"Alright then. Since everybody seemed to really like that story, I think I'll give in and make the sequel," Breezyfeather says. "Who can guess what this is the sequel to?"

"Christmas Disaster," Shun says.

"Hey! I wanted them to guess!"

"You said it in the description."

"I did? Dang it!"

"Okay. On with the story," Runo smiles.

"Isn't that my line?" Breezyfeather protests.

"You gave me a twenty to say it now."

"I DID WHAT?"

"On with the story!"

Runo looked around the cobblestone streets with a relaxed smile on her face. She and Dan had been here in Maui for a few days and New Years was just four days away. Runo couldn't believe that just a week before she had been held captive on another planet. She couldn't even remember what the snow had felt like. It had been lost in the warm waters of the ocean.

Dan walked a little ahead of her, Drago perched on his shoulder. He, too, was relaxed, and happy. He was confident that the Vexos wouldn't find them here. After all, they hadn't mentioned their plans to even Mira. This was a vacation from brawling and from constantly having to look over their shoulders. He didn't want it to end with him being on edge because Spectra was pestering him for the Perfect Core energy.

"Hey Dan, isn't that the surf shop right there?" Drago asked. Dan blinked, looking at Drago and then following his gaze.

"Nah, that's not it," Dan said. Runo blinked, looking at the shop he was looking at. She sighed, noting the surfboard erected next to the "Open" sign, and then reading the shops name. "Tim's Surfboard Rental". This was it alright.

"Dan?" she asked.

"Yeah?"

"That's the shop."

"Oh."

"Told you," Drago said. The smile was evident in his voice.

"Oh be quiet Drago," Dan grinned. He started up the stairs to the shop, then blinked as an employee opened the door. He didn't notice Dan and proceeded over to the "Open" sign. "Hi," Dan said. The employee jumped and turned around, catching sight of Dan and Runo.

"Oh hi kids," he said. "I'm sorry, but my shop is closed."

"How come?" Runo asked curiously. The employee looked at her.

"Because today is so beautiful, a ton of tourists and natives alike have been coming into my shop. We just rented out our last board a little while ago to some kid wearing a mask," he said. Dan stiffened and shot a glance at Runo, who exchanged his. She, too, was now on edge.

"Oh. That's weird that he was wearing a mask," Runo said, trying to remain neutral.

"Yeah. He looked kinda shady, too. Normally I wouldn't have rented him that board, but the girl with him managed to convince me. They were an odd group," the man said.

"Group? But you said-" Dan started.

"I know I said boy and girl. But there were four others with them. I dunno. Why are you so interested in those kids anyway?" Runo and Dan were silent and the employee signed. "Oh well. Anyway, you'll just have to settle for swimming in the water. Drop by early tomorrow and you'll probably be able to rent out some boards. I can set reservations if you want."

"No, that's okay. We'll just come by early tomorrow. Thanks," Dan said, turning. "Come on Runo." She turned to follow him when the employee's voice came again.

"Runo?" the employee said. They turned again, confused. "I remember the girl said something about a boy and a girl named Dan and Runo. I thought they were talking about a book or something but maybe not. What, are you guys relatives or something?"

Dan and Runo's eyes widened and they exchanged startled glances again. The employee blinked and then shrugged. "From your reactions I'd say that isn't the case."

"Look, don't worry about it," Runo said. "We're just a little... surprised that they're here. We just haven't seen them in a while. That's all. I hope you have a good day and maybe we'll see you tomorrow. Thanks!" Dan and Runo walked down the steps in an agitated manner, both obviously trying not to run away in front of the employee, who hadn't moved.

"If you're in trouble with then let me know and I'll give you a hand," he called. "The name's Tim and you'll find me here every day of the week."

"Thanks man," Dan called back. "If we need some help we'll drop by."

"That was strange," Tigrerra commented after they ducked around the corner of an alleyway. "Do you think that he was talking about the Vexos?"

"It sure sounds like it," Drago said.

"But what would the Vexos we doing in Maui?" Runo asked.

"If they're looking for us it would give them a reason enough," Dan muttered.

