A/N: Just caught the flu today, so I'm feeling slightly upset. I hate flus... :(
But enough about me, let us venture forth and enjoy the third and possibly final installation of the Christmas series! This is going to be a super fun ride, I promise you! :)
Cover photo and plot idea, by lovelykotori! :D
Groundhog Day Christmas:
"You better watch out, You better not cry, You better not pout, I'm tellin' you why: Santa Claus is comin' to town. Teedeedee deedeedee deedee dee." Bulma sang, as she perked her eyelashes up nicely, with her wand of mascara, smirking at her beautiful reflection in the dressing table mirror. Even in her forties, she could make most women in their twenties, jealous of her striking beauty.
"Ugh- You can never shut up, can you?" The Prince groaned, as he lay restlessly on the bed. He'd been trying to get some shut-eye for the last half-hour, but that damned woman wouldn't stop singing that lousy song and now it was stuck in his godforsaken head.
"Hey, no one's forcing you to be here." She shrugged. Her ploy was working well, so far. In moments, he'd be forced to get his lazy, albeit cute, ass up, so he could help her prepare for Christmas. 'Oh, who am I kidding? He never helps.'
"Goddamn you, Bulma." The Saiyan cursed.
Hours passed and it seemed as though Christmas was never better. No one knew why, but Beerus and Whis had decided to avoid this year's festival. The outdoor, wintery atmosphere radiated with unprecedented joy and happiness, hearty cheers and laughter, ringing through the air. The overwhelming positivity was so profound that a certain Saiyan Prince couldn't help but be infected by it. His lips quirked up in a tender smile, as he watched Goten, Trunks and Maron run circles around a helpless Yamcha, while Bulma rocked her mini-me, within her slender arms. He had such an acute weakness for that little, blue-haired bundle of joy. No matter how sour or bitter he felt, one small smile from Bra would wash it all away and deluge him with such an eerie, yet warm and fuzzy feeling.
'I've grown soft.' He thought wryly, chuckling to himself. Yes, that was certainly true, but right now, he didn't particularly mind.
"You seem happy." Bulma grinned, as she pranced over to her husband. Above her dark blue jeans, was a white t-shirt, concealed beneath a thick violet jumper. A maroon scarf was fastened around her neck. She kept her hair in that trademark pixie cut of hers, which still maintained it's remarkable fashion, to this very day.
"Hmph, you're imagining things." Vegeta scoffed, turning away, so she couldn't see the irrepressible radiance, reflected on his bright expression.
"Sure I am." She replied with a knowing look, before offering the Prince, his precious little Princess. "You wanna hold her?"
"N-No." He shook his head, though he unintentionally leaned forward, just a little bit.
"Here." The heiress slowly held Bra out and as if on their own accord, Vegeta's arms moved towards her.
"Dada!" The baby gushed, her sudden leap in cheeriness, having a contagious effect on the flame-haired Saiyan.
'So tiny.' The Prince thought, gently taking hold, as he held her beneath the arms, in front of him. She was wearing a Christmas-style red beanie, with a white pompom on top and a baby, santa outfit that covered everything besides her tiny hands. The black shoes on the bottom were purchased quite recently, since she'd spoiled her previous pair by running into a muddy bog. Bra ceaselessly giggled, when the Prince brought her closer and nuzzled his face in the recess of her neck, taking a whiff. She was certainly a ticklish one.
"Gosh, look at you, getting all cuddly!" Bulma enthused, ebulliently clapping her hands together.
Vegeta pulled back and frowned at his wife.
"She smells like baby powder." He remarked, ignoring her previous comment.
"Well duh." The heiress rolled her eyes.
"Does she ever stop smiling?" The Prince shook his head. The girl effused a distinctive sense of mirth and merriment, as she squealed and cuddled her father, around his fiery head.
"Not when you're keeping her company." Bulma answered with a grin. "Bra's totally in love with you hahaha."
"She must be crazy." Vegeta stated.
"Well, her father definitely is."
"Hey Vegeta, having fun?" Goku strolled over.
"Not as much as when I'm pounding your head in."
"Gosh, you never change." Earth's hero chuckled jovially.
