Centuries ago, the mythological gods were very much alive and thrived in Greek or even Roman cultures under different names. They came to Earth often in the form of human beings.

One day, a beautiful girl with unearthly powers made a deal with Hades, the god of the Underworld. She, in return for a normal life, would stay with Hades while his wife, Persephone, left during the spring and summer. Hades agreed to it and took away her powers, along with the problems that came with them.

Little did the girl know that her father was Zeus, who secretly conceived her with her human mother. It was a full moon, and Selene had shined her light on the baby the night she was born. Her father, so proud of the beautiful baby girl, asked the Fates to give her a special life. And they did, leading to her powers to calm the weather and play with nature.

Hades knew this and used this for his own abuse. He and the girl soon had a new child together- one so beautiful and dangerous that it was indeed no human.

Because they were so dangerous, they stayed between two families named after two strong creatures: the cobras and the lions. The cobras, later to have the family name of Kabra, and the lions, later to have the family name of Lione, were to always have two heirs of different sexes to marry and have a new family. The two families, of course, were very big and would always have new heirs.

However, the families were not ordinary. Each came with powers along with beauty. Both had the power to blend into the shadows, extraordinary strength, and the power of hypnosis. But along with these strong powers came their weakness: they had to feed off of others' energy.

While new, the families knew little of this. They didn't know that if they fed too much, the person would become lifeless, but not dead. Thus, the origin of zombies. For a while, they created zombies. After realizing this, they burned them and made sure never to feed too much on a human again.

Therefore, each family was to follow a new set of rules. There were some rules restricted only to each family, but there were three major rules that both families must follow:

1. Never feed too much on one being, unless one would like a punishing and the responsibility of burning the leftover tell another of their fall in love with a human being.

2. Never tell someone on the outside about them.

3. Never fall in love with an outsider.

This rarely happened, however. Rule number one was the rule that was most often broken, but the rest were very rare to have come across.

But this was before the 39 Clues came and went. This was before Ian Kabra, the latest heir of the Kabra family, met Amy Cahill.

Seventeen-year-old Amy walked down the park pathway, sighing as another autumn leaf fell. It's only been three years since the hunt began, and one since it ended… and yet I still can't get over it. We could've won! We were so close… so close to unlocking all the secrets Grace left for us! And we failed… we failed her. Amy sniffed, holding back the tears that were threatening her.

Then, her phone started ringing. Fumbling with her books, she grabbed her phone out of her pocket. "Hello?"

"Get your butt back here! It's almost time for supper, and you haven't cooked anything yet!" Aunt Beatrice shouted.

Amy rolled her eyes, pulling the phone back as to not hurt her hearing. "I'm almost home. Just give me five minutes."

"Hurry," she snapped, hanging up. abruptly.

Amy stuffed her phone back into her pocket and jogged back home, praying the whole time that she wouldn't drop her books again. When Amy later crashed through the apartment door, still juggling her books clumsily in her arms, she was greeted with a big surprise: Aunt Beatrice packing.

"What are you doing?" Amy asked, frowning.

Aunt Beatrice's head snapped up to glare at her niece. "I've just been invited to visit Cuba with a friend of mine. I, of course, accepted. But, I refuse to leave you and your ridiculous brother home alone, so go pack up!"

"We're going?" Amy asked drearily. I have school… she knows that.

"Of course not!" she snapped. "Luckily, right on time, someone offered to take you in for the five months I will be gone for."

Amy frowned. Not another bossy family… "Who are they?"

Aunt Beatrice scowled though, walking back into her room to grab more clothing, completely ignoring Amy's question.

I guess that means Dan and I better start packing… Amy walked over to her room and set her books down and her book bag. Dan walked over.

"You hear the good news?" he muttered, rolling his eyes as he crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame.

Amy nodded with a sigh. "You know who the family is?"

Dan shrugged. "Wouldn't tell me, of course. Crazy old bat..."

Amy pouted, frustrated. "Go pack," she finally told him.

"Already done," he replied.

"You did pack more than stupid video games, right?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at her brother in speculation.

