More Than A Promise
By: SilverFoxx92
A warrior traveled the long road up to the Ox Kings palace with the completion of a promise he made years ago to a young princess set firm in mind. He had seen the castle from miles away and was relieved he would almost reach his destination.
The palace guards stood in front of the large castle doors wearing heavy armor and helmets with a large axe in each of their hands held in a an 'X' formation making sure no one entered without permission. They both eyed the young man from afar as he walked the final stretch to the entrance of the entrance. "Who the hell is this?" one guard asked the other.
"I have no idea. Don't recognize him and the King didn't mention any expected visitors this morning."
Their bodies automatically stiffened into a defense mode should this trespasser, who was now directly in front of them, dare to charge through them in order to get inside the palace, "You must be lost" the first guard told the young man, "Don't you know whose doors you stand before?"
The warrior lifted an eyebrow in confusion at the guard. He looked up at the large castle, positive this was the same one he'd been to so many years ago, of course, who else could this castle belong to? "This is the Ox Kings castle isn't it?"
The guard grunted, "That's right and what do you want?"
"I'm looking for ChiChi. Can I go inside the castle now? I traveled a long way just to see her."
"Hmph" the first guard snorted, "You really expect us to just grant you entrance to the castle? We don't even know who you are or what you want."
The warrior was beginning to get impatient with the guards, "I told you already. I'm looking for ChiChi. I'm here to keep a promise I made to her back when we were kids."
"What promise?" The first guard asked.
"I promised that I would come back to her one day for a bride." he said with a determined expression.
The guards eyes widened the moment the description of his promise struck a cord in their memory, "You're Goku?" they said together in amazement.
"That's right" his expression now solid.
The two guards looked at each other, then back at the young man claiming to be the one promised to marry the princess. "Wait here" one of them said firmly and went inside the castle. He went in search of the palace director, the one that kept the palace in order, she was currently in the relaxation room redecorating under the wishes of the king who complained that the furniture wasn't soft enough and that the paintings and colors where too energetic to relax properly. "That sofa" the palace director commanded to the servants, "The King specifically requested that particular piece be replaced. Throw it out!"
"Keiya" the guard spoke the palace director.
She turned around to face the person who called her name, "Sensho" she wore an angry expression on her face, "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be outside with Yoru guarding the castle doors? He can't do it all alone"
"Forgive me ma'am but there's a visitor outside requesting to see the princess." he answered.
"Well tell him to go away. We're not expecting visitors today and the King said he didn't want to deal with anyone today unless in was extremely important. So unless there's someone threatening to set fire to the castle tell him to come by some other day."
"It's the boy that promised the Princess he would make her his bride. He says his name is Goku"
The palace directors eyes widened in shock at the mention of the name, "Oh my…" she spoke in amazement, "… Let him inside" she gathered her emotions knowing what must be done. "Tell him to wait inside the palace foyer. Inform the King. I'll go get the princess."
The guard nodded in agreement, receiving and understanding his orders he turned around and walked back outside to the visitor.
Around this time of the day all Keiya needed to do was follow the sounds of fighting coming from outside in the back of the castle. Today ChiChi was practicing stealth and combined combat skills in the forest behind her house with three of her fathers soldiers from his army, taking them all on at the same time. Her father insisted it was important to know how to handle a situation where she could potentially be outnumbered or out-muscled. She blocked a fist from one soldier and kicked the soldier behind her square in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him.
"Princess" the palace director called to her trying to get her attention.
ChiChi looked at the one who called her attention and quickly ducked getting on one knee in order to dodge a roundhouse kick from the third soldier and swept her leg under him, tripping the soldier off his feet. "Keiya, please, the last thing I need right now is a distraction"
She let out an impatient sigh and kept her mouth shut, waiting for the princess to finish training.
ChiChi was beauty in motion and all about speed. She believed that muscles were useless unless you had the speed to deliver the punch without your opponent dodging it.