"No, that's not true." Bulma countered, wrapping an arm around the Prince's neck, from the side, rendering him stiff, all of a sudden. "He's changed a lot." She moved her lips towards his ear. "Haven't you?"
"Grrr, you're taking advantage of me, Bulma!" Vegeta hissed in embarrassment, cheeks tinting red. With Bra in his arms, he was incapable of avoiding his vexatious wife's unwanted advances.
"Alright, alright, I'll behave." The heiress laughed, reluctantly withdrawing. Just seeing him in that royal blue jumper and lime-green scarf, as he held their daughter, made her want to kiss and snuggle the life out of him, but as she'd learned last Christmas, PDA never bode well, with his royal highness (A/N: Refer to prequel, "A Brief Christmas").
"God, the two of you crack me up!" Goku chortled. At times, he still found it hard to believe that Bulma was able to mellow down someone as hotheaded as his royal, pain-in-the-ass rival. He didn't know how it happened, but he was certainly glad that it did. He never said it out loud, but Vegeta was the closest thing he had to a brother and somehow, he could tell that the Prince felt the same way. 'Deep inside, anyway.'
The celebrations went on and the motley crew eagerly basked in the Christmas dinner and ensuing supper. Presents were shared, hearty goodbyes were exchanged and at last, the day was over. It was time to rest and rest never felt better, until...
"You better watch out, You better not cry, You better not pout, I'm tellin' you why: Santa Claus is comin' to town. Teedeedee deedeedee deedee dee."
Vegeta frowned, as he woke up to those atrocious lyrics once again and saw his wife, putting on mascara. Wait a minute, why was she putting on mascara?
"Uh- Christmas is over, in case you didn't know." The Prince stated.
"What?" Bulma turned around and raised a brow at him. "What do you mean, it's over? It hasn't even begun yet."
"Haha real funny woman, it was Christmas yesterday."
The heiress gave him a perplexed stare.
"What are you talking about, Vegeta?" She frowned. "Today's December 25th. It's Christmas."
"Tch, stupid woman, don't try and fool me." He shook his head and left the room.
"Hey dad, Merry Christmas!" Trunks gushed, grinning wide.
"Oh God, don't tell me that banshee mother of yours, put you in on this, as well?!" Vegeta snarled, shifting past him, leaving the boy baffled, as he gawked at his surly father's receding figure. Did they really think he'd fall for something so stupid?! His heart-beat started to quicken, however, as he took in his surroundings. Vegeta had an eidetic memory and could instantly tell that everything was in the exact same position as it was yesterday morning, plates, glasses, remotes, tissue boxes and all the rest. 'Which can only mean...'
He quickly rushed outside the house, refusing to give any credibility to the dreadful feeling lingering in his apprehensive heart. As he rapidly raced across the streets of West City, however, he learned that every store was closed, which meant only one thing.
"Today is Christmas, but that makes no fucking sense!" He cursed, before rushing back home. What sort of joke was this?! Was yesterday just a fucking dream or what?! 'Tch, doesn't matter. Nothing I can do about it.' Yes, perhaps yesterday was a dream. It was the only plausible explanation.
"Vegeta, what the hell?!" Bulma yelled, as he entered the door. "Why'd you run off like that?!"
"Quiet, I don't have to explain anything to you!" He crassly replied, too frustrated to care about a thing.
Out of sheer willpower, the Prince endured the rest of the day.
"You seem unhappy." Bulma remarked with a frown, before smiling and offering up Bra. "Maybe this little one can cheer you up."
"Hmph." The Prince turned aside, but seconds later, he relented and took hold of Bra. No matter how awkward or terrible he felt, he just couldn't deny her.
"Hey Vegeta, having fun?" Goku came over.
'He said the exact same thing to me, yesterday.' The Prince thought warily. Each and every moment was making him more and more anxious and perturbed. What in the blazes was going on?!
Vegeta went to bed, trying ever-so-hard to convince himself that all was well. Tomorrow would be a new day. It just had to be.
"You better watch out, You better not cry, You better not pout, I'm tellin' you why-"
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
Bulma instantly jumped, smearing mascara on her forehead, as she did. She turned around, looking at her husband, in sudden fright and alarm. She knew her singing pissed him off, but she never expected such a strong reaction.