He nodded. "A pair of underwear, a t-shirt, a pair of jeans, and a pair of socks."

She groaned. It was like packing for the 39 Clues hunt all over again… "We're going to be there for months, Dan. You're going to need more."

Dan shrugged. "They have washing machines, don't they?"

She held back her urge to throw a dictionary at her brother. Maybe it'd make him smarter, though… "Go. Pack."

Dan groaned, trudging reluctantly back to his room.

"Are you brats ready!" Aunt Beatrice screamed from the living room. "I have a flight to catch!"

"Almost," Amy sighed, folding up her jacket and placing it into her bag.

The taxi pulled up to a dark corner near a building that Amy found unrecognizable.

"Are you sure this is the –" Amy started.

"Of course," Aunt Beatrice snapped. "Now hurry and get out! I must finish packing!"

Amy and Dan got out with their bags, watching the taxi pull of the curb and drive off. Amy frowned.

"Where are we?" Dan asked.

"At a secret rendezvous," a new voice replied. A strangely familiar silky voice…

Out of the shadows appeared a beautiful young girl with dark hair and porcelain skin. Natalie Kabra, of course, had a small purse around her arm - it probably had a dart gun in it, her favorite weapon of choice: quiet and small, easy-to-use.

"N-Natalie?" Amy whispered, now scared. Did Aunt Beatrice set this up? Did she really want us to be killed by all things evil! And the worse part is that where Natalie is, her brother is probably nearby.

"Y-Yes," Natalie mimicked, smirking.

"What are you doing here?" Dan snapped, glaring at Natalie through the darkness.

"Why," a deeper voice that was just as silky replied, "we're taking you in. The least you can do is be grateful, however."

"Ian," Amy whispered, sounding more frightened.

Ian stepped out of the shadows, a pleased grin on his face. "Hello, Amy. Miss me?" Amy wasn't sure if the darkness made Ian look more frightening and intimidating than usual... or even more good-looking.

She honestly wanted to spit in his face at that moment, but she didn't have the guts to tell him that.

"No," her brother answered for her, crossing his arms. "And what did you mean you're taking us in? You hate us, remember?"

"I hate you," Ian corrected, rolling his dark eyes as he stared at Dan. "But not her." He gestured to the blushing Amy beside Dan.

"Well, she hates you," Dan spat, full-out glaring at him now.

"Why don't we let her answer that?" Ian asked coolly. "Do you hate me, Amy?"

"Yes," she replied, her voice a lot stronger than she felt.

Ian took this in thoughtfully for a moment before replying, "Perhaps it seems that way, but it's not true. We both know of your feelings for me, Amy."

She blushed furiously, staring at the ground as she covered herself with her arms. She was thankful of the dark right now.

"Oh stop flirting, Ian," Natalie snapped, brushing her hair back. "Mum and Dad want them back before midnight, remember?"

"Yes, yes," Ian said, not liking having his sister tell him the rules he obviously knew. "Let us go."

"Who said we're going with you guys?" Dan asked, almost stomping a foot in frustration.

"Child services," Natalie replied nonchalantly. "Because without a guardian above the age of eighteen, you two are without one… especially since we got rid of that annoying Bea-"

"Shut up, Natalie," Ian abruptly interrupted, a scowl on his face. Honestly, did he have to do everything around here? Natalie glared at him but stopped talking.

Amy didn't seem to notice Natalie's slip-up. She just looked at Dan, knowing she was right about the child services part. "I'm only 17," she whispered, shaking her head.

"We can survive without a guardian until your birthday!" Dan argued ignorantly. He did not want to live with the Kabras; he'd rather be a hobo.

She shook her head. "My birthday is not for another two months! And how will we survive for that long? And the schools ought to be suspicious…" She sighed sadly. Things were just getting worse and worse.

Dan scowled, readjusting his bag with a humph. "Fine," he muttered, walking past the two dangerously beautiful siblings. "Let's go." Amy followed mutely, Ian and Natalie walking behind her. Ian looked smug, and Natalie annoyed.

