Izabelle Polaris was a very unusual girl. A very unusual girl indeed. The sort of person you couldn't possibly dislike.

She was born somewhere in the mountains between India and China.

Somewhere.. Somewhere not quite on the map...

Her parents were Peace Pilgrims, that is, they were 2 of the kindest people one could possibly ever meet. They had been travelling around the world by foot for over 15 years when Izabelle was born, spreading the message of peace and goodwill to those they encountered on their journey.

The story of her birth her first weeks on earth, are really quite strange. Even her parents were quite blissfully unaware of what really happened back then. You see, just 2 months prior to Izabelle birth, her parents arrived at a small isolated village, half way up a little mountain. No signpost announcing the name of the village, just an old dirt path that eventually lead them to it's centre...

There, they met a group of most welcoming men and women, whose ages were quite impossible to fathom..

Unable to communicate by any common language, and even unaware which geographical country they were actually in, it was here they decided to stay for the birth...

Little did they suspect, that this small village would have such a major impact on the future of their soon to be born child...

The mountain stream gurgled downward toward a distant sea. Izabelle came silently into the world, and was placed gently at her mothers breast. Her parents lay side by side on the grass, happy that their child had seen first light in such natural surroundings. Izabelle, a child of nature, of love and of innocence.

Izabelle smiled at the world.

Meanwhile.. back at the village, a festival was under preparation... The finest fruits in season were placed on a large round table next to the ancient well at the village centre...

Indeed, fruit is all they had eaten since arriving, and it seemed to be the only food the villagers ate....

When the trio came back down into the village, Izabelle cradled in her mothers arms, all the villagers were present.. Well.. Actually.. Not quite all the villagers..

They all gathered around to greet the new born child..

And this, this is where the story really begins..

You see.. Everyone was talking and admiring the baby.. only.. Her parents were completely unaware of what was being said.

Suddenly, In the midst of the festivities, a man appeared..

Unlike the other villagers, he wore a deeply wrinkled face, and carrying bags benieth his eyes, looked more like he was in his early fifties, than the 30 odd years he probably carried.

He came bearing a large cake.. His sudden presence seemed to disturb everyone.. Heated words were spoken, the man threw his cake on the ground in anger, and shouted toward the child.. The crowd was silent, and in another burst of rage, the man shouted new words in the direction of the child...

Then he left the village, as mysteriously as he had arrived. The crowd was silent for a while, seemingly uncertain and very upset.. Then one of the village men stepped forward, and uttered some words toward the child. These words soothed the crowd.. And after a while, seemingly resigned to what had happened, the villagers continued with their festivities..

Well.. What really happened back then?

Hmm.. You see.. This village was by no means ordinary.. Everything about it was special, and if you were to go searching for it, you might never find it.. Never, unless you were pure of heart, and as loving and open as Izabelles family was..

This is what happened:

As the villagers were all gathered around the newborn, they each gave her a gift.. But these were no ordinary gifts.. They were gifts of intelligence, sound health, innocence, faith, beauty, courage, long life and such.. Her destiny..

The man who appeared during the festival, was, how can I say, the "wicked witch" of the story.. Jealous of the child's clean start to life, he had wanted to ruin things by offering his sugary chocolate cake to the parents, but the villagers knowing just how bad cakes really are, had refused him to do so..

In his anger, he thrust his cake on the ground, and announced that the child would only live until 20, and then die.. Silence descended upon the crowd, but nothing happened, as the child had already been granted a long life, and such a spell once spoken, cannot so easily be undone...

Well.. Realising that his spell had had no effect, the man became even angrier, and said, "in that case.. When she is 20, everyone else in the whole wide world will die!".. That said, he stamped his feet, and left the village centre, returning to his home where he had left his curry cooking.

The villagers whispered silently amongst themselves, then finally a lady stepped out from among them, and announced:

"The spell of our deranged brother is very strong, very strong indeed.. but.. but.. It will not be the case that the whole world will die.. they will just..." she paused silently as if lost in thought..

".. they will just.. mmm.. they will just fall asleep".

"Ahh.." sighed the crowd.. And resigned to destiny, they all continued the celebration of this most wonderful being.. Izabelle..

Well.. 18 years passed, and Izabelle and her parents were settled in a small town in the western world..

Izabelle was naturally doing well with everything.. She was a charming being, intelligent, witty, good-natured and very very beautiful. Since being weaned off of her mothers milk, she had eaten solely organic fruit.. A habit her parents had adopted since arriving all those years ago at that little lost village.

She was one of those people that everyone wanted to know.. She had time for everyone, and everything she did, she did well.

Thus it was, that Alphonso the business man, very rich indeed, spied her one morning, out walking to her job at the kindergarten. He was a sly person, someone who always got what he wanted, and paid little heed to his methods..

He watched her from the window of his favourite café, where he sat drinking his morning coffee, and smoking a big fat cigar..

.. Well.. How he managed it is really quite unclear, but after several weeks, he finally managed to meet her, and much as one might have thought otherwise, she actually liked him.. Well.. you see.. She saw the good in everyone, and even though he wasn't a particularly pleasant character, she knew that he had great potential to express truth, simplicity and love..

He did all he could to please her, bringing her tropical fruits from distant lands for her to try, and influenced by her cleanly habits, he even stopped smoking and drinking..

But his possessiveness of her was really quite overpowering.

It is difficult to say why she married him. Some say she was under a spell, and little did they know how right they were.