"Hey, what the hell?! Look what you made me-"
"WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?!" He instantly sprung out of bed, not even bothering to change out of his scarlet, sleeping shorts. He leapt out of the window and took flight, either oblivious or just unconcerned with the astounded gasps of the pedestrians below him, as he zoomed across one end of West City to the other. "WHAT IN THE ETERNAL FUCK IS HAPPENING?!"
Seething and cursing, the Prince decided to make his way towards a barren desert, devoid of all life. He began firing Ki blast after Ki blast, upon the sandy terrain beneath him.
Meanwhile at Capsule Corporation...
"That jerk!" Bulma fumed, more enraged than ever. "How could he just leave like that, on Christmas?!""
"Do you want me to find him and bring him back?" Asked a helpless Trunks.
"No, let him rot, for all I care!" She ground her teeth together, in fury. "I can't believe him! The nerve!"
Back in the middle of nowhere...
After firing away every last fragment of Ki within him, Vegeta collapsed on the ground, an exhausted mess, back in his base form. Soon he lost consciousness, hoping against hope that he wouldn't wake up in-
"You better watch out-"
"NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!" The Prince cried out towards the heavens like a sinner begging for salvation, clutching his head, as he willed himself not to fall on all fours and ceaselessly roar, until he could no more. "WHY ME?! WHY?!"
Bulma looked at him in complete horror and disbelief. He blasted right through the house, creating a gaping hole in the wall, as he flew around the world, no particular destination in mind. How could this be happening?! There had to be a way out of this! Maybe someone had put a spell on him! Yes, that had to be it! Well, he would find the bastard and completely vaporize him- or her, whoever it was! 'Wait a second.' A thought struck him. Baba, the witch! Perhaps she was behind this! Zooming towards Kame House, the Prince arrived and smashed right through the front door.
"Whoa, whoa, what the heck?!" Master Roshi shot to his feet. "Vegeta?! What're you doing here?! Hey, i-if this is about B-Bulma's underwear, I swear I never-"
"Shut the fuck up, you old sack of piss!" The Prince seethed, before storming towards him and roughly gripping him by the collars of his half-sleeve shirt. "I want to know where your witch of a sister is and I want to know now!"
"M-M-My s-s-sister?"
"Are you deaf, old man?!" He growled. "You heard what I said!"
"Wh-What do you w-want w-with B-Ba-"
"That's my business, now tell me where she is!" He furiously interjected.
"Vegeta, hey, what're you-"
"Fuck off baldy!"
"Hey, don't call him that, you-"
"You too, toaster!" He cuttingly snarled at Krillin and his wife, before turning his attention back to the founder of the turtle school. "Now tell me!"
"I- uh- last I remember she's in O-O-Otherworld, asking for-"
"How do I get there?!"
"Y-You c-c-can't, unless y-you're d-dead."
"Oh, so all I have to do is kill myself?!" He shoved the old man away. "Fine then, I'll just kill myself- again!"
He formed a purple blade of Ki in his hand, fully intending to take his own life. They'd obviously wish him back with the dragon balls, so it didn't matter. He was running out patience! Even if Baba weren't responsible, perhaps he could cow her into finding out who was and so he aimed the blade in the centre of his chest, ready to thrust.
"No, don't-" Krillin exclaimed.
KHRISHHH!
Too late.
In Beerus' planet...
"Whoa, I didn't think he'd go that far." Whis winced, observing the gruesome scene that played out on the rounded hologram, above his staff. "Not so soon, anyway."
"You know, I'm getting bored of this Whis." The God of Destruction let out a weary sigh, as he sat cross-legged. "Don't you think you've tormented him enough?"
"He needs to learn his lesson, so no, not yet, not for a while." The angel vehemently maintained, with a frown. He was still sore that Vegeta brusquely denied him, just a tiny mouthful of custard pudding, during last year's Christmas. Sure, his royal pupil was upset and he understood that, but it was very wrong to take it out on him. And so, he trapped him in a time-loop. It was a technique mastered by angels and known only to the most powerful deities and those above. Essentially, the victim was imprisoned within the confines of a given time-frame and could not escape, unless the user set him free. The only downside was that said user had to maintain watch, at least once every two hours, in order to keep hold over the spell, lest it come to an end.
