A/N: Hi, SqueakyDolphin6 here again. Thank you everyone who reviewed, favorited and alerted this story. You are great! Thank you especially to Evanescence456 and JanusGirl101 who pointed out that Ian was thinking about Amy too much in Chapter 1. You are right. I'm having a hard time getting into Ian's head and getting him to not think about Amy so much. I'd appreciate help on that (Alex Almighty, are you out there?). Extra special thanks to JanusGirl101 for posting this for me. Love ya lots!

Disclaimer: I do not own 39 Clues, Chopin, David Archuletta, the song "Crush," Twilight or Robert Pattinson.

Now, on to the story. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

Evening in the Oh Mansion

It was dinnertime. Amy had showered and changed. She had tried to rest, but couldn't. Her mind was in a jumble about so many things; the clue hunt, the history of the Cahill family, why she and Dan had not been told about any of it before now, the random hints Grace had filled their minds with without explaining anything, and Ian's strange, suddenly sort-of nice behavior. It all swirled around in her brain in confusion. The thought of joining everyone else for dinner made her hyperventilate. She didn't know if she could be around the others and act normal. Okay Amy, calm down. You can do this, she told herself. She checked herself in the mirror one last time. She looked the same as ever. Oh well, not much I can do about that. She took a deep breath and opened the door to her room.

As Amy made her way toward the common room she heard beautiful piano music. She recognized it as a Chopin sonata, a very difficult piece which was being played beautifully, with skill and emotion. Amy smiled to herself. She recognized this piece from Grace's music collection. She had always liked how the notes cascaded down the keyboard like a waterfall. It reminded her of the music from her long-ago ballet classes and made her want to dance.

Amy remembered seeing a piano in the large, central room of the house earlier, when they'd been shown around. It had been impossible to miss. The white, lacquered concert grand piano had been placed in the center of one wall, where it was sure to attract the most attention. She wondered who was playing it now. She didn't remember Uncle Alistair ever mentioning being able to play piano, but maybe he did.

Now, as Amy turned the corner into the grand room she stopped short, her mouth falling open. The sight of Ian, his cinnamon skin and dark hair a striking contrast to the white piano, his hands gracefully dancing over the keyboard, made her heart race and her brain screech to a halt.

"Wow," she breathed. The complicated music was perfect for showing off Ian's talent. She could have stood there and watched him play for hours.

Ian didn't seem to notice her, his eyes fixed on the instrument he was so expertly playing, but almost as soon as Amy walked into the room he stopped playing Chopin and began to play "Crush," by David Archuleta. Amy recognized the song immediately. She was a little disappointed that the classical music had ended, but Ian was mesmerizing, even playing a popular song. She stood there watching him for a moment longer, until she realized something. Wait. That's a love song! What? Her mouth snapped shut and she turned and practically flew across the room toward the dining room, her face flaming. She glanced back once and saw Ian look up at her with a smug grin and a wink. Amy snapped her chin up and flounced out of the room.

Natalie strolled in just after Amy left. She leaned up against the piano, arms crossed, watching her brother play for a moment.

"That's funny, brother, I don't remember Dr. Morgan assigning you that piece before. Is there any particular reason you're playing it now?"

Ignoring the question, Ian stopped playing, stood and said, "I believe it is time for dinner. Shall we?"

Natalie narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously, then brushed past him toward the dining room. Ian smiled victoriously as he followed Natalie. I saw you, Amy Cahill. You liked watching me play, he thought smugly. Mum was right. Continuing to keep up my piano playing certainly does pay off.

Just two more steps and Amy was able to collapse into a chair at the dinner table, resting her burning face in her trembling hands. H

ad Ian been playing that song for her? He had to have been making fun of her somehow. Why did he insist on teasing and embarrassing her? She wished he would just leave her and her messed up emotions alone.

Nellie came into the dining room carrying a large bowl of some squishy-looking vegetables.

"Amy, you're here. Great! Can you grab some of those bowls over there and put them out on the table? Thanks." She gestured with one elbow toward the side table, where bowls, plates and various utensils were neatly lined up.

With a sigh Amy pushed herself up and went to pick up the plates. Her hands were shaking so badly that she changed her mind and grabbed some utensils instead. The last thing she needed was to break something due to nerves.

As she began to set the table Natalie and Ian came in. Oh great, she thought, this should be fun. Her shaking hands clanked a couple of spoons together so hard that one spoon shot off the table and skidded underneath it. Amy dove down after it, hoping

no-one had noticed, but as she groped around in the semi-darkness she felt someone's fingers brush hers. With a startled gasp she looked up to see Ian staring at her, spoon in hand. He handed it to Amy, raising an eyebrow as he did. Speechless, Amy grabbed the spoon and backed out from under the table so quickly that she banged her head hard on its edge. Plates and glasses rattled.

"Ow!" she cried out, hand on her head. She knew her face had to be bright red. It was all she could do to hold back tears. How humiliating.

Dan happened to walk in just as Amy banged her head. He cracked up laughing.

"Good job, Klutz. That's my sister."

Thankfully Nellie was not in the room, but Natalie laughed too and said, "Somebody is having a little trouble tonight."