"But how would they have found out where we are?" Runo questioned. She was agitated, her hands fists at her sides. Dan looked at her helplessly.

"I'm not sure. If they tracked our Gauntlets then they might have been able to find us, but they would check Japan first. Why would they be working on their holiday anyway?" Dan said.

"Everyone calm down," Drago said. They glanced at him. "We don't have complete proof that the Vexos are here. They could be some Bakugan brawlers from when we had to save the world from Naga. Remember those boys we ran into at the park with Barron and the others."

"Hm. I guess you're right," Dan said. "But I think that we should be careful."

"By doing what? Dan this is vacation," Tigrerra said. "You guys should make the most of it without having to look over your shoulders all the time."

"Tigrerra's right, Runo," Dan said after a moment of silence. "We should keep having fun. Lets try to forget the Vexos. It probably wasn't them anyway."

"Okay," Runo murmured. Then, she brightened. "Come on, Dan, lets go to the beach! I didn't put on my bathing suit for nothing, let's go!"

"Okay," Dan grinned. "Race you there! No wings!"

"As if! In broad daylight?"

"Ha ha! Let's go!" Dan laughed. He jumped out of the alleyway and started down the street.

"Hey! No fair Dan," Runo shouted. "You got a head start!"

"Move it or loose it Runo!" Dan called back. Runo rolled her eyes but sprinted after him, weaving around the many tourists, somehow managing to not knock anyone over. People jumped out of the way at the last second while Runo and Dan dashed toward the beach. Runo could feel the wind in her hair, pushing it back. Tigrerra managed to stay on her shoulder, as did Drago on Dan's shoulder. Runo smiled, resisting the urge to jump and fly with her wings.

Suddenly, Dan felt himself slam into a body. He gasped as a sudden pain exploded in his shoulder. The pedestrian he crashed into let out a yelp and the two slammed into the pavement, both managing to keep their heads off of the ground. The other person moaned in pain as he sat up, then gasped. Runo dashed over to him and gasped, skidding to a halt. Dan blinked, finding himself lying on his side on the pavement. He sat up, then glanced at the person he crashed into. He gasped in shock as he realized who it was.

"Lync!" Runo gasped. Lync stared at the two battlers in front of him and didn't bother to close his open mouth.

"Lync, are you okay?" Mylene asked, looking down at the pink haired Ventus brawler. She looked up at Dan and Runo, blinking in shock. "Well look what the cat dragged in."

"What are you doing here?" Dan asked, moving in front of Runo.

"Hmph," Lync grunted, getting to his feet. "You could say sorry."

"Sorry," Dan muttered, looking away. "What are you doing here on Earth?"

"We don't have to explain ourselves to you," Lync retorted.

"Gee sorry, but this is my world and-" Dan started sarcastically, but Mylene cut him off.

"For your information, we calibrated the transporter wrong," Mylene snapped. "We were trying to go home to Vestal for the holidays but instead, we ended up here on this island."

"I guess they really were the group in the surf shop," Drago muttered. Mylene rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, so what? Spectra and Shadow wanted to surf, for who knows what reason. They were buying bathing suits over there," Mylene said, gesturing to a swimsuit store. "Or at least I think that's what you humans call them." She spat the word with distaste and Dan's lip curled.

"You're asking for it," Dan growled. Mylene smirked.

"Dan, calm down," Runo urged him. Dan sighed, still clearly mad.

"Runo's right Dan," Drago murmured in his ear. "We shouldn't pick a fight."

"Whatever," Dan muttered. "We're on vacation. I'd rather not fight right now. Sorry I ran into you. We'll be going now." He grabbed Runo's wrist gently despite his anger and pulled her in the direction of the beach, leaving Mylene and Lync standing there. Lync crossed his arms and looked angry while Mylene glared after them.

"What was that about?" Tigrerra asked.

"What were they doing here?" Dan growled.

"They said they had a problem with the transporter," Drago told Dan.

"I know that, but I bet they're lying," Dan muttered.

"Dan, they could be telling the truth you know," Runo said quietly. Dan slowed down, turning to look at her. He looked at her curiously, without anger in his eyes. "Mistakes happen sometimes. You of all people should know." She smirked at the last part.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Dan asked defiantly. They started walking again.