The soldier she had kicked in the stomach got up and wrapped his arms around the princess pinning her arms down and lifting her feet off the ground. The remaining soldier stood before her and delivered three punches to her stomach. ChiChi grunted in pain from the three blows. She brought her knees up to her stomach and kicked the soldier in the chest using both legs: in the process the force from the kick made the soldier holding her back up hard into the tree behind them causing him to let her go. The princess stood up and reached into her shirt to pull a small ball out of her bra and threw it to the ground beneath her. As soon as she did, thick gray smoke surrounded them; when the smoke cleared she was gone.
The soldiers took a quick glance at their surroundings and walked forward slowly, keeping their hearing on point and eyes sharp to detect any movement.
Keiya sighed again, "Seriously I really need to speak to her, if I can just talk to her for two sec-"
"Shh!" one soldier shushed the palace director in order to focus his ears on small steps, soft twigs snapping, or a rustle in the leaves. Fifteen seconds went by and the Princess had still not shown herself: however, at the twenty second mark with incredible, accurate speed, ChiChi launched herself out of a tree and landed on the back of the first soldier to slam him against the ground, then landed to deliver two punches into the stomach of the second soldier and gave a high kick to his head, he dropped to the ground almost instantly, and made a back flip to wrap her legs around the neck of the third soldier behind her and made another back flip to throw him into a tree then landed gracefully on her feet. She looked at her opponents to check if any of them would get back up for round two- they didn't.
ChiChi stood up straight chuckling in victory. "Princess ChiChi wins… Again" Keiya said dryly.
"That's right boys if anyone else was watching us they'd think you guys were the ones getting trained." she giggled. "Seriously though… Thanks"
"I don't think they can hear you, princess. It seems you knocked them out again."
ChiChi examined their state, "Oh yeah…" she frowned in disappoint, "Send the medics out to tend to them, please."
Keiya turned around and waved over the medics on standby to go help the soldiers. "You're wearing less clothes for your training exercises than usual Princess. You usually wear your traditional training uniform." she noted, referring to the half cut plain white tank top and little pink shorts.
"Oh it's too hot to be wearing all that, Keiya. Besides I move easier in this. I feel light."
"Mmm-hmm. I bet it hurts more when they hit you in the gut with your stomach showing like that"
"Eh" she shrugged. "It's gonna hurt regardless." ChiChi skipped happily towards the palace director.
"What are you doing?" she asked, wondering why she suddenly got so happy.
ChiChi readjusted her wrist bands, pulling them closer down to her hands, "I am celebrating the fact that I just mastered stealth in overwhelming forces situations. What are you doing Keiya? What is so important that you must interrupt my afternoon training?"
"I've come to deliver a message. You know that boy that promised to come back and marry you when you two were kids?"
Her memory wasted no time in bringing back the image of the face that cute little boy with spiky black hair, "Goku? Yeah I remember. What about him?"
"He's here."
ChiChi's eyes widened. She was left at a loss for words. She had begun to think he would never come back. It had been five years and they were both eighteen now.
Keiya waited for a response from the princess but it had been a while. Her expression was blank, unblinking, in shock. "Princess?" she nudged her shoulder. "Say something"
ChiChi blinked at the contact. Bringing her back to planet Earth, "Uhm…" her eyes blinked a few more times, "I, uh… How, h-how do I look?" she looked down at herself, "Geez, look at me, I'm in my training outfit, I just fought, my hair…" she ran a hand through her hair, "Okay my hair's not bad but I haven't even showered I probably smell horrible I look like a total train wreck, ugh.."
"Nonsense ChiChi. You look beautiful. Let's go inside to reunite you with this young man."
INSIDE THE PALACE
"Is ChiChi going to get here soon?" Goku asked the Ox-King.
"She should be along any minute son. My daughter has been waiting for you for many years" the king put a hand on Goku's shoulder.
"Hey!" ChiChi put her hand in the air waving at her fiancé and her father, walking towards them. Her knees almost buckled when she saw him. 'Gosh he's gotten so darn cute' the princess thought, "Goku. I'm so glad you came back." she gave him a hug when she reached him.
"I always keep my promises" he grinned.
