A/N: Yay! I'm back. This chapter was particularly fun to write for some reason.

Mona plopped herself down on the bed. Salima looked at her inquiringly. That morning, Mona had left the cabin along with Laura after announcing that they weren't going to come back to the 'stuffy old cabin' until night. Mona had a slight Scottish lilt in her accent, whereas Laura was British.

"I made a total fool of myself," Mona said dully, in explanation. "Did you know that the entire beyblading team, the G-Revolution is on this cruise?"

"Yes, I do know, actually," said Salima.

"Talk about good luck, eh?" said Mona. "Laura and I watched all the tournaments since we were little…… she's my cousin, see…. And who should I run into but Ray? Och, he's hot…"

For some reason, Salima felt angry as Mona went on rambling. "And I started stuttering like an idiot… I wonder what he thinks of me now. And then, to make it worse, I ran into…"

"I have to go," said Salima, cutting her short. She left the room, Mona still muttering to herself about humiliation. As she walked down the corridor, her anger began to ebb away, replaced by a sense of shame and embarrassment. Why was she acting so rude all of a sudden? Sure, she detested the two new girls but that was no reason to be rude, surely? Unless it wasn't rudeness, it was… jealousy?

Shaking her head, furious at herself for even thinking such a ridiculous thought, she went on down the passage, trying to clear her mind.

----------------------------------------------------------

Hilary tottered into the almost empty room with a pile of books. Tyson sprang forward to take them from her hands. Himself staggering under their weight, he set them down on the nearest table.

"What are you doing?" he said cautiously. The last time he'd said anything negative about her books she'd trashed his comic collection with a stick. Keeping that disturbing image in mind, he hurriedly added, "Not that I have anything against them, there are just a lot of them is all I'm saying…"

Hilary rolled her eyes. "There are no comics for me to attack over here," she reminded him. "Anyway, I'm studying for my entry test… we're going to start college next year, remember?"

"Oh…" Tyson faltered. "Oh yeah… that sucks…"

"No, Tyson, it does not suck," she said impatiently, sitting down. "I know, why don't you study with me?"

"What are you, crazy?" laughed Tyson. Then, seeing the murderous glare she shot in his direction he hastily added, "Kidding, kidding. You know I didn't mean that."

"Sometimes I seriously doubt it," she said, raising an eyebrow and smiling at him. "So what do you say?"

"Do I have a choice?" replied Tyson, sitting down beside her. She chuckled before starting.

------------------------------------------------------------

Raul and Julia had paid several visits to mother Inka already. She had always been very lively despite the fact that she was getting older and thinner everyday… it was shocking to see her lying still on a bed, looking completely worn out.

Today was no different. The two of them, along with Greg, were sitting beside the bed quietly. The other four refused to come in, saying they wouldn't want to intrude on a family moment. So they were waiting patiently outside.

"I think we should go now," said Greg. "We've been sitting here for ages, the others must be bored by now…" Getting up, he smiled and nodded at the nurse, who was hovering in front of the door. She began to open it, but a slight movement from mother Inka diverted her interest. She rushed to the bedside, pushing by the three people already crowding around.

As they stared at mother Inka, her eyes fluttered slightly. She opened them and looked at them all blearily, without any signs of recognition. Then she closed them again and, with a little sigh, turned onto her side, and went to sleep.

They simply stood there, staring. She was showing distinct signs of recovering.

"M-mother?" stammered Greg, gingerly touching her shoulder. "Mother! Wake up!"

Her eyes opened again and she said in a tired voice, "Greg? What happened after the car… it crashed and then… what happened?"

Greg turned away, relief overpowering him. Raul stepped forward. She made an effort to sit up and the nurse rushed forward to prop her up with some pillows. "It's all okay now, mother…" he said, a smile slowly spreading over his face. Finally, the nurse spoke up. "I think she needs her rest," she said timidly.

Julia nodded. "We'll see you soon, mother," she said, turning around. She stepped out first, managing to keep calm despite the joy welling up inside her. Greg stepped out after her, his gait jaunty and a grin on his face. Finally, Raul stepped out…. or erupted, which was a much more appropriate word for it… with a whoop of happiness, ran over to the four who were waiting patiently for the news, and grabbed Matilda, twirling her around and around until they were both breathless and dizzy.

As the initial euphoria began to ebb away, he realized that, for the second time since they'd gotten off the cruise, he had an extremely amused audience. He jumped away from Matilda as if he'd been scalded.

"Yeah, whatever," he spat, stalking off.

------------------------------------------------------

That night, there was a big celebration. They lit a bonfire and everybody in the circus gathered together to hear the happy news firsthand. Greg had taken out his guitar, as had several other people. There was singing and dancing and overall, a sense of well-being pervaded the entire camp.

Julia sat down beside Greg and looked at him admiringly. There were two things he loved: music and horses. He had meant to be a musician but mother Inka had convinced him to stay and manage the circus' horses. And so far, he didn't seem to have too many regrets.

Suddenly, the ring tone of Raul's cell phone interrupted her thoughts. Glancing down, she saw he had carelessly left it on the ground, and was now on the other side of the field, mingling with some old friends. Shaking her head, she picked it up. "Hello?" she said.

"Hello, who is this?" came a voice she could barely here over Greg's guitar. Pressing a hand over her other ear, she said, "Hold on." Making her way through the bunch of people, she stepped into Greg's caravan, slamming the door shut.

"Hello?" she repeated, grateful of the silence that surrounded her.

"I'm guessing this isn't Raul," said a cold voice.

"T-Tala?" said Julia, her face beginning to turn a bright shade of red. She cursed herself silently, wondering why that always happened when she talked to him.

"Yes…" his voice trailed off for a second. Then, "Do you have a pen and paper close by?"

"Hold on…" she said, looking around. Noticing a notebook and pen on a nearby shelf, she dashed to it. "Yeah?"

"Write down the name and date of the ship's next stop." He named them and she scribbled them down.

"Uh… thanks."

There was a slight pause. "No problem." Back on the cruise, Tala hesitated a bit before asking, "How… is your mother?"

"She recovered today."

"Ah… well… congratulations…" Without any further words, he ended the call.

Julia put the phone on the shelf and went back outside. Greg had stopped playing out of sheer exhaustion and was now leaning back, watching the celebrations. Miguel was sitting beside him.

Julia went and sat beside them, picking up a bottle of water.

"Who was it?" asked Greg.

"Tala," said Julia, taking a swig of water. Her face was still pretty red.

"You're blushing as if he proposed to you," said Greg with a sly grin.

Julia started choking, staring at Greg in surprise. Miguel thumped her on the back. When the coughing finally subsided, she said, "What do you mean?"

"Like this," said Miguel, grinning. He knelt down before Julia and, taking her hand, said, "Julia Fernandez, will you—"

"Dude, are you proposing to my sister?" asked Raul, sauntering over to them.

"Nah," said Miguel, unceremoniously dropping Julia's hand and standing up. "Just showing her how it's done…"

Greg looked from a laughing Raul to a blushing Julia and smiled, shaking his head. It was great having them back.

A/N: please review...