"Besides, this is partly your fault, for gobbling up his share of turkey, not to mention the pudding." Whis gave Beerus a pointed look. "If you weren't so greedy, perhaps he'd have been in a better mood and would've been willing to share." (A/N: Refer to prequel, "A Brief Christmas").
"You know, as my attendant, you're supposed to obey my orders Whis." The God stated, placing a hand beneath his chin. "If I command you to end this little charade, you have to end it."
"And yet you haven't given any commands." The angel countered, with a knowing smirk.
"I suppose I haven't- yet." In truth, Beerus was deriving his own sense of sickly amusement, as he watched the Prince make a total jackass of himself, at every instance.
On Earth...
"You better watch-"
"CURSE YOU WITCH!" The Prince bellowed. Bulma jumped, dropping the mascara wand, as she swivelled around, with an affronted look, laden with shocked disbelief, wrongly believing that she was the subject of his incensed clamor, until-
"COME HERE AND FACE ME LIKE A TRUE WARRIOR, YOU COWARD!" He thundered, looking up at the ceiling. Bulma's mouth was ajar. She stood transfixed, not knowing what to make of anything, as the Prince breathed heavily. He was acting like a total nutcase. Several moments passed.
"Uh, Vegeta, are- are you feeling okay?"
"DOES IT LOOK LIKE I'M FEELING OKAY?!"
Cycle No. 22
"You better watch out, You better not cry, You better not pout, I'm tellin' you why: Santa Claus is comin' to town. Teedeedee deedeedee deedee dee."
Vegeta lay on the bed, still as a statue, utterly miserable and plagued with downright despair. All he wanted to do right now was pout and cry, no matter the mundane lyrics of that ghastly song that was haunting him, for the last twenty-odd, iterative days.
The Prince was an empty shell all day and come dinnertime, he imbibed half the alcohol supply.
"Hey th-there, w-w-wonderful, w-wife." A drunken Vegeta wrapped an arm around Bulma's shoulder, while she was in the middle of a conversation with Chi-Chi.
"Oh my God, did you have to get drunk on Christmas?" The heiress pressed her fingers against her eyes, sighing and shaking her head.
"I'm n-not d-d-drunk." He objected.
"Of course not." Bulma rolled her eyes. "And I'm not being sarcastic."
"I- uh- I think I'll leave you two alone now." The Ox Princess decided, promptly taking off, until-
"Hey h-h-hold up, Kaka-wife!" The Prince protested, gripping Chi-Chi by the wrist and abruptly pulling her towards him, to her utmost shock and alarm. He wound his free arm around her and looked her squarely in the eye. "You know, I-I've never told you how m-m-much I admire you. It takes s-some- some serious w-w-willpower to be m-married to a S-S-Saiyan warrior."
"Vegeta." A reddened Bulma hissed, as the astounded, raven-haired woman futilely struggled to get free.
"Hey, don't be j-j-jealous, I- I admire you the m-most." He maintained, shifting his wobbly attention back to his wife and pressing his forehead against hers. "Y-You're a s-s-super good w-wife a-a-and an even better t-t-turkey."
"What?" Chi-Chi look taken aback, momentarily ceasing her struggles. "Turkey?"
"You mean you don't know?!" Vegeta asked in inebriated intrigue, his dazed focus returning to Chi-Chi. "Kakarot n-never m-m-made you his t-turkey?!" (A/N: Refer to smutty prequel, "A Different kind of Christmas Turkey").
The Ox Princess observed Bulma's horrified expression and severely profuse blush, thereafter surmising that whatever Vegeta was babbling about had to be related to-
"Uh, you know, they're serving turkey right now, wanna have some?" Bulma asked, chewing her lower lip, as she gestured behind her.
"Really?!" The Prince bubbled, letting go, as he went and looked around. "Where?"
The heiress capitalized on the distraction, by grabbing the marble platter on the table near her and smashing it on the back of his head, instantly knocking his lights out. Even Vegeta with all his might, couldn't take a hit like that, while drunk.
"B-Bulma!" Chi-Chi exclaimed, shocked at the abrupt move.
"Oh please, you know he deserved that!" She rolled her eyes.
XXXX
For the 50th time, Vegeta woke up to the same scene.
