It was raining. It was raining a lot. Down, down, down came the raindrops, fat and heavy. They fell from the dark overcast clouds that never seemed to wane, intermixing into the warm California soil.

Far above that soil, sat a mansion. The mansion was historic, and was on top of a glorious hill, above and away from the bustling city nearby. The city folk liked it best there; the Cordova mansion always had deep, dark magic flowing in and around it like an electric fence. No sane person ever got close to the mansion.

Deep within the house, sat a room, completely concealed and rarely used by anyone except the occupants, The Cordovas.

Orvis Cordova stood, tall and mighty, peering closely at the rabbit that was chained to the altar. The rabbit, so pure and innocent, would be a perfect sacrifice to his god, The Horned One. He drew his dagger, and plunged it deep into the rabbit's soft flesh. A rush of power enveloped him, once the rabbit had stopped moving. He smiled, and quickly strode over to a crystal ball that sat on and ancient, cobwebbed table. He stuck his face close to it.

A crystal clear image of a teenage girl materialized. Orvis felt a rush of relief. The sacrifice had worked…. Alsa, The Horned One, had heard him. Orvis smiled again, a hint of malice detected in his blue eyes.

He knew that, centuries ago, there had been a pair, a witch and Immortal that had magic. Such deep powerful magic, combined with love, that when harnessed together made them unbeatable and feared by all. They had gotten married by force, a way of forming a flimsy alliance between their two feuding houses, but eventually, they fell in love. Their love was unmatched. Orvis's smile got wider and more malevolent, thinking about what happened next.

To say the two lovers' families were feuding was an understatement. They hated each other to the point where things always got out of hand when they were close to each other. This feud went back farther than time, it seemed. Each encounter between the Ruths and Cordovas left death and destruction as a result.

That night, the Ruths stormed the Cordovas castle, ruthlessly killing whoever got in their way. They had come for one thing, to kill all the Cordovas for not sharing the secret of The Black Ruin. The fight was bloody and long, lasting for at least a day. By the end, many Cordovas and Ruths had been slaughtered, but the biggest upset was that The Black Ruin had been summoned, and Toren Cordova and Spendrella Ruth, the two lovers, were dead.

Orvis stepped back now, out of his thoughts, and looked at the sleeping girl in his crystal ball. She had no idea that she was a descendant from the powerful Ruth family.

"And you'll never find out." Orvis said.

He chuckled, low in his throat, and outside the sky rumbled, and the lighting cracked.

Sunlight streamed through the blinds, aimed right at the sleeping teenage girl in her bed. Tabitha woke up with a flinch, startled by her dream. She propped up on her elbows, looking around, and let out a sigh of relief. She wasn't stuck in a crystal ball. Tabitha Ruth slowly got up, taking a second to stretch, and went over to her vanity set. She looked at her reflection, still reveling in her dream. It had been scary. Suddenly, she got up, thinking of something entirely new.

"This is the last day of school."

A wave of excitement washed over her, and she slid open her closet, searching for something to wear.

Alexander Cordova sat on the edge of the railing of the deck, staring off into the ocean and East Beach. He breathed in the salty lick of the air, and tried to ready himself. His father was coming soon and-

There was a sharp knock at the door. Alex, reluctantly leaving his favorite spot, slowly strode over through the open house. He reached the foyer just as the door flew open. A tall, pale man stood before Alex, clad in black.

"Well?" the man asked, raising an impatient brow. To enter any one of the Cordova houses, a Cordova needed to invite you in.

Alex cleared his throat, and forced a smile. "Welcome Father."

He stepped back, allowing Orvis to come in, grabbing Alex by the shoulders.

"I have something that is of monumental importance."

Alex inwardly groaned. By the sight of Orvis's excited eyes, he could tell it wasn't good. Still, he followed Orvis to the bookshelf that stood on the far end of the living room. Orvis swung the bookshelf back, revealing a secret door that led down to the basement. Keeping that fake smile, Alex followed his father down…

Tabitha bounced out of the heavy wooden doors, smiling as the wind tousled her long, wavy, cream-colored hair all around.

Free at last! She thought.

Her mother, Jane, stood near the curb, shielding the sun from her eyes as she saw her daughter.

"Hey mom." Tabitha said as she reached Jane.

"Hey Tabby, sweetie." Jane held out her hand, and checked her watch. They headed through the parking lot, packed with overjoyed teenagers and teachers, looking around for Jane's car. Minutes later, the top-of-the-line gray Jaguar came into view. They wordlessly got in, and Jane sped off. The scenery whipped by them as they drove. Tabitha had to break the silence.

"What happened to your old car?" she asked, referring to the sleek black convertible her mother used to own.

"Oh, I still have it." Jane said, patting Tabitha's head. She knew that her daughter had always liked that car. "It's just…. old, and I like this car very much."

Tabitha laughed, thinking how it was only a couple months ago that they had gotten the convertible.

She pressed the button to roll down the window, and stuck her face out. Tabitha immediately felt better, she could clearly see all of the plants and bushes by the road, intermingling into one another. Jane stopped at a stoplight.

The mixing of the plants and bushes all stopped instantly, but the sun still shimmered off the road, leaving an eerie illusion on it. Tabitha knew she was almost home. The car, seconds later, sped up again. The sun, now fully away from the clouds, caressed Tabitha's face warmly.

Suddenly, it all stopped, and Tabitha opened her eyes.