"Well for one thing you burnt popcorn in the microwave," Runo said. She had a cocky grin on her face.

"What? How did you know about that?" Dan whined. "And that was an accident!"

"Your mom told me," Runo grinned.

"Yeah well you dropped the tray when you were working back when Mira and Barron came to Earth with us," Dan retorted. Runo's grin vanished and she glared at him.

"Hey you tend to loose your balance when someone is making googly eyes over your baby pictures and having a newscast with a spoon as a microphone!" she shouted. Dan laughed and she blinked, then blushed and laughed as well.

"Some things never change," Drago laughed.

"Just like old times," Tigrerra agreed.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Runo and Dan cried. The two Bakugan were floating in front of their brawlers now.

"Oh, nothing," Tigrerra said. There was a mischievous tone in her voice.

"Come on we don't fight that much anymore!" Dan whined. They had reached the beach and were walking away from the other people, so they weren't staring at them. Their feet sank into the sand, making it hard to walk.

"Oh really?" Drago said. "Yesterday you two had a fight over who would have the last corn dog!"

"You shouldn't talk, mister!" Runo said. "You and Dan got into a fight over whether or not he'd use a tooth brush to scratch you or a wash cloth!"

"Silence human!" he shouted at Runo.

"Make me!" Runo laughed.

"Hey Runo, this seems like a nice place to set up," Dan said. They were slightly away from the rest of the people on the beach, but they could still hear the other people talking.

"Yeah, this is good," Runo smiled. She pulled off her cover up, a thin white dress. She was wearing a blue bathing suit and now let her hair out of her pig tails, tucking her new hair ties and bracelet inside her duffel bag. Dan pulled off his shirt and grinned at her, tossing his sunglasses onto the beach towel. He grabbed a bottle of sunscreen and they spent the next ten minutes rubbing it on and then waiting for it to dry.

"Race ya!" Runo challenged Dan, taking off toward the water.

"Hey no fair!" he called, dashing after her.

"Hey you snooze you lose!" Runo smirked. Her feet slammed against the hard wet sand, then her toes slapped the water. She didn't stop running until she was knee deep in the water. Then she carefully waded in, shivering as the slightly chilly water brushed her waist. Water splashed against her back and she yelped, whirling around to catch Dan laughing.

"Oh if you think it's so funny..." she growled, flinging water at him, "how about you have some?"

"Ah! No, Runo, that's cold!" he cried.

"Then why'd you do it to me?" She jumped at him, forcing him under the water as a wave crashed over their heads. They both surfaced gasping and spitting out salt water. Runo splashed more water at Dan and jumped into deeper water, running through it not helping her very much. Dan grabbed her and the two tumbled back under the water. They surfaced gasping and laughing. Runo continued to swim out deeper, until she couldn't touch the bottom. She grinned at Dan as he swam over to her.

"Okay. Now what?" Dan asked.

"Hm... good question," Runo said. "Hey I wonder what would happen if we tried out our wings underwater!"

"Wow that would be cool," Dan said. "Mine probably wouldn't show up since they're made of fire."

"Yeah... hey try it anyway!" Runo said. Dan grinned, then willed his wings to appear. Instantly, steam filled the air. They blinked and Runo gasped at the blue flames. Then, they laughed as Dan put them away. A light ocean breeze carried the steam up to the sky, and no one seemed to notice.

"You're turn, Runo," Dan grinned. Runo nodded and then her wings were there, sparkling and moving back and forth on their own. They didn't seem to be affected by the water. "Lucky! Mine will make water evaporate but yours stay the same." Runo shook her head as she put them away.

"But yours are blue if they get wet," Runo protested. "I think that's cool."

"Hm. I guess you're right. I have cool wings!" Runo smiled and jumped on him again, forcing him under. He gasped before his head was submerged and struggled, getting away from Runo. He laughed as he surfaced, then gasped as he felt himself being tugged under again, this time by an under current. Runo's eyes widened and they locked eyes for an instant. Shock and horror met surprise and terror, and then Dan's head was pulled under.

