Chapter 1

"Woman."

She ignored him, pretending to be asleep. This was NOT happening…

No sooner had she lain down and curled up beneath her comforter than he had come barging in, unannounced, as rude and unapologetic as ever. Honestly, didn't the man have ANY compassion? After the day she'd had, she certainly deserved some. But it seemed it wouldn't be coming from him… She mentally spat the last word, as if it were some kind of vile curse. She felt like death warmed over, and was most certainly not in the mood to deal with the fool's shenanigans.

"Woman," he said again, louder this time. God, how his voice grated on her nerves. Even if she lived for an eternity, she sincerely doubted she would find anything in all of existence that could piss her off anywhere near as much. Just the sound of it made her want to claw his eyes out. Of course, if she told him that, he'd probably take it as a compliment. Yes, he'd be far too pleased with himself if he knew he could get under her skin so easily. Besides, at the moment she was just too exhausted to retaliate. So she lay there, hoping he'd believe she was just a heavy sleeper and that he'd give up and leave her the hell alone.

Unfortunately for her, the man she was dealing with was no quitter. "Damn it, you stupid female, I will NOT be ignored! Get up now, or so help me, I'll – "

"You'll what, jerk?" she asked finally, giving up her farce and rolling over to face him. "Kill me? Fine. At least then I'd be able to get some freaking rest. Christ, what's a girl gotta do for some peace and quiet around here?" she groaned.

He eyed her for a moment, his expression impenetrable, those pitch-black eyes of his giving nothing away. This human… she made no sense. She ought to fear him. She ought to know her place. She ought to be bowing and scraping at his feet, begging him to allow her to serve him in whatever way he desired. Instead she just lay there, wrapped in her sheets, looking for all the world like she truly couldn't care less that it was only by a twist of fate that she continued to live.

Great, now he was staring at her! "What the hell do you WANT, asshole?" she growled. "If it's just a look at me in my jam-jams, then take a freaking picture and get OUT!"

He let that last comment pass, knowing full well they could argue like this for hours. Normally he enjoyed their sport. She… amused him. However, at the moment, he would prefer to get to the crux of the problem rather than waste time on trivial matters. "I feel unwell, woman. What have you done?"

"What are you talking about? I haven't done ANYTHING! Now piss off, and let me get some sleep." She rolled back onto her side, pulling the sheets over her head as she did so.

"Liar. It's been like this all day! And there isn't anything wrong with me, therefore the cause must lie with you, human."

When no reply was forthcoming, he crossed from the doorway to her king-sized bed and tore the bedclothes from her. She shot bolt upright, shocked at his audacity, only to nearly bash foreheads with the brute looming over her. For a moment she was too stunned by his proximity even to think, let alone speak. It was all she could do to keep her sanity intact while those obsidian orbs bore into her very core, the way they always did.

What the hell was he DOING? He NEVER got this close to her. Not on purpose, anyway. It only amplified the curse. That very truth was evidenced at the moment by their sudden simultaneous sneeze.

"AH-AHH-ACHOOOO!"

This seemed only to further enrage the demon. "There it is again! What in hell is going on here?"

The small woman sniffled quietly, trying to relieve the tingling sensation in her nose. "It's called a sneeze, you idiot. It happens when you have a cold."

"And what, pray tell, is this cold thing? I do not feel cold at all. In fact, it is unbearably hot in here!"

"That's from the fever! It's my body trying to fight off the invading germs!" she ground out.

He looked at her like she was speaking a foreign language. Then again, he knew all the languages of Man. Of course, that didn't mean he was up-to-date on their scientific foolishness. He was still having troubles with that thing the wench called a "mi-cro-wave". In his day, there had been no such thing. Hell, in his day, there had barely even been humans at all, let alone their inane inventions.

Coming back to the argument at hand, however, he hissed, "What does that mean, human?"

Finally dropping all pretense at civility, Bulma screeched, "It fucking means I'm ill, you godforsaken, worthless, imbecilic demon!" This outburst brought on a coughing fit that had the both of them gasping for air minutes later.

He was glaring at her now, the full force of his wrath barely reigned in. This filthy little mud-monkey… How DARE she speak to him in such a manner? Wasn't it enough that he was forced to suffer through all her mortal weaknesses? He couldn't even hit her. That would just be like punching himself in the face. What had he done to deserve such a detestable fate? Sure, he was EVIL, but this… this was BEYOND Hell. The woman was a realm of torment all her own. Still, she was a fighter, this one. He almost admired her for her spirit. Not that he would ever admit to it.

"Well, get yourself to a healer, woman. I won't stand for this a moment longer than strictly necessary." With that, he stalked out of the room, mumbling something about filthy disease-ridden creatures, slamming the door behind him.

Why, that arrogant bastard! she roared inwardly. First this cold, then everything at work, and now THIS! But at least he was gone, now. Sighing, she retrieved her mangled sheets from the floor and slipped between them once more. She'd curse him to Hell… if he hadn't already been damned eons ago….