by, Lilliam's fascination with the sundial turned into more of an obsession. She carried it with her at all times, sometimes going into town and boasting of the golden object given to her by a mysterious stranger the same night as the temple had been destroyed. She would show it to the curious people and smile proudly. Then she began being suspicious of the curious people, and at first no one was allowed to touch it. Then as she grew more protective, she wouldn't let anyone ever see it, not even Narcissus. At the point when no one was allowed to even think of it, Narcissus who had been carrying the match to Lilliam's sundial, sent hers off to a secret location which would keep it safe from her sister who now wanted the twin to her sundial.

Little is known about what events occurred next, but it is known that Lilliam was so furious with her sister sending away her golden sundial that she left to find it. And never returned to her home........