Ian caught her glance and frowned, shaking his head slightly. Amy couldn't look at anything but the floor. She wanted so badly for it to open up and swallow her right then.

Just then Nellie came back in with another big bowl, this one full of rice.

"Oh good, you guys are all here. You can help Amy finish setting the table."

The Kabras looked at Nellie with astonishment, like she'd just turned purple and grown a horn out of her forehead.

Dan shook his head and then said slowly, as though he was talking to four year olds, "It's called h-e-l-p-i-n-g. You do it like this." He grabbed a couple of bowls and thrust one at each Kabra. "Okay, now put it on the table where someone is going to sit."

Ian and Natalie set their bowls down and quickly stepped back, looks of horror and disgust crossing their faces.

"We know what helping is, Moron, and it is for the servants to do, not we Kabras. Menial labor is FLO," Natalie snapped at Dan.

Nellie looked at the two spoiled kids in disgust, then shrugged and said, "Well, anyway, Alistair's bringing out the last pot and then we can eat. He's been teaching me how to make some traditional Korean dishes. This food is amazing! You guys have got to try this stuff! The spices are so good and everything tastes so fresh. I love the sea vegetables we used. And did you know they use hot chili pepper paste? Awesome! That stuff there is called kimchi, which is my new favorite food. Mm…" Nellie babbled on in excitement while everyone else found places to sit.

Amy and Dan were used to Nellie's exotic taste, so they sat down right away and started helping themselves. Dan was starving and knew he'd pretty much love anything Nellie cooked, and Amy enjoyed trying new foods in the countries they were in, when they had time to actually eat, that is. Ian and Natalie, however, looked like they suspected poison had been put in the food.

"Did you say sea vegetables? As in seaweed? So that's what that smell is," Natalie whined.

Ian mumbled, "Well, actually, I rather prefer a nice, grass-fed veal steak, or perhaps roast pheasant."

"Sorry, fresh out of pheasant," said Nellie cheerfully, "so if you're hungry then you'll have to eat the bibimbap."

Dan stopped shoveling food into his mouth for a moment to ask, "Why so picky? I thought you guys were sophisticated world travelers and stuff?" Rice and vegetable bits flew out of his mouth as he spoke.

"Eew! Swallow first, then speak, please," sneered Natalie, looking completely grossed-out.

"We usually have our personal chefs prepare our specially ordered meals each day and air lift them to wherever we are. That way we can be sure our meals are prepared according to our exact standards," Ian explained. "Travel can be inconvenient, but it helps to have good staff."

"Yes, whatever happened to your kitchen staff?" Natalie asked Alistair innocently.

Amy huffed and rolled her eyes. They are so rude! And spoiled! I bet they don't have any idea how much money they waste. I can't believe I liked his playing. Yuck! The snobby, superior attitudes of the Kabras turned her stomach. She didn't feel like eating anymore, even though Nellie's cooking was delicious as usual.

At last dinner was over. Harold came around to clear the dishes. Alistair got up from his chair at the head of the table and cleared his throat.

"Children, it has been a very long day. I am going to retire for the evening. Please feel free to make yourselves at home. If there is anything you need, Harold will see to it. Please try not to damage anything." He gave a pointed look at Dan, "and please get some sleep. We must get an early start tomorrow morning if we are going to follow that map." With that he shuffled out of the room.

"Amy," Ian said, "I noticed a chess set in the den. Would you care to play a game?" He had intended to spend any spare time snooping around the Oh mansion, but he and Natalie had done a cursory sweep earlier and hadn't found anything obvious. If Alistair was hiding anything here they wouldn't be able to find it tonight. Besides, an evening spent beating Amy at chess just might be more profitable, not to mention more diverting.

Amy narrowed her eyes at him, evaluating. Was Ian going to use this as yet another opportunity to tease her? Probably. But she did know how to play chess pretty well. She could beat Grace and just about anyone else she played. This could be her chance to show Ian up for a change. She looked Ian in the eyes and said,

"Che-chess would be fun."

"Oh, no, not chess!" moaned Dan. "The only thing more boring than libraries is chess. It figures you would both like that too. I'm going back to the game room. See ya."

"Hey Kiddo, remember what your Uncle said. We have to get up really early tomorrow, so no gaming all night," Nellie warned.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't worry about me," Dan called, as he dashed out the door.

Natalie got up to go too.

"Not that a good game of chess isn't an exciting way to spend an evening, but I want to relax. Didn't I see a media room somewhere? Maybe they have Twilight. Robert Pattinson is so dreamy. Have fun you two."

"Now that's gross! Sparkly vampires. Ugh!" came Dan's retreating voice from the other room.

"Well, I'm going to hang out in that amazing kitchen some more, maybe check out some of the Korean cookbooks a little closer. If you guys need some food or anything, you know where I am. Oh, and I'm within screaming distance, okay?" Nellie gave a meaningful look to Amy, quickly tilting her head toward Ian to let Amy know she had backup if she needed it. She glared fiercely at Ian and then left the dining room.

"Okay Nellie, see you later," said Amy. Then, turning to Ian she said, "So, chess. L-let's go."

