This is based on a dream I had… no joke. But the story has been dramatized to make it epic for readers. Enjoy!
(Pronunciations- Deidre- [Dee-dra]-
Alis- [Alice]-

Alis- .com/albums/aa272/_punk4evr_

Deidre- .uk/images/stills/cr_37_

Deidre Contino, one of the wealthier families in central Connecticut, grabbed the car keys to her new birthday present. It was a muggy June and Deidre had recently turned 17 and as a late birthday present, Deidre's father purchased her a beautiful rose colored Porsche Boxster. He spent a fortune on it in hopes that the little car would last her through college. She pulled the keys off the counter and twirled them around her finger. She sighed as she caught a loose hair out of the corner of her eye.

"You look nice tonight," Her mother said, entering the room. She smelled of lavender and expensive soaps.

"Well Alis and I have made plans. After I pick her up I planned to take her to that nice Barcelona Restaurant that recently opened in Hartford."

"She'll smell of those wretched airplanes though, darling. Don't you think it would be best if you brought her home to shower first?" her mother pulled a face.

Deidre shook her head, "I told her to pack perfumes and change into something nice before I got to the airport. So I think she should be fine."

"At least show her a little bit of the finer parts of Connecticut before you take her to dirty Hartford," The older woman pushed some graying hair out of her face.

"I'm way ahead of you, mother. Our reservations aren't until 8. Her plane gets in at 4:30. We have plenty of time to see all there is to see."

Mrs. Contino blinked, "Whatever you say."

Deidre clamped her hands around the car keys, "Well, I'm off!"

"Deidre, hun, I have one last thing for you before you leave."

"Hm?" Deidre peered over her shoulder, her green eyes bright in the dim lighting.

Her mother pulled out a velvet jewelry box, it was worn and weathered but a beautiful gold color none the less. Mrs. Contino pulled Deidre's wrist toward her and clasped a bracelet around her wrist.

The dark haired girl gasped, "It's so pretty!"

"It's been passed down in our family for centuries. I think you're old enough to take on the responsibility of keeping it."

"I'll don't know what to say," the girl breathed.

The bracelet was a ringlet with rubies circling the rim. One of the rubies in particular caught her eye; it shone brighter than the others. When the light hit it, red sparkles danced on the ceiling.

"Listen, for I must warn you, if any harm were to come to this bracelet, it would mean disaster for more than just this family…" Her mother's face was close.

Deidre blinked and swallowed, nodding.

"I'm serious, Deidra. Be very careful who you show this to."

Deidra kissed her mother's cheek, "Right mom. Don't scare me like that."

She was quite cavalier as she strode out of the kitchen and into the garage where her car was waiting, but inside her heart was beating a mile a minute and she didn't even realized she had gripped her keys so hard she'd cut open her palm until she started the engine.

"Oh damn." She grimaced as she looked at herself in her mirrors, her red earring dangle to her jawline and her bright red lips made her look like a super model. Her make-up was flawless and it made her body look magnificent with her knee length black dress and heels.

"No time to admire myself, I guess. Alis is waiting." And with that she reversed the Porsche and pulled out into the street. She shifted gears and started off towards the free-way.

She gripped the steering wheel at 10 and 2 as she braked for traffic. A guy in a lime green jeep pulled up beside her. He peered at her through his window and grinned. He blew hot air on the window, fogging it up and wrote: # Please?

Deidre rolled her eyes and sped into the next lane as the truck in front of her moved enough. She impatiently tapped her finger on the dashboard as traffic stood still.

She threw her hands in the air when her wishes for faster moving traffic did not come true. She sat with her smooth hands on her lap and toyed with the bracelet. As she peered closely at the jewel she swore she saw little white specks moving around on the inside. She snapped out of her daze when a car in back of her honked. Deidre's head shot up and she noticed she was at least a mile behind the car in front of her. As she switched gears and urged the car forward, she couldn't help but think of what she thought she saw. She groaned and smacked her forehead with her palm and switched on the radio to get her mind off it.

What is wrong with you, Dei? Alis is coming to visit you. Get a grip. One scary thing from your mom about a stupid bracelet and you flip out! You're mom has scared you before, why should this be any different?