"Dan!" Runo cried. She swam over to where she had seen him be pulled away and didn't see him under the water. "Dan! No! Dan!"

"Runo what's wrong?" Tigrerra asked, she and Drago floating out over the water.

"It's Dan! He was caught by an undercurrent!"

"Oh no," Drago gasped. "Dan!"

"Can you see him?" Runo yelped. "We need to find him!"

Dan felt the saltwater sting his nose and eyes as he was bounced off the bottom of the ocean. All he could see was blurs of salt water, and then he was tossed up off the floor. He was brought to the surface and gasped for air, but was then pulled under the water again. Water filled his mouth and he choked, struggling to get free from the undercurrent. He felt his shoulder slam into the water again and grimaced, holding his breath.

So this was how it was going to end. He had survived a sword fight with Spectra, being sent to the Doom Dimension, Shun's house, and this was how he was going to die. By being tossed around and at the mercy of the ocean. He was going to drown and never breathe again. He was going to inhale the water and sink down to the bottom of the ocean and lie there until the marine life devoured his corpse. He was never going to see Runo's face again.

He opened his eyes again, immediately regretting it for the sting it came with. But if these were his final moments, then any sensation was welcomed. He felt his eyes sting with warm salt water, his tears. He would never see his mom again. Or his dad. Or Drago. Or Runo. It was the thought of Runo crying at his funeral that hurt him the most. He loved that girl. She had almost died before. She had pulled through. But it looked as though he wouldn't be so lucky.

Suddenly, warm, strong hands gripped Dan under the arms. He blinked, looking up. He couldn't see the face, but he felt himself being brought to the surface. Dan didn't try to help. He was too weak from the beating he had endured, courtesy of the ocean. Then they were at the surface, and Dan coughe, spitting out water. He choked on the air that he never thought he'd breath in again, but he welcomed it. He coughed and coughed until he moaned, leaning against his savior weakly. Whoever it was pulled him toward the shore backward, so Dan was leaning against his chest. He knew it was a boy because he wore no shirt. Dan started to kick to help, but found little energy to do so.

"Don't try to swim, you're too weak right now," the boy said. Dan obliged, leaning back against him tiredly. He breathed raggedly, but he was breathing. He was alive.

Then the boy's feet touched the sand, jolting Dan. He gasped as a wave washed over them, but the boy had his feet planted firmly in the sand and they didn't get pulled back out. The boy pulled Dan back, and after a few minutes they were at the beach. The boy dragged Dan out of the water and onto the sand, out of the waters reach. Dan coughed again, lying, panting, on the sand.

"Dan!" Dan opened his eyes, turning his head, weakly, to the right. He saw a blue haired girl running toward him, two balls clasped in her hands. Drago and Tigrerra. "Dan! Are you okay?"

"Runo...? Runo!" Dan struggled to sit up, then Runo froze, skidding to a halt. Her eyes were wide in shock and she took a step back. Dan blinked at her in confusion, then turned his head back to his savior. He didn't recognize him.

The boy had a strong abdomen and very tan skin. He wore red swimming trunks that reached his knees. His blond hair was long and stuck to his shoulders, chest and back because they were wet, and he had blue eyes. He was sitting on the sand, clearly tired. He looked at Dan with a level gaze, his mouth a straight line.

"Geez Dan, don't you know how to swim?" the boy asked. Dan's eyes widened and he gasped, staring at the boy in shock.

"Sp-Spectra?"

"AGH I HATE SPELLING ALIVE ON THIS THING!" Breezyfeather shouts.

"Ow ow ow, don't scream right next to my ear!" Keith yells.

"Sorry. But whenever I spell alive on this thing I hit the "c" key and then it auto-corrects it to say "Alice"," Breezyfeather grumbles. "And how come a lot of my chapters end in someone gasping someone else's name?"

"You're the author. You should know," Dan says. "And why did you almost kill me?"

"I actually planned it out. I had to have Keith show up like that. I just couldn't think of a better way to do that," Breezyfeather says. "But you guys did inspire me to make a sequel to this! I have some of it planned out. I have to finish doing that... but yeah. Please tell me what you think!"

Review please!

They're my candy!

:)(: