Arm in arm, we walked down the stairs feeling more in love than ever before. The gathering of Blackthorns and others of the craft was overwhelmingly large. Lavinia had surely outdone herself.

The shierk of horror alerted me to my mother in laws position. Seated down the front of the circle of chairs was Lavinia Blackthorn. Her grimace of outrage at the changes to my dress was aparent. But I was not one to be led by the strings. I made my own decisions. The sooner the Blackthorns... all the Blackthorns was aware of that, the better.

Don't forget darling, you're a Blackthorn too.

So it was with a grimace that I faced the derelict old witch that was to conduct our ceremony.

"I was told you are to wed your ward, Jade Sas," said the old witch to Raven with furrowed confusion.

With a sigh and expecting the worst, I said boldly," I am Jade Sas."

The gasp that rippled across the guests was laughable, really, but the uproar that followed wasn't.

"This wedding cannot happen," said an elderly Blackthorn, Raven's uncle, twice removed.

"Why is that, dear uncle? Please explain," said Raven cordially, if coldly. But the icy blasts of Raven's words must have fallen on heated ears for they had not the resounding impact expected.

Gerald Blackthorn rose up to his full height of a portly five feet and did his best to look down on me.

"The girl is unstable. I have reports that she performed poorly at school and is therefore an unsuitable match to the heir of Blackthorn name."

I stared at him incredulously. Seriously? That was the best he could do? Throw my poor grades in my face. The urge to laugh grew stronger but at the risk of proving myself unstable, I did my best to refrain.

"Surely, uncle, I am the best judge on who is suitable to be my bride," said Raven mildly, if a tad bit irritatedly. I could tell his patience was wearing thin.

"You just had to change your dress, didn't you. The pink would have come across more mellow and made you more acceptable to all," hissed Lavinia in my ear, annoyingly.

"The clock is ticking. I would like to get with my honeymoon. So if you please excuse us but we have to go get married," I found myself saying snarkily to all and sundry. Really, I needed my sleep if I was to project sweetness and docility. As it were I was hard placed not to erupt into full bitch mode. Not that I was familiar with that mode but I have known Kitty Farquerson for a long time and was sure I more than picked up my share of pointers.

The silence that followed was strangely eerie but not as hair raising as what I involuntarily did next.

The flash of light whipped by in an instant. It was only my unnaturally quick instinct that had me shoved out of the way.

I fell back onto the floor and room erupted into mayhem.

A swift glance at my side showed me Raven. Still and on his back.

It hadn't been my quick thinking at all. It had been Raven. Raven Blackthorn who shoved me out of the way.

The guttural cry that sprang from my lips was filled with blinding pain. But it was no where close to that I elicited from our attackers.

They knew the Devil wears black. But they hadn't a clue that I was the Devil. With a battle cry worthy of the hounds of hell I rose to face our attackers with a relish I could never have dreamed of before.