In the car, Ian discreetly texted Natalie:

I told you it would work.

Natalie texted back, annoyed:

Whatever. I can't believe mum and dad agreed. Do they even know of your infatuation with the girl?

Ian glared at her when he finished reading and replied:

Shut up! I do not like the girl, and am not infatuated. I'm merely… curious about her.

Then, after that, he quickly texted, again:

AND DO NOT TELL MOM AND DAD ABOUT THAT!

Natalie locked her iPhone, rolling her eyes.

"L-O-V-E," she mouthed to her brother.

"H-A-T-E," he mouthed back, ignoring her for the rest of the car ride.

Meanwhile, Dan was concentrating on destroying either Ian or Natalie with a poisonous glare. Amy bit her lip, trying not to blush from being so close to Ian. After all, he sat right beside her in the limousine, despite the many available seats.

They got to the estate after some time. From the moment she laid eyes on it, it took Amy's breath away. There was a long hill, a long pathway going all the way up to the main house, green grass on both sides. On top of the hill sat a white mansion. Even if the white was pure and bright, there was something eerie about the house. The house had three levels, and large parts to it, so that it would be possible that each family member that lived in it never have contact with each other on some days. In the back was a tennis court, basketball court, huge pool, and a small outhouse. Then, there was a vast area of nature. Amy was sure that she'd love to go out there someday… if she was allowed.

"You are," Ian answered.

"What?" she asked quietly, shocked. She hadn't said that out loud, had she?

"You are allowed to go out back," he explained.

Natalie glared at him, her glare obviously saying: You idiot! You can't have her find out of our powers!

The Kabras had one power the Liones didn't: the power to read minds. Of course, they had to be within close distance, like how Ian is with Amy. Anything farther than five yards, and the connection is like static – unreadable.

Ian just ignored his sister though, and concentrated on Amy's thoughts.

I didn't say anything out loud! So how had he heard? Oh my gosh, maybe I'm subconsciously saying my thoughts out loud… oh I'm such an embarrassment! She blushed at this.

Ian couldn't help but smirk. Now he wished he had the Liones' power.

The Liones' power is to communicate through thoughts – the opposite of the Kabras. This makes it easy for them to communicate without actual words.

They walked into the well-furnished house. Amy wanted to examine each piece carefully and check how well crafted it was, but she found herself too tired to. Ian noticed this and looked at his sister.

"Well, it is past waking hours," he reasoned. "I shall show Amy to her room, and Natalie, you shall show Dan to his. Tomorrow morning, you two shall meet our parents and the rest of the family."

Amy wanted to object very badly to everything he just said, but bit her lip. No need to be rude… they are the hosts anyway… even though I have no idea why they invited us here to begin with.

Ian showed Amy to her room, the butlers carrying their bags behind them - although Amy had argued that she could carry her own bags.

"It's beautiful," she whispered upon opening the doors.

"Yes, well, my mother had it newly furnished for you. Thank the Heavens though, for it was quite dreadful before," Ian said, shaking his head. At times, his mother's taste could be prehistoric, and a professional would need to be called in instead to fix the mistake.

"Well, I like it," she said quietly, walking in. The butlers set the bags down and walked off with a bow. She thanked them quietly with a smile.

For a moment, Ian felt a ping at his heart. She had smiled at them for their simple deed, but not him for housing them. He frowned unknowingly at this. He was now determined to make her smile at him at least once during her stay… or more. Hopefully more.

"Well, I bid you good night," he said with a stout bow, then left the room.

So formal, Amy thought to herself. So strange… Quickly, Amy changed and got ready, falling asleep as soon as she laid on the soft bed. All thoughts of her surroundings left as slumber took her.

A/N: Not a majorTwilight fan, but I don't mind the supernatural aspect. The Kabras and Liones are not exactly vampires, but they do rely off of others' energy to survive. The main reason I went for this idea is because I thought the Kabras acted mysterious all of the time and needed a reason for it. [This was for storyteller221's contest, which was supposed to work with a fantasy sort of idea, if I remember correctly.]

-edited as of August 23rd, 2011