Disclaimer: I don't own Skip Beat and its characters…

I'm so sorry for not updating last week. This extra long chapter is my sorry for you all…

Chapter 24

Early in the next morning, Rosa and Kuon set out to Sharm El Naga. They arrived at nine, ate a little to fill their stomachs and went to change into their diving suits. When Rosa came out, Kuon did a full minute of feasting his eyes on Rosa's body which was nicely shaped by the diving suit. He blinked twice and lightly shook his head to snap out of his trance. Rosa, on the other hand, avoided looking at Kuon's body because she knew she won't be able to stop herself from staring and admiring his sexy body. Even Sakura was attracted to it, how much more was Rosa. Well, basically, she's the same person.

They rode the boat where they were briefed about everything by their guide. Rosa was so nervous when the boat stopped and the engine was turned off, because this was her first time scuba diving. The guide, an old man, first jumped into the water, followed by Kuon and then her. Kuon saw her nervousness, held her hand and smiled warmly at her. Rosa felt safe and warm and her nervousness went away.

They went under water and started swimming downwards. When they got deep enough, they were beginning to see the wonders of the sea. The water was blue, the corals were beautiful and the first fishes they saw were breathtaking. And as they went further, it was as if they entered another world. Everything just popped out with every color there was in the rainbow. It was just 'WOW!' and Rosa could not suppressed fairytale-obsessed Kyoko anymore. Her eyes turned sparkly and if she was on land she would be skipping around right about now. She was really an inhabitant of la-la-land 'under the sea' version. She was imagining beautiful mermaids with different styles and colors. Kuon had to hold her and dragged her along side him to keep her with them because when she entered la-la-land she just stopped swimming.

When she saw Nemo, a clown fish, she quickly started to swim up to it. Kuon had to grab her again and keep her from scaring the fishes. She could only admire the fishes from a fair distance as she was guided by the man holding her back. Kuon studied her, her face, her sparkly eyes. Kuon was confused because Rosa's reaction was very much like Kyoko's, if she was the one who was here right now. Can two person be so alike yet totally different? Kuon asked himself, confusedly. No, three people… there are three women so alike in so many ways, yet totally different individuals. How can that be possible? Rosa again tried to swim away from his arms and that brought him back from his thoughts. They continued swimming forward in that beautiful, wonderful, gorgeous and amazing world under the sea.

Kuon had to hand their camera to the guide for him to take pictures because he couldn't. He has to keep Rosa under control. She was like a baby with sparkly eyes staring at her toys and if he lets go, she would immediately swam up to where her eyes were looking at and scare away the fishes. But it was kind of nice for Kuon because he could hold her and that was a first for Kuon in a decade, the feeling of attraction. It was like that the entire time they where under there. But it was so much fun. They enjoyed it a lot. When they went on the surface and into the boat again, Rosa wouldn't shut her mouth about the wonderful things she had seen. Kuon couldn't help but smile, he wasn't annoyed by her babbling. In fact he was enjoying it. The guide and the other man who was driving the boat looked at them confusedly because they didn't understand Japanese language. But they could tell that she was talking how great it was.

Rosa finally shut up when her stomach growled a little bit and she blushed. The three men smiled amusedly. Rosa and Kuon went ashore and got food to fill their stomachs. After eating, they went to their rented shade to rest for a while. They already changed into their swim wear. Kuon in his swimming shorts and Rosa in her two piece sexy black bikini.

They laid out a blanket for them to lie on. Both of them were avoiding looking at each other, in case they couldn't stop themselves from feasting their eyes on each other's body. Kuon took the waterproof digital camera and started looking at the pictures their guide took for them.

"You took pictures when we're down there?" Rosa asked curiously and slowly scooting close to Kuon.

"No, the guide took them for me because I had to baby sit someone." He said sarcastically but with a small smile on his lips. Rosa looked offended but blushed and didn't respond.

They looked at the pictures together, but Kuon couldn't really concentrate because his eyes keep glancing to the nice view of Rosa's cleavage. And Rosa was in la-la-land again. She get to see the beautiful fishes and corals and everything of la-la-land 'under the sea' version all over again. He noticed some pictures of the two of them admiring the colorful world underwater. It was magical. It was like a dream.

They already looked at all the pictures but Rosa's face was still sparkly as ever. It made Kuon think of his dead loved one. He sighed and laid on his back on the blanket. He closed his eyes and relaxed his body and mind because he has gone totally crazy. He was so confused and it seemed that he couldn't control his feeling and even his body anymore. I'm like a teenager who can't stop glancing at a hot chick's boobs. Ugh! He thought.

He opened his eyes when the glare of the sun pierce his closed eyes. He looked around him, there were a lot of trees. He slowly got up. He was still in his swimming shorts and he found out that he was in the clearing in Kyoto where Kyoko and Fairy prince Corn meet. How did I get here? I was a thousand miles away from Japan. He heard the familiar rustling of leaves and turn to where the sound came from.

Kyoko with short pixie cut orange hair came out. "Kuon!" She called happily at him. She had a lovely smile.

"Kyoko." He smiled his bright heavenly smile and got up to go to her. "I miss-" Kuon stopped dead in his tracks when Kyoko multiply. He thought it was just his eyes playing ticks on him. He shook his head lightly and blinked. But there were three Kyoko in front of him. His eyes widened in surprise and confusion. Slowly, the original Kyoko transformed. Her hair became black and then slowly grew and stopped just below her shoulders. Then, the other two transformed slowly. The other one, also had black hair but was longer, and when it was complete, she was Shirogami Sakura.

Kuon was shocked and was frozen as he watched the last one transformed. Her hair was flaming red and he knew who she would transform into, Rosa. When all of them done tranforming, in front of him were Rosa, black-haired Kyoko and Sakura. "Kuon!" The three all called his name at the same time with the same lovely, sweet smile. "Kuon… Kuon… KUON!"

He snapped his eyes open and he was breathing hard. The first thing he saw was Rosa's worried face. He looked at her with surprise and somewhat disoriented expression. "Kuon, are you okay?" She asked.

He looked at her eyes for several seconds as he calmed his breathing down. He nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. I just had a dream." He slowly got up. "How long was I asleep?"

"I don't know, maybe, twenty minutes." She answered. "You were kind of tossing and breathing hard, so I woke you up."

"Thanks." He looked at the sea. "Want to go snorkeling?" He asked her as he turned to look at her.

"Sure." They took their gears and went snorkeling. They took turns of taking pictures of each other now, after Rosa snapped out of her trance of course. But they enjoyed it very much. It was so much fun. It was one of the most fun Kuon experience after more than a decade. But his dream wasn't easily forgotten, it still lurks at the back of his mind.

They went back to their hotel exhausted but with smiles and happy, colorful, beautiful memories. They rested up for the beginning of their filming tomorrow. And that night, it was a great time for the confusing dream of Kuon to take over his mind. Rosa/Kyoko had a colorful dream though.

The next morning, everyone was busy, they inquired each other how their free vacation day was, but just a little because they had to prepare for the filming. Kuon transformed into a Nubian slave, Taharaq, and Rosa transformed to Tetisheri, the entertainer.

They filmed first the first part. Taharaq (Kuon), His Brother, Aken (Kiri) and all other slaves pulled the oars. It was so hot and when he saw the Egyptian officer who was holding a whip, Ramose (Kijema) he felt such contempt and glowered at him. The officer seemed to have noticed it and confronted him. The officer was about to hit him because he didn't reply but his brother, Aken, told the officer hurriedly that Taharaq couldn't speak because he was hit in the throat.

They took a break and then continued. Tetisheri (Rosa) was dressed in a white linen tunic that show off the curves of her body, a golden band wrapped around her slick black hair against her forehead, and a thick golden cobra bracelet placed on her upper arm. She was dancing and singing to entertain the nobleman Nakht, his wife, Renenutet, and their guest who were politicians, merchants and dignitaries. It was a popular tune that recounted how the goddess Isis who frantically searched for her murdered husband, the god Osiris, in the after world, never losing faith in their love for each other, even in death. She danced a little with her harpist as the accompaniment. But Nakht signaled them to stop and Ramose went to him. Ramose thanked Nakht in place of Ramses the second for supporting the successful campaign of the rebellion of the Nubians. Then, an Egyptian soldier dragged out a man with a bandage wrapped around his throat. Tetisheri looked wide eyed at the man. She was sure he was there to kill her. She shrieked and scream in blind terror.