She was looking at familiar things. The beautiful, clear lake that her room over looked, the hill… and finally, her house. The eternally beautiful Ruth Manor stood onto of a hill whose grass never seemed to yellow. The house itself was traditional and white, much like that of its owners.

There was a twisting graveled road that lead to the plateau of the hill, and, like everything else, it emitted a certain vibe that no one could quite place as they visited the manor.

"Tabitha?"

Tabitha stepped out of the Jaguar, and faced her mother, swinging her book bag over one shoulder.

"Yes?"

"Could you go get some greens from our garden? We need them for dinner tonight." Jane had a gleeful glint in her eye, like she knew something Tabitha didn't, and wasn't going to tell. Tabitha caught note of it, but walked toward the stone steps that led to the garden.

Their giant, boarded fence greeted her as she rounded the corner. She unlatched the latch, and gate gently swung back, squeaking slightly. Tabitha stepped in, and stopped.

There, on the other side of the garden, near the Virgin Mary statue, was a boy. He was currently picking carrots, and his back was facing Tabitha.

"James!"

The guy whipped around, and Tabitha, throwing down her book bag and the basket she was going to pick greens with, ran into his arms.

"Hey Tabs!" he laughed. Tabitha hugged him tighter, eager to close the year since she's seen him.

"How's college?" she mumbled into his shoulder, still hugging him. James had left very early for college this year, considering he's only 17.

He let her go, and stepped back.

"Things are good." He said, somewhat hesitantly. An awkward moment passed, neither person knew what to say. Then, James looked passed Tabitha.

"Hey Mom. Dad."

Tabitha turned around, and sure enough, there stood Jane and Isaac Ruth.

Isaac stepped forward, evaluating his son, disapproval clear in his eyes. Tabitha and Jane were oblivious to it, but James caught it. He smiled fakely, and went to hug his father. Jane, looking from her son, to her daughter to her husband, smiled, and ushered them inside.

She was alone in the garden. Jane looked up at the sky, which was now rapidly growing darker with rain clouds. She dropped to her knees quickly, and said a prayer, hoping God would make James's homecoming picnic blessed, and rain-free. She got up, and looked once more at the sky before heading inside, forgetting completely about the greens and carrots.

The next few hours, Tabitha thought, flew by without much happening. There were lots of questions for James about college, and how he was settling in his first year. Most of the time, James gave short, or sarcastic answers, with little to no detail whatsoever. Tabitha just sat back, still loving the fact that her brother was actually here, her mischievous, fun-loving brother who was always smiling and living life to the fullest. She hadn't realized how much she missed him.

Her father was doing most of the rapid-fire questions, and Tabitha wondered why he was so stressed all of the sudden. Was it because James was back in town?

Tabitha turned her attention to the window, where, moments ago, the sun was shining and everything seemed to be outside. Now, the sun was beginning to droop down in the sky, and behind a mountain. The crickets were chirping and singing outside. Isaac seemed far from satisfied with his son's answer, but ceased questioning him. He figured he wouldn't get anything out of James.

Jane picked up the picnic basket, taking the opportunity when no one was talking. All eyes turned to her. She stood up, and simultaneously all the family stood up too.

"Let's go." Jane figured they might as well go now, before it was too dark to see anything. Everyone scrambled out of the house, and to the car.

When Jane walked out, and climbed into the driver's seat, she didn't look at the sky. There was a tiny prickling in the back of her mind, but she refused to let anything spoil this night. When she started the car, and made it out of the driveway, the prickling got stronger.. but instead of turning back, going safely home, she turned around and asked James and Tabitha to hold the basket.

Tabitha turned to James, and they both grinned. She pushed down the window button slightly, just enough so she could make out the lines of the trees, and the dim sky beyond that. A few stars were already visible in the sky, even though it was not yet dark. James laughed silently at his sister. She always had to look at the sky. He remembered when Tabitha was little. His dad had actually been cool then, and together, they had built Tabitha a big, floor to ceiling window seat, overlooking the lake.

He remember how his father and him had been running around for months, trying to find curtains that Tabitha had specifically asked for. Now, they didn't even hang there. Tabitha had been so proud of him, and was smiling, nonstop, for about a week.

James's father used to be very nice, and relaxed, but that was before James turned down a place at Harvard. Isaac knew some people, and pulled some strings so that James could get early admissions. But James didn't want that at all, especially since he would be treated different from all the other kids. So, he had decided to go to Berkeley, which was way closer to home, and where his father hadn't interfered at all. James had gotten a scholarship there.

Abruptly, James sat up straight, and propped his feet up on the center console where, seconds ago, his dad had rested his arm. A tiny, but not missed, sniff of disapproval came from the passenger seat, and James grinned widely. Tabitha pulled her hand in, and finally rolled up the window. Her fingers were beyond numb. She flexed them, and a small whoosh of relief went through her when they moved. She leaned forward, wondering desperately when they were going to get off this twisty back road. The road was paved, but muddy, and very used. It was very dark here.

Thick trees covered the road from the last, dim rays of the sun. The headlights cut straight ahead through the fog, just in time to catch the next curb. It was blacker than black out here.

Suddenly, the lights on the road shivered a little, and the darkness invaded the car. Tabitha blinked, and right after, a deer, glassy eyes fixated on the headlights, flew right in front of the car. Jane slammed on the brakes, and tried to swerve, but it did no good. The deer crashed through the Jaguar's windshield. Tabitha grabbed James's hand, and together, they blacked out, as awful screaming and glass shards filled the air.