Author's Notes: Hello again, faithful readers. Here is the second chapter of Vengeance. I hope you all enjoy it. Just a few suggestions. If people are reading and not review, please do so. I like to know who is reading my stories and I like to know what they think, as it helps me write better. To those of you who have reviewed, thank you so much, I appreciate it muchly. I hope you'll all enjoy the next chapter and tell your friends!

Alcestis: I couldn't find time to e-mail you before, so I thought I'd just say it here. Thank you so much for your review. I love that you pick up on my little literary devices and such, and how you tell me what you think about my character development. I will try to work on the dialogue. Thanks again, I really value your input and opinion.

Kittylynne: Wow, that was quite a review! I love your input on the different scenes and such. It helps to know what people are finding realistic or superfluous. Your reviews are lovely and insightful and I am flattered that you are reading my humble story. When I go through the final revisions, I just may take you up on some of your suggestions. Thanks a ton.

Finally, I'd like to apologize in the lag between chapters. I have started work on an original piece, a novel, actually, and therefore most of my attention has been on that. I will try to update more expediently. Anyway, as usual, enjoy the chapter and please, let me know what you think!

Chapter Two – Shock of the Gamble

"Miaka, I thought you might have gotten lost," Nifei said once the former Miko had found her. "Did you like the ship?"

"I loved it," she sat down. "Is this all for us?"

"No, don't be silly. This is just the first course. The rest is coming."

"The first..." her mouth watered. "This is the life!"

"Isn't it, though?" Nifei said contently. She enjoyed dazzling Miaka in this manner.

"Thank you so much for taking me on this cruise. I'm having so much fun. I was worried that I would miss my friends too much, or that being on a romantic cruise, with couples all around would remind me too much of... of how Taka and I used to be..."

"Yuuki-sempai..."

"But I think I'm going to have fun," she smiled brightly. "The ship is amazing, and the food is superb... the guys aren't too bad either, ne?"

"That's true," she said with a smile. "I'm surprised you're looking at men again, though, since..."

"Well, I don't think I'm ready to jump into a relationship or anything, especially within a month's time since how can you know somebody after such a short time? But anyway, I can appreciate the scenery. I met a cute waiter earlier. He was really nice, actually."

"Ah, well, you're nicer than any guy here, I'm sure. You deserve better than some waiter. You deserve somebody that appreciates your classic beauty. Somebody who will be blunt with you, because you sometimes need it, but appreciates your good cheer and optimism. Somebody strong, with good instinct in the business world so that you never have to work a day in your life... somebody... who will really love you for who you are, and love you passionately, who would kill or die for you!"

Miaka was touched the Nifei had taken the time to get to know her so well. Everything she said was something she knew she needed. Something she wanted in a man. It was true that she probably wouldn't find anybody like that in a place like this. With mostly rich socialites around, too concerned with themselves to care about her, the chances of meeting somebody... like Taka, somebody the type she could really fall for, were slim to nil.

"Nifei, you're a nice person. You know me too well. When did you get to know me so well? I never thought of us as really close... no offense or anything, but the last year... I've been kind of self-centered... I haven't given much thought to the other relationships in my life."

"I know you better than you think, Yuuki-sempai. Yuuki-sempai..." she said softly.

"Yes?" she asked, ignoring food in front of her for once in her life.

"May I call you Miaka-san?"

"Of course!" she replied. "We're friends, aren't we?"

"Thank you! You've made me so happy, coming with me, being my friend!" she hugged the smaller girl tightly. Miaka smiled and hugged her back. She seemed like maybe she was more lonely than she let on. "I hope you love me as much as I love you, Miaka-san."

"Of course, Nifei-chan," she smiled and gently pushed her away, returning to her food. "I love meat buns too, though!"

"Itadakimasu," the heiress picked up her fork and daintily began to eat. Miaka shoveled food into her mouth at alarming speeds. "Miaka, you might choke..."

"Mo, I'n mfkay," she continued to devour the meal like she'd never eaten. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a beautiful woman turn the corner just after a tall man who she'd only seen the expensive shoe of around the corner, as well as a broad shoulder, covered in what she could tell was a designer jacket. For some reason she stood out. Perhaps it was the diamonds shimmering on her hands, wrists, neck, and ears.

"This is really good," she sighed, taking a break to breathe and take a sip of her drink.

"The best chef in Japan is the head cook here," Nifei said knowingly.

"I'll have to meet him and thank him for this amazing food," Miaka said happily, drinking deeply from her glass and going back to her food. This was all so good. She knew she'd be back to her usual pudgy self by the end of this trip.

"Don't be silly, it's his job," she said in a somewhat haughty voice.