The chess set was beautiful, white and black marble inlaid with gold and silver. Amy loved the rich feel of the pieces and the soft "clink" they made as they were set on the board. She chose white so Ian was black. The game progressed slowly, each determined to beat the other. They played in silence for a while, both teens concentrating hard.

Every once in a while Amy would peek up at Ian from under her lashes while he pondered his next move. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach each time she looked at him, and she would be temporarily distracted by the memory of his piano playing, of his hand on her shoulder in the Oh Sanctum that afternoon or of their brief touch under the table. Mentally shaking the memories away, she would have to remind herself what a jerk he was and refocus on the game.

It was during one of these distracted times that Amy completely missed her turn, but just kept sitting there, daydreaming. Finally Ian gave a big, fake yawn and looked at his watch in a very obvious way.

"What?" Amy asked.

"Need more time to think?" he responded.

"Actually, yes, thank you." Amy stuck her tongue out at him and then proceeded to get up and stretch, wander slowly around the room, carefully looking at all the knickknacks and pictures, retie both shoes, and then, finally, sit back down and rethink her next move. This time she gave Ian a smirk.

Ian smiled to himself. Her teasing was charming. Amy was starting to relax around him and lower her guard. Good, keep it up, Ian. She wasn't bad at chess, either, though she was certainly no supercomputer. He could see he would win this game, but should he go easy on her? If he let her off easily she might get offended, but if he beat her she might get mad.

"Hmm," he mused quietly. Amy looked up at him questioningly. Oops, didn't mean to say that out loud… "Oh, just trying to decide how easy to go on you."

"You don't have to," Amy said, indignation driving away her stutter. "You might be surprised."

"Well, you don't look like a computer to me, so I really don't have to worry." He grinned at her.

"Oh yeah?" she glared at him. Ooh, that pompous jerk. I'll show him, Amy fumed to herself. They lapsed back into silence, both concentrating hard again, until Ian finally won, though not easily. Amy seethed. It wasn't fair. How could he be so good at everything? And distractingly good-looking too? Ugh! Then she yawned.

"What time is it? It must be pretty late. I'd better get to bed."

Ian checked his watch. "Its 10 o'clock. We played for nearly two hours. Come on, let's go." He held out his hand to Amy, who ignored it as she left the room.

As they walked towards the bedrooms together Ian smiled sincerely at Amy. "That was invigorating. Thank you for giving me a bit of a challenge. No one I know will play against me anymore, so I have to resort to playing a Russian supercomputer. I enjoyed playing a real person for a change."

She gave him a small smile back. "I know what you mean. I can't get anyone to play with me anymore either."

"Well, if you ever need a live chess opponent again, I would be honored to oblige. Goodnight." Ian turned to go to his room, and Amy went to hers.

As Ian got ready and got into bed he thought back over the day. It had been successful over all, he mused. Flew here to Korea, got bitten by a crazy dog-monster. Okay, that part wasn't so good. Found the next lead, made Amy blush a few times, went swimming, practiced piano. He chuckled at the memory. Sitting on that hard piano bench had made the bite marks hurt again, but it had been worth it to see Amy's face. Remembering how she'd watched him play with such admiration made his stomach do a little flip-flop. He thought about how she'd teased him while playing chess. That had been – enjoyable. Its too bad she gets embarrassed so easily. They could probably have stimulating conversations if she could get past her shyness. She challenged him, and he couldn't resist a challenge. Ian closed his eyes to sleep, but instead of darkness he saw Amy's frowning face and accusing eyes.

Amy got ready for bed, thinking about Ian the entire time. She had actually kind-of had fun playing chess with him. His behavior the last two days was confusing her. First he'd be nice, then he'd tease her, then he'd be his usual, horrible self. She couldn't figure it out. He'd tricked her and tried to kill her more than once in the last couple of weeks, and now, here, he suddenly seemed to want to spend time with her. Why? She knew it had to be some sort of trick and she shouldn't trust him, but it would be so much easier to be on her guard if he weren't so attractive, and intelligent, and talented, and good at chess…With a sigh she closed her eyes, only to see Ian's intense gaze staring back at her.

A/N: I worked really hard on this, so I hope you liked it. Please let me know what you thought.

Now I get to explain myself. The piano scene: Would Ian be able to play Chopin? Well, maybe. We already know he can play piano well, see One False Note. I think it is the kind of music Ian would want to play, and with the right motivation (practice on pain of death) he would work hard at it and become an excellent pianist.

Amy's reaction to Ian playing: Yes, I stole that from Viper's Nest, when she first saw Kurt. But, come on, we all know that the sight of Ian playing amazing piano music has got to be way more wow-inducing than the sight of Kurt in some dusty office in South Africa. Yeah.

The Korean dinner: My apologies to anyone who knows anything about Korean food. I don't. I did the barest minimum of research on that, so if I messed up, again, I'm sorry.

The chess game: We know they both play chess. Once again, see One False Note and The Viper's Nest. I just couldn't resist having them play each other. Besides, what else are they going to do in Alistair's mansion all evening? Watch Twilight? I don't think so.