They ended the shoot there for the day with a few NGs. It was too hot that everybody was exhausted by the time they got to dinner. They continued the shoot the following day with renewed energy and enthusiasm.

Ramose, Tetisheri, Taharaq and Nerfi (Kanae), a slave who was assigned to take care of Tetisheri, were preparing to go back to the Nakht Manor with Taharaq pulling the sled. Tetisheri and Ramose were childhood friends. They felt something for each other before but Ramose had a feeling that she would leave him someday, so he left her first to become an Egyptian soldier. She became an entertainer and fulfilled her dream, she left her potter father behind in their hometown though. In the middle of going back they received a word that the mistress of Nakht's father died. They were ordered to go to Tetisheri's father to buy the canopic jars because he makes the best canopic jars (an Egyptian coffin). But Nerfi accidentally dropped the heavy jug of water on the left ankle of Tetisheri and she couldn't walk. So Ramose decided that Nerfi and him would get the jar and they would just go back straight to the manor. The two left and Tetisheri and Taharaq were left alone. Suddenly, Taharaq collapsed on the ground clutching his head and his eyes shut tight. She immediately went to get a cloth and wet it. She pressed it on his forehead and she unwound the rope that tied him to the sled. Then, he drew the Egyptian hieroglyph for sleep on the ground and she understood. She told him to sleep.

When he woke up, the sun was ready to go and he was about to tie himself to the sled again. But Tetisheri asked him to sat down with her a little more. Tetisheri talked and Taharaq just wrote Egyptian hieroglyph. They found out about their dreams. They first saw each other in their dreams falling off a cliff, fighting over a green orb.

The days passed and they continued to film. At the Nakht Manor, when Ramose came back from buying the jars, he asked Tetisheri to marry him before he went back to Nubia again and gave her the pendant of Huros as a token of his pledge to her. It has a green stone in the middle. She accepted it but while Ramose was away, Tetisheri and Taharaq started to get close, especially when Taharaq recovered his voice. He taught her about a lot of stuff she wants to know. They were falling with each other.

When Ramose returned, he saw them together and he got angry. He ordered her to not go near and talk to Taharaq anymore. She refused and he got more angrier and was squeezing her arm tightly and hurting her. Taharaq saw this and was pissed. Ramose let her go but got hold of the green eye pendant of Huros and Tetisheri ran out of the kitchen. Taharaq punched Ramose square on the jaw, he was so furious when she heard her cry out. He noticed the pendant and took it from the unconscious Ramose lying on the floor.

Tetisheri was informed of Taharaq's escaped from Nerfi. She was praying to Isis as she saw the pendant on the sill of her window and Taharaq climbing in her room. But everything happened so fast and the next thing she saw was Taharaq howling in pain and falling to the floor with a sword plunged in his chest.

The next thing Taharaq saw was Tetisheri cry. He noticed the body on the floor with a sword in the chest. He thought it was his brother Aken. He was confuse why Tetisheri was holding onto the bloody body of his brother and crying in despair. She and his brother didn't knew each other. He went to console her, but she didn't hear him or noticed him at all. Then he realized that the dead body was his and that he was dead.

Even after director Ogata yelled 'cut!' Rosa still didn't stopped crying and holding onto Kuon's body. It was like a scene on 'A Love to Kill' all over again. In that famous movie, Ren's character died protecting Kyoko's character and she cried on his dead body also, and in that moment was when Kyoko realized her feelings for Ren. In her mind, Ren really died and her world just fell apart with him. Her heart hurt so much, it was like someone was squeezing her heart and trying to rip it out. She felt oxygen was getting thin and she was having trouble breathing.

Rosa, no it was now Kyoko crying on top of Kuon right now. All her sadness, pain, longing and everything, she poured it out in that moment. Kuon started getting up and comforting Rosa. Everyone around was just standing still and looking worried at her. But Kiri calmly went up to Rosa and scoped her in his arms and excused themselves from the director. Hime and Kanae followed them to the trailer used as a dressing room.

All of them followed them with their eyes until one of the four shut the door on the trailer. Everyone thought that the four were really mysterious.

Now, this is the longest chapter I've ever written, but half of it is from relating the Reincarnation book story… THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING, REVIEWING, ALERTING, FAV-ING… Love you guys! ^_^