The radio wasn't helping. But lucky enough for Deidra the exit to the airport was coming up. She shifted gears again, the car moaned in response and lurched forward.

"Damn clutch…" She muttered under her breath as she tried shifting again. She took the exit and pulled up in front of the airline gate. There stood her long time friend Alis Annwyn. Her bright red hair was the first thing she noticed. Then she noticed the emerald green necklace that complimented the dress she wore.

"Green is definitely your color!" Deidre said, coming up behind her friend and hugging her.

As instructed, Alis was dressed for dinner. She smelled of airplane but that smell was quickly replaced with the smell of fancy perfumes.

She hugged her friend and ushered her out of the building while a man who worked in the parking lot carried her bags. He loaded the bags into the back of her car, she tipped him, and then the two girls stumbled into the vehicle. As Deidre ignited the engine again, she spoke to Alis, "How was the flight from Minnesota?"

Alis groaned and then grinned at her friend.

"Boring as hell. Nobody on the plane was able to give me even a remote challenge at poker."

Deidre smiled, she knew that ever since their first meeting at a photo shoot in Las Vegas that Alis was a big time gambler and card player. And she was good. Real good.

Deidre stifled a laugh, "No surprise there. I would be dirt broke by the time I'm done playing you. Are you sure you don't cheat?" She smirked, as her delicate hands turned the car onto the road leading out of the airport.

Alis gave her an offended look. "I would never!"

"Oh, and are you to say you never cheated that one time at Las Vegas last spring?"

"...That was different."

"Of course it was." Dei chuckled, "Ok. Our reservations are at 8 and i promised my mom I'd take the scenic route."

She quickly passed a glance over Alis, "That's a pretty necklace, where'd you get it? Did you gamble it off of somebody?" She flashed a bright smile.

"No! I got it from my dad. When he gave it to me he was all serious and made it seem like it was super important and dangerous and stuff. But you know my dad, always joking around." Alis replied with a smile.

"Scary. You know what? My mom did the same thing when she gave me this," The dark haired girl held up one arm, showing her friend the ruby bracelet, not looking away from the road.

"It's beautiful. And what's with you? You seem paranoid..."

"New car."

Alis nodded, "I see. It's a nice car."

"I know. And that's why I can't scratch it. It's supposed to last me through college."

"That's going to be a challenge, knowing you and all of your crazy 'adventures'."

Deidre's bright eyes shone bright with mischief, "And what is that supposed to mean?"

"Don't kid yourself; you know this car won't last. You travel too much for this car to handle."

Deidra shook her head and carefully watched the roads.

"But really… my dad would have my head!"

"That's nice." Alis sighed, leaning against her window, "Let's throw down the convertible roof!"

"Nah. It's hot and it's June. There's a bunch of gnats out… I don't think you want bugs as an appetizer."

Alis scrunched her face, "Ew!"

The other girl nodded, "That's exactly what's going to happen."

"Forget I mentioned anything then."

The car was silent for a few moments, "I really am excited to be here."

"I'm happy you came," Deidre responded.

"I'm just exhausted."

"I understand."

Alis admired her surroundings, "It is a beautiful countryside… I mean considering this state is tiny."

Deidre grimaced, but it quickly turned into a smile and soon both girls were laughing. They laughed so hard that, the darker haired girl had to put on the brakes before she ran them off the road.

The girl with the green eyes and brown hair shifted gears and they sped down the road.

"Now where are we-" Alis began when something rammed into the side of the car. The jerk of the can caused Deidre to bite her tongue. The metallic taste of blood filled her mouth. The two girls screamed and held onto each other's hands as they spun. Alis let out a particularly loud scream when she saw where they were headed. Straight for a lake.

"What the hell!" Deidre yelled as the car swerved. She tried to set it straight but the wheel refused to budge. Before she could fix anything the Boxster flipped over and rolled right down the hill on the side of the road.

On their way down the hill, Deidre hit her head against a dented piece of metal, black dots dance before her eyes and things got blurry. She felt something cold whip against her face as the car hit the water and before she knew it she was under water.

"Alis?" She tried to speak, but she intook water instead. Blood stained the water around her and she realized it was her own blood.

Her eyes flickered and her lungs burned. Her throat tightened, threatening to choke her before she drowned. She drifted in and out of consciousness when she felt a hand wrap around her waist and pull her through the window. When she tried to open her eyes, everything was fuzzy. She couldn't tell ground from sky and definitely couldn't see if Alis survived. There was a flash of white and then utter blackness clouded her vision and she was out.

Deidre woke up to darkness on a cold, hard floor with a pounding head ache. How long had she been out? Where was she? Where was Alis?

"Alis?" She managed to say, her voice incredibly horse. She tried to stand up but fell flat to the floor, landing on something.

"Oww... Deidre, you way a ton." A voice from beneath her said.

"And i thought all those diets paid off," She tried to joke, but the ringing in her ears cut her laughter short. She groaned with grogginess, "What the hell happened? What hit us? And where are we?"

Then a sudden thought hit her and she groaned in frustration, "My car!"

"Hey, just be glad that we are alive." Alis said, pushing herself up into a sitting position. "Ugh, I feel terrible."

"You should be glad you are alive." A voice said. It was a monotonous voice that was muffled yet still carried to their ears. Enough so, that Alis shuddered.

Wet pieces of hair clung to Deidre's pale face as she stared off into the dark for the source of the voice.

"Who are you...?" She whispered more to herself than anyone else.

A door opened and light spilled into the room. Alis and Deidre covered their eyes. When their eyes had adjusted to the new found light, they saw the silhouette of what appeared to be a tall, thin man.

Deidre looked at Alis with her green eyes. The rubies on her bracelet danced around the room as the light bounced off it.

The pretty girl sat up on her knees, her wet black dress stuck to her, and she quickly covered the bracelet with the fabric from the dress.

"What do you want from us?" Alis demanded warily, her hand instinctively flying up to grasp her necklace protectively.

Deidre's eyes flickered back and forth as she thought, "It's about the jewelry..." She whispered to herself, "Isn't it!"

"What was that?" Alis whispered to her.

"I don't think out parents were joking about our gifts."

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it. I mean really think about it. Our parents warn us about the jewelry, and the same day we're almost killed in some freak car accident and then kidnapped. My wallet and purse are still in the car and i don't have anything else valuable on me... what else could it be?"

"I'm not a fan of whispering and secrets." The voice stated coldly.

Deidra glanced up at him. The outline of his head had a horn shaped object coming out of his head.

"Well, deal with it." Alis snapped back at him. She then started whispering with Deidre again.

"I think you're right. It all makes sense. But what is the big deal about these things. They don't look too terribly expensive. Just old. Very old."

Deidre's thumb ran over the jewel. It was cold and it made her shiver. She pushed wet strands of hair out of her face and turned to look at the person standing in the threshold, "Feel free to tell us if we're getting close. I can tell you're listening. If you weren't you'd be a little more agitated and frustrated with us."

"Aren't we the little analytical one?"

"Why yes we are." Deidre replied curtly.

"So, Mr. Tall-dark-and-mysterious, are we anywhere near correct?" Alis asked

"I'd say you're pretty close."

"How close? Don't leave us in the dark here. Don't you think we have a right to know why we're here?"

"That is not up to me to decide." The man replied.

"Oho! So you're not the one in charge here!" Alis exclaimed.

The man remained silent.

"Then take us to see the one who can make these decisions." Alis demanded

"In good time. He will come to you soon."

The pale thin man turned to leave.

"Wait!" Deidre spoke up, "Tell us who you are." she said, hoping to stall long enough to come up with a plan.

"My name is Ulqiorra Schiffer. Espada Numero Quatro."

"Come again?" Deidre asked.

"It means sword number 4." Alis answered, her eyes narrowing.

"Yes." The man replied.

"Is that all?" Deidre asked.

"I am also the one who saved your lives."

"Well. I guess we have to thank you for that." Alis said

Deidre gritted her teeth, "Yes. Thank you I suppose."

He did not respond.

Deidre bit her lip, I need more time. This won't work unless I can buy more time…

We only want to know what the hell is going on." Alis replied calmly

"Hm. Welcome to Hueco Mundo." He said, walking out. The door closed, leaving them in darkness once again.