"You better watch out, You better not cry, You better not pout, I'm tellin' you why: Santa Claus is comin' to-"
"Bulma." The Prince feebly whimpered.
"What is it hun?" She asked, finishing the final touches on her eyelashes, before putting away the mascara. She turned around and gave him a curious look.
Vegeta was suddenly out of the bed and on his knees, hugging her around the hips, as he wretchedly looked up into her perplexed, blue eyes. "Please, help me. You have to help me. I can't take it any longer." He abjectly buried his face in her groin, while she was rendered motionless, at the unexpected plea. What in seven heavens was up with him? Sure, Vegeta had his fair share of mental breakdowns, but they were never anything quite like this. All of a sudden, her heart reeled, concern and worry flooding through her lithe figure, as she felt her dandelion panties go slightly wet, with his tears.
"Hey, take it easy." She attempted to comfort him. "What's wrong babe?"
"I'm stuck." He sniffled, his pride and resolve shattered, as he let it all out, not at all concerned with his pitiful behavior, since he knew that the day would amount to nothing. "Every time I wake up, it's the same day, every day. I've tried everything. I consulted that little Namek guardian, the old man, everyone. I even killed myself over a dozen times, but nothing seems to be working. I can't take this anymore."
He promptly fell into a fit of sobs, while Bulma continued to try and to soothe him. She suggested that it may have been his imagination and nothing more, but he desperately maintained that it wasn't.
"I- I'm not sure what I can do."
"Please, don't say that!" The Prince wailed, holding her tighter, to the point where it hurt, just a little. "You have to know! You're supposed to be the smartest in the Universe!"
"Hey, hey, alright, just relax and let me think." She said softly, massaging his shoulders, as she let out a sigh. He promptly loosened his grasp enough for her comfort. It was quite obvious that he wasn't playing her. He really was trapped, else he'd never act this way. "You know, what you're telling me sounds a lot like the movie 'Groundhog day'."
"Okay." He suddenly looked up at her in anticipation. "And? What happens?"
"Well, the main character, Phil is going through the same thing you are, but in the end, he gets out of it."
"How?" He asked, a tiny glimmer of hope in his ebony eyes.
"Well- um- have you tried being really good?"
"Wh-What do you mean?"
"I mean really good, like nice, caring, hospitable, compassionate and all that." The heiress elaborated. "Towards the end of the film, Phil slowly starts being nice to everyone around him and that's when he eventually wakes up and it's tomorrow."
"So that's all I have to do?" The Prince asked, her words fueling the tiny, flaming, candle wick of hope within him.
"I don't know, I mean, it's just a movie, so-"
"No please, it has to work!" He desperately insisted. "It has to!"
"Okay, okay, but you won't know, unless you try it, alright?"
"Alright." Vegeta nodded and promptly squeezed her tight. Bulma bit her lip and leaned her hips in, towards his face, stroking his big, feathery mane. She really didn't like seeing him so down, but had to admit it felt rather nice to be his source of comfort. She only prayed that this actually worked.
The Prince was on his best behavior the whole day, to the utter surprise of everyone other than his wife.
"Hey Vegeta, having fun?" It was Goku again.
'Think happy thoughts, think happy thoughts.' The flame-haired Saiyan willed himself, resisting the sudden urge to smite his happy-go-lucky rival. "Yes, it's been a good day, my friend." Vegeta replied with a forced smile, inwardly cursing himself.
The other Saiyan looked at him, as though he'd just grown a dozen new heads.
"Uh- y-yeah, it sure has been." Goku drawled stupidly, starting to wonder whether or not, he was imagining things.
"So how is everyone?" Vegeta asked amicably. "How's the family?"
"They- uh- they're great, yeah great." Earth's hero answered, completely at a loss. Never before had his rival inquired about anyone's wellbeing, at least- not with him. He pegged it off to the wonderful Christmasy vibe, before grinning, as he looked towards the mini-Bulma, gathered up in Vegeta's arms. "And how're you doing, little Bra?" He asked, lightly tickling her neck with his index finger, eliciting a few heart-warming laughs, from the baby.
A nearby Bulma smiled.
"Hey, is it just me, or does Vegeta seem a little off today?" Chi-Chi asked the hyper-intelligent hostess, gaping at the scene in front of her. "I've never seen him in such high spirits."
"Well it is Christmas, so why wouldn't he be?" The heiress replied.
"True, but- even then."
Come midnight, a resplendent array of fireworks were bombarding the skies with thunderous explosions and volleys of fast, dissipating light. The day had been packed with such thrill and euphoria that no one wanted to leave.
"Hey Vegeta."
The Prince turned in his wife's direction and saw her beckoning him over, as she held a snoozing Bra, inside her loving arms.
"What is it?" He ambled towards her.
"Look above me, what do you see?" She asked, smiling.
Vegeta did just that and blushed a little, as he saw the evergreen mistletoe, hanging over her head.
"You know what this means, right?"
"I can't do that." He hissed, in a hushed voice. "Not, while everyone else is here."
"You have to, it's tradition."
"No, I won't do it." He shook his head.
"Look, you wanna escape this horrid cycle don't you?" Bulma pressed, with a frown.
"Well- yes, b-but-"
"Then come here." She insisted. "You've got nothing to lose, but everything to gain. You know that."
"Ugh- fine." He relented and dubiously made his way over.
"Oh look, they're gonna kiss." A keen-eyed Goku excitedly whispered to the rest of the crew, as they espied the odd pair under the mistletoe.
Vegeta took notice of the crowd they'd drawn and suddenly had second thoughts.
"Pretend it's just us." Bulma encouraged softly, so only he could hear. "Like I said, nothing to lose and everything to gain."
The Prince considered it for a few seconds, before he made up his mind and slowly drew his face closer to that of his wife's. Bulma's half-lidded eyes sparkled with affection, as their lips finally grazed one-another's.
"Eww." Goten grimaced. "Trunks, your parents are gross."
"Shut up Goten!" The lavender-haired boy seethed, face flushed, in embarrassment.
Vegeta's eyelids enveloped the pupils beneath, as he let go of all his misgivings and simply basked in the mind-numbing sensation of Bulma's soft, cherry lips. Those in attendance gasped, cheered, squealed or all of the above, except of course, a deeply mortified Trunks, a revolted Goten, a confused Marron and an oblivious Pan.
In Beerus' planet...
"Hm, I think he's learned his lesson." The maya-blue angel decided, smiling, as he finally unbound the Prince from the confining time-loop. "Though eventually, part of him may be wishing that it were yesterday, all over again."
"Ah Whis, you sly devil." Beerus cackled, more mirthful than ever.
Back on Earth...
"Wakey-wakey." The heiress tapped her husband's forehead, rousing him from his slumber.
"Mmmm." Vegeta's eyes slowly fluttered open, before widening, as he saw his wife's nude form beside him. "Wait a second, it's-"
"December 26th or as some people call it 'Boxing Day'."
"It- it worked." The Prince gushed, as realization hit him. "It really worked. YES!" He suddenly fell atop his wife. "I'm free! Finally, I'm free!"
"Yep, I suppose you are hehe."
It was tomorrow. He'd done it! He'd escaped the inescapable and it was all thanks to- he suddenly froze. Oh no, did he really call Kakarot his friend and worse yet, kiss Bulma in front of everyone and- oh God, he'd cried like a little baby, in front of her, whilst on his knees! Darn it! Why?! He cringed at the godforsaken memories, hoping against hope that he could just wither away and die, in order to spare himself from the cosmic heaps of embarrassment and jests that would be directed towards him, for the rest of his miserable existence.
"What's wrong?" The heiress asked, with a teasing smirk. "Aren't you happy?"
"I'm going to shower!" The Prince growled, jumping off the bed and rushing towards the bathroom.
Bulma grinned to herself, knowing exactly what had set him off. He'd never be able to live down yesterday's events- nor would she let him.
A/N: Ah poor Vegeta, no matter what he does, he ends up suffering, right? xD! I hope you guys enjoyed this, because I had loads of fun writing it! It's actually been quite a long time, since I wrote something of this length, within the space of two days hehe! :D
So what's next? I can't think of any ideas for a sequel, so should I go back to working on "The Light to my Darkness" (plus another request or two)? Let me know! :D
Review and share your thoughts, my friends! And I hope you all had a Merry Christmas! :)