"Okay, the first real challenge begins in a minute," Nya announced.

The group had arrived at their small beach cottage only moments before. It was a beautiful house, painted a gradient grey that stood out from the blue ocean and sky beyond it. The polished windows were especially large, and the newly-installed front door swung open without any creak. 

To everyone's surprise, this had disappointed Morro. He explained how he still enjoyed the ominous creak of an old door because it reminded him of old times. Akita and Harumi hadn't found this to be nearly as creepy as Nya, Lloyd and Jay had.

There were two floors, though the second was smaller than the first since the roof was tilted. However, everyone wanted to claim a room up there, as it had the best view of the sea. Akita had found the water to be very intriguing; she'd never seen an ocean before, let alone such a beautiful and majestic one. 

There were 4 bedrooms in the cottage: one on the second floor and three on the first. Being the supervisors of the trip, Jay and Nya had decided on how to choose rooms. They sent everyone (including themselves) to collect a stick from the beach. The couple with the longest total stick length would get the room on the top floor.

The beach was behind the cottage. It was a considerable size, large enough to hold a school of rowdy children. It stretched for a least a mile across the coast, and the number of trees increased as one walked towards the ends. No one else had booked a cottage on the water that summer, so the 6 teens had it all to themselves. 

There were plenty of twigs scattered around the sand, though the longer ones were under the leafy trees in the front yard. Still, Jay had managed to find a long, thin branch amidst the piles of seaweed on the shore. Lloyd, Akita, Harumi, and Morro had reluctantly played Rock, Paper, Clamp to decide which couple would get which room on the first floor.

Akita played rock while Morro played paper. Morro let Rumi choose which room they'd sleep in. She ultimately decided to take the room overlooking the front yard, leaving Lloyd and Akita the choice of either the small bedroom in the hallway or the guest room by the dining table. They claimed the latter, as it was bigger and had a view (albeit a limited one) of the ocean.

Nya decided it was finally time to get down to business.

"We're going to have an unpacking challenge," Jay said, putting his arm around Nya's waist. "First group to get all of their stuff set up in their room wins."

"What exactly do you mean by 'set up'?" Harumi asked, the competitive side of herself already taking over. 

"It means you can't just stuff your bags in your room," Nya said curtly. She was still ticked off my Harumi's "deal". Nya took these kinds of things very seriously, and Jay told Lloyd he was confident Nya could hold a grudge against Rumi for the entire summer.

"You have to take everything out of your bags and put them in the appropriate places," Jay explained. He was much more forgiving than his Yang, and Harumi appreciated that. To some extent, Jay was quite similar to Morro. 

"Alright," Lloyd said, rubbing Akita's shoulders. 

"What are the rules?" Morro asked.

"No cheating," Nya said. "Of any kind. I'll be monitoring Harumi and Morro while Jay keeps an eye on Lloyd and Akita."

"Gee, you take this so seriously," Harumi said, rolling her eyes. "It's just a game."

"Says the person who thought it'd be fun to resurrect Lord Garmadon and let him wreck Ninjago," Nya said testily. 

Everyone fell silent and looked at the polished wooden floor uncomfortably. Harumi flushed in embarrassment, and if someone had looked up, they would've thought she was being suffocated. Jay lightly squeezed Nya's hand, muttering something to her that nobody else could hear. She mumbled an apology to the former princess, who nodded and smiled softly at her. 

"Well, we better get started," Jay said, doing his best to act like nothing had happened. If Nya, Akita, and Lloyd didn't begin treating Rumi normally, he couldn't guarantee that all them would make it back to the monastery alive.

"3, 2, 1, go!" Nya called. Akita, Lloyd, Morro, and Harumi raced outside to get their bags from the car.

"Nya!" Jay said when the rest of the group had left. Nya could detect traces of disappointment and embarrassment in his voice.

"What?" she asked.

"Harumi's different now. Give her another chance!"

"I already gave her two! I didn't like her to begin with, but then she buttered me up with all those compliments, and so I decided to give her a chance. Then she betrayed us, died, and when Lloyd brought her back, I forgave her. But that did it, Jay! She was serious!"

"No, she wasn't! That's just how she is. Don't expect her to be a nice princess. That part was her act. She's got a dark side, you know. Everyone has one."

"She doesn't have a dark side. She has a kind side. She's naturally dark."

"Well, Yin is considered to be dark. Do you think I'm that kind of person?"

"Of course not!" Nya exclaimed, horrified by the mere thought of her Yin being evil. "You're the most loving person on earth."

"Then give Rumi another chance. Do it for me."

Nya cringed at the nickname, but nodded.

"For you."

The two leaned in to kiss, but then Morro barged in, lugging a huge green suitcase. 

"If we don't win, blame it on Rumi," Morro panted. "I don't even know what she packed."

Jay laughed. "I get you, man," he said. Nya turned to him and he immediately shut up. 

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked. But before Jay could reply, Lloyd walked through the door, a white and green striped backpack slung over his shoulder.

"That's it?" Morro asked incredulously. "Just one small bag?"

"Akita can turn into a wolf," Lloyd reminded him. "She doesn't need a ton of stuff. And I just brought my swimsuit, an extra change of clothes, and a few daggers."

"Lucky you," Morro muttered, and proceeded to drag the suitcase to his room while Lloyd ran down the hallway and accidentally slammed into the dining table.

Rumi and Akita came into the cottage, purposefully avoiding each other's gaze. Nya smiled at both of them.

"The boys are doing well," she said (a little too) cheerfully. "Although I'd suggest Harumi to help Morro out."

"That won't be necessary," Harumi said, and Akita rolled her eyes. The Formling quickly left, muttering what seemed to be insults under her breath. "There's nothing in the suitcase." 

"What?" Nya and Jay asked in unison.

"The lock is just ridiculously heavy," Harumi explained. "I have our swimsuits and our change of clothes right here." She pointed to her handbag.

"Did you bring any daggers?" Nya asked warily.

"Yes," Rumi admitted. "They're in the secret compartment in my heels."

Nya and Jay looked at Harumi's green heels and shuddered. 

"Akita brought some! If she wants to pick a fight, I need to be ready," Harumi said matter-of-factly. Then she marched off to join Morro.

"Morro!" she called. "Put the suitcase in the closet. Here are your clothes." The former princess tossed her boyfriend a pair of swimming trunks, a pair of shorts, and a t-shirt. She then hung up her clothes and yelled to Nya and Jay, "We're done!" 

Jay came into the room. It was painted a bright white, and the curtains were drawn back so that light could pour into the room. Someone had obviously bought new bedsheets and pillow covers. Two oak nightstands flanked the white bed and a dresser stood in the corner. The closet door swung open easily and Morro had stuffed the suitcase into it. He didn't know that it was empty, but if he was going to cheat, he might as well do it with his girlfriend. 

"You won," Jay said. "Akita had to get Lloyd some ice, so they haven't unpacked yet."

"What happened?" Morro asked.

"Lloyd crashed into the dining table and got a bruise on his arm," Jay explained. 

"Oh," Rumi said, unsure of whether to laugh or act worried. 

"Well, you're in the lead with 2 points," the lightning ninja said, patting Morro on the shoulder. "Congrats." Jay exited the room, flashing Rumi a kind smile as he left.

"He's nice, isn't he?" Harumi asked, leaning against her boyfriend.

"Not as nice as me," Morro said, jealously creeping into his voice.

"Maybe," Rumi teased.

"I brought your suitcase all the way here," the former ghost whined. "Jay wouldn't do that. What did you even put it in it?"

"Nothing," Harumi whispered. "Just like how Jay means nothing to me. You're my everything." 

Morro visibly relaxed. He pecked Harumi on the forehead.

"Good. You're my everything too."

*A/N Had a lot of fun writing this :D*