She blushed at his smile and adorable face, "Uh, I'm sorry I kept you waiting so long. I was outside training."
"Oh so you're the energy I sensed out there!" Goku said, "I was wondering who it was. You're pretty strong!"
She blushed some more, "Thank you"
Goku looked her up and down checking out her physical state, "I'd love to have a sparring session with you, after we eat of course."
"Huh?" ChiChi looked at her father in confusion who looked almost as confused as her. "Uh, eat?"
"Yeah? Is the food ready? I'm starving!" He rubbed his empty stomach excitedly.
ChiChi tried to piece things together but nothing came to mind that made sense. She was expecting his first question to be something along the lines of, "How soon can we get married?"
"I'm sorry, did uh- Did someone tell you there would be food waiting?" ChiChi wore a look of concern on her face.
Goku also wore a look of concern at the thought that there actually wouldn't be any food, "Well, no but… That's what I came here for."
The Ox-King and his daughter looked at each other once again in confusion, "You- You mean you didn't come here for a bride? You came here to… Eat?" ChiChi was now more worried than anything.
Goku looked at her with an expression of the deepest confusion, "Well… Isn't that the same thing?"
ChiChi let out a deep sigh in response to his answer, "Dad, he-"
The Ox-King took a step forward to him, "Goku… a bride is a girl who is about to be married. That girl then becomes a wife."
The young warrior had never heard these words before, nor had he ever been so confused, "What's a wife?" he asked.
ChiChi's eyes widened, "He doesn't even know what a wife is? Oh, father this is terrible!"
Goku watched her emotions stream from her eyes down her cheeks. She turned and ran from them going back outside hurriedly, "ChiChi wait!" he called out after her but she continued to run, "Why is she so upset?"
The king sighed sadly at the reaction of his daughter. He hated when she was upset. "Goku, your wife will be a girl you love in a romantic way. You'll love many things in your lifetime: friends, other people, perhaps an item that you care very much about, and your children if you are ever blessed with any but loving someone in a romantic way, you'll not feel that type of emotion towards anyone else and you will certainly feel and know the difference. You live with her, you care for her, you show your feelings for her on a deeper level. You protect her- not because you have to, but because you want to. You won't want anything or anyone to hurt her. When you feel all these things, and more, you give her this." he pulled a small box out of his pocket and handed it to Goku.
Goku took the box and curiously opened it. He took in the appearance of the ring inside, small, gold, with a big diamond in the center, two smaller diamonds on each side of the center, with small diamonds around the wedding band, "It's pretty" he said, "But why give her this?"
The Ox-King sighed, realizing this young man had absolutely no clue when it came to anything about marriage, "This is what you give her when you're ready to marry her. You get down on one knee" he demonstrated by getting on one knee, "And say will you 'marry me?'"
In that moment a maid was walking across carrying a basket of folded laundry. Goku and the Ox-King, still on one knee, looked at her shocked face. The king looked at the ring, then at Goku, "N-no. This- This is not what it looks like" he said with a blush.
The maid put a hand up in the air and shook her head as if to say 'it's none of my business' and scurried away. The Ox-King stood up when she walked away so that no one else might get the wrong idea.
"How will I know when I'm in love?" Goku asked.
"You'll know. You won't need anyone to tell you. It'll be a feeling you've never felt before."
"Can't I just marry her now?" he asked not wanting to wait any longer.
"No" the Ox-King said, "No marriage will survive for very long without love. Without love both of you will be unhappy."
"Okay,,," Goku thought about the emotion called love and wondered why it was so complicated. "How do I fall in love?"
The Ox-King wasn't sure how to answer this question. The answer would be different for different people. "I suppose the way one falls in love is just by spending time together. Doing different things. The more time you spend with her and the more things you find out about her and how happy she makes you, you fall in love with her eventually, you'll realize that you can't imagine your life without her. On the downside it might not work. You may spend a lot of time with her and you still might not fall in love.
Goku thought about ChiChi. He thought she was beautiful. Fit, a fighter, strong