Miaka was a bit annoyed at the comment, but couldn't really blame her. That was how she was raised. "But you can tell by the taste that he put his heart and soul into what he makes. He works hard for others, and that deserves thanks."

"You're a kind girl, Miaka-san," she said, a little embarrassed by her rudeness.

The girl smiled bashfully and continued to eat, her pace a bit more sedate this time. Her thoughts wandered over the events of the last year again, as they had so many times before, and they ate together in silence.

As Miaka and Nifei returned to their room, Miaka once again spotted the tall, broad man, and once again didn't see his face, as he was turning the corner. There was just something so frustratingly familiar about him. She was half tempted to run up and ask who he was and what did he think looking so damned familiar?

But she thought better of it. If it was a man also in the suites, he would likely be offended by her forward behavior, so she restrained. It was hard, though. She was curious, and curiosity was one of her downfalls. Curiosity and food.

"Miaka, are you going to bed?"

"Maybe in a while, Nifei-chan," she replied, going out the sliding door leading the the topmost floor of the deck and looking out over the dark, gently rolling ocean. She shivered and stepped back from the railing. Something about it was so ominous and creepy. She half expected something to jump from the depths and kill her.

Ever since Taka had died almost a year ago, she'd been having disturbing dreams about her own death. It wasn't as if she really wanted to die, although initially after his passing, she'd really contemplated suicide, but Yui and the rest of her friends had pulled her through it. Still, not wanting to die didn't make her subconscious keep her alive. Nearly every night since that tragedy, she had dreamed of her own death, mostly by swift and silent ways - murderous plots of revenge, poisoning, drowning, a gunshot. Occasionally, however, she would have one that was much more violent, a nightmare of blood, where not only she, but her friends were killed, where she was stabbed and choked and tortured, and worse, forced to watch her friends tortured.

The strange thing was, all the death in her dreams didn't disturb her quite as much as one dream she had had shortly after Taka's death. She had been standing on a dock overlooking a vast body of water. The water had been dark and thrashing about like it was doing just then. Suddenly the dock behind her began to disappear, and with it her friends' lives. They fell into the abyss and she screamed for them, but they only drifted further into nothingness.

She'd initially assumed it was her feeling disconnect from her friends, as well as the water symbolizing death and how it separated her from those she loved, but now, as she stood staring into the darkness below, she couldn't help feeling like there was something more to it. It unnerved her.

The girl retreated inside quickly and said goodnight to Nifei. Feeling rather haunted, Miaka decided that sleeping probably wasn't the best idea. She knew she would suffer nightmares if she slept so soon after such a spooky experience, so she made her way back into the hotel-like hallway and found Muji in the kitchens.

"Yuuki-san, I didn't expect to see you so soon."

"I just wanted to talk to the chef... The food was just so good, I thought that it would be rude not to thank him for his hard work."

"You don't seem like a fan of food. You're so slim and small," he told her.

That was true. Since the death of her love, she had lost some weight. For months she had been more inclined to stare blankly at the television than to get up and eat something, and so she wasted away. Only recently had she begun to regain some of her former "female curves" as Taka had always called her tiny love handles, and even so they weren't noticeable, especially with her boxy pajama top and robe on.

"I'm not usually this skinny," she laughed softly. "I'm a glutton, I've just been too busy to eat lately, so I've lost a bit of weight."

"Ah, well, a woman with an appetite is always appealing. Who wants a stick figure? Not me," he said, mildly hoping to flatter her.

"I'm not sure how I should take that," she giggled. He made a sound of alarm, hoping he hadn't offended her. When he heard her tiny giggles, though, he knew she would never be insulted by something so silly. This was a woman who had dealt with more important things than her weight. He could tell just by looking into her hazel brown eyes that there was an unusual depth to her character, one that was rare and something to be cherished.

"I was wondering if you knew anything about the passenger in room 576. I'm in 574, and I've seen him a few times, but never his face... he seems familiar. Do you know his name?"

"I don't know his name, but if I remember correctly, that's the VIP that they delayed the ship for. He came with a woman, too. I didn't see him, but I saw her. She was beautiful, but looked like a snob, all decked out in diamonds, her nose a meter in the air."

"I see. Well, I should be going to bed, I think. I feel better now that I've talked to you. Thank you for taking time off and bothering with me," she got up on her toes and gave the tall boy a hug.

"Um, well, you're welcome," he hugged her back nervously. He'd honestly never expected such a lovely, kind girl to accept him, a lowly worker, so readily. She was really something.

"I hope we can spend more time together. You seem like a really interesting person," she told him and stepped back. "I'll see you later, then."

"Bye..." he said as she spun around and bounced away. There was something strange in her bounce, a little drag, but she bounced anyway despite how hard it was. It gave Muji the feeling that this woman had a sense of responsibility and determination. He knew he could fall for a woman like her.

Feeling like a new adventure was beginning, the young man smiled and returned to his work with a new sort of pride.

Miaka awoke the next morning, relieved that she hadn't had any evil dreams, and stretched. Nifei entered her room, already dressed in a short (only halfway down her thighs), flowy sun dress that accentuated her shapely curves and showed off her legs alluringly. The former miko could see a bikini strap peeking from beneath the thin strap of the white sun dress.

"You have a tan already," the young woman blinked as she pushed herself out of bed.

"I do?" she looked at her brown arms.

"That's your usual color?" she asked.

"Yes," she looked a little embarrassed. "It's not very delicate, I know."

"No, you look great," she said convincingly. Great was an understatement. The girl was beautiful. The white dress only served to make her skin look more bronze. She had a healthy sort of glow about her. Her hair was black as pitch in the overcast Tokyo light, but with the sun coming in through the window, all the red and brown that was in it reflected, giving her hair a shimmer. Her eyes were more amber than brown in the light. To put it simply, she looked like a model.

She blushed. "Thanks... You're really more pretty than me, though. You're so petite and delicate, and you have such unique colored eyes, and your hair," she reached forward and touched the locks that were curled from sleep. "Is just so beautiful."

"I'm nothing special," she was getting embarrassed now. "Anyway, I take it by your attire that you're planning on swimming?"

"We've gone far enough south now that it's warm and the sun is shining brightly - perfect for tanning or swimming."

"Tanning is bad for you," she said offhandedly, feeling like Yui for a moment. Her paler friend had driven that point home many years ago. She knew that with her fair complexion, though it wasn't as fair as some, it was an invitation for disaster to get too much sun.

"Well, we could stay inside."

"I didn't say I didn't want to," she laughed.

"Of course," she smiled brightly, pulling on a large, floppy hat. "They're serving breakfast outside this morning, so shall we?"

"Sure, just let me throw on some clothes," the young woman stood up and went to the dresser, pulling out a pink and brown two piece and a rich yellow, flowered sun dress of her own. Unlike the spaghetti straps of Nifei's, hers was only sleeveless, and was quite a bit longer, reaching just above her knee. Her bathing suit also displayed quite a bit less of her body than her more shapely friend's. Miaka's was a short, tank type top and boy short bottom, while Nifei wore a string bikini.

The russet-haired girl brushed her long hair and pulled it into a bouncy ponytail and then joined her friend in the main room of their suite. Together they left, and once again, Miaka spotted the backside of the blonde man and the woman he was with. The man was wearing a white silk shirt that, judging by the way it hung, was open in the front, as well as a pair of very, very tight black pants. The woman was wearing a dress similar to Nifei's, only, if possible, exposing more of her voluptuous body.

"This way to our part of the deck," her friend directed her. Miaka cursed under her breath and followed the sponsor of their lovely vacation in the opposite direction.

They made it to the deck, and noticed a buffet laid out for them. Once again, she saw the blonde man and ran over. He turned the corner to the other side of the buffet just as she made it to her side. The girl cursed and tried to see over the glazed-glass sneeze guard. Unfortunately, she was short enough that from her angle, his head was completely out of view. She doubted he could see her either. As she made it to the end, he turned around and walked in the opposite direction.

A string of curses slid fluently from her mouth before she could stop them. She thought to herself that she had spent far too much time with Tasuki this last semester.

"Miaka-san, you're acting strangely," her host came up behind her. "Are you feeling all right?"

"Uh... yeah, I'm just hungry, and... not used to the brightness of the sun," she turned to her friend and waved her hand dismissively, going to the buffet, but keeping an eye on the back of the blonde man. Who was this VIP that she felt like she knew?

The man stood up and went to the men's bathroom, so Miaka went to the ladies room, which was next to it, and stood there. Unfortunately, just as the door was opening, Nifei, who was much taller and broader than herself stepped in front of her.

"I need to use the restroom too, now that I think about it," she opened the door. "Are you coming, Miaka-san?"

The former miko ground her teeth and stepped into the bathroom, her view blocked anyway by her clueless friend. As she forced herself to pee and washed her hands, she thought of more ways to get a glimpse of the familiar man. Nifei and the frustrated woman exited the bathroom and sat down with their food, which had been brought to a table right near the railing with a large, colorful umbrella over it.

Miaka's eyes scanned around and she finally saw the object of her mild obsession, just as his face turned away from her direction. She heard the woman on his arm laugh loudly, with a sharp tone, and the two returned inside. Miaka sighed in frustration and ate dejectedly for the first time in at least a month. She didn't even enjoy the special, exotic food, being so frustrated. That man was infuriatingly familiar, and yet she couldn't get even the slightest glimpse of his face. She knew she recognized him from somewhere, but where?

"Miaka, do you want to go to the casino?"

"The casino? I thought we were going to enjoy the sun today?"

"Well, there are warnings for high levels of UV today, since we're so close the the equator. I think we should wait until the hottest part of the day is over, you know, it's the worst from ten to two, so I was thinking we could gamble for a while, then have a late lunch and make our way outside after that."

"I never think that far ahead," Miaka laughed, the blonde man momentarily forgotten. "All right, let's go spend all our money on stupid machines and games!"

"Here here!" the heiress stood up and the two went to the on-ship casino.

"I never knew wasting money could be so much fun," the shorter girl said, laughing as she lost another round of blackjack. Nifei had long since began to finance their gambling, knowing Miaka couldn't afford to blow all her savings in one day. "But are you sure it's all right that I gamble with your money?"

"I don't need it. I have too much to begin with. My father insisted I take an entire suitcase of cash - he sent it ahead. I have credit cards, personal checks, debit cards and so much cash money it's liable to be stolen anyway. It's better if we enjoy it. Besides, I don't want you to use all your money. I know you need that for school."

"You're so generous, Nifei-chan," the girl smiled and gave her a friendly hug. Nifei smiled happily and hugged Miaka more tightly, letting the hug linger. "Well, what do you say we get some lunch and then hit the deck?"

The two had gambled for about three hours. They'd played everything from slots to poker to strange lottery-like games. So far they'd won a free meal and lost about five thousand dollars.

"Let's cash in that meal, shall we?" the young woman asked.

"Well, it's just the casino's food. It's like cruise ship McDonald's."

"Perfect, I could go for a double cheeseburger and french fries! I wonder if they have malts..." she wandered toward the casino diner, excited to have something her pallet was used to. She enjoyed the catered food greatly, but nothing could beat an old favorite like burgers and fries.

Nifei shrugged and followed. She would try it, at least.

The socialite woman hiccuped and took an antacid. Miaka tried not to laugh. Who knew she'd never eaten such greasy food before? The former Miko had enjoyed it greatly, but she was used to the heavy food items that made other people have indigestion like crazy.

"That was an interesting meal," she said in an attempt to remain cheerful, despite her stomachache. "The malt, what was it, strawberry? That was especially intriguing."

"It's good old fast food. I live on that stuff," she sat down on the soft folding chair on the deck, smearing sunscreen on her face. "Are you sure you don't need to go back to our room and lay down?"

"I'll be lying down here anyway," she said nonchalantly. Miaka admitted that she had a point. The woman removed her sun dress and revealed her off-white bikini and beautiful, toned body. She lathered herself with sunscreen, asking for help with her back (and smearing the gooey stuff on Miaka's back as well), and laid down, pulling her hat over her face.

Miaka pulled her dress the rest of the way down and began to apply sunscreen to her arms, legs, and tummy. She felt a sting and realized that she'd sweated the sunblock into her eyes. As she was blinking back cleansing tears, she saw the outline of the blonde man walking by her once again. She could tell he wasn't paying attention to anything but the woman at his side, but knew that had her eyes not been blurred with tears, she would have seen his face. She cursed fate and pulled a light towel over her own face, wiping her tears and protecting her from getting burned.

She didn't know how long it had been, but she had fallen asleep. She vaguely recalled turning over to her stomach, and then turning to her back again, but was unsure of the time. The sky was beginning to get an orange, late afternoon-ish tinge to it, so she assumed she'd been asleep for two or three hours. The first thing she did was pray she hadn't been burnt to a crisp. That would really throw a damper in the vacation.

"I pulled an umbrella over so you wouldn't get burnt," the woman informed her from her side.

"Oh! Thank you," she sighed. She knew she burned easily, and knew that it was not fun to be on an expensive vacation and be sick from a stupid sunburn. She was relieved, to say the least.

"We should get dinner, and perhaps take a swim. What do you think?"

"That sounds good to me," she agreed, happily looking at her skin, which had taken on a very slight brown tint - not overpowering on her pale skin, but enough to give her some color. As she sat up and tried to see her back, a shadow fell upon her. She looked up, immediately noticing the blonde hair she'd been seeing all day without seeing the man's actual face. Her eyes widened when she saw a very familiar face.

"Suzaku no Miko," the voice held a hint of something. "What a surprise."

The young woman's eyes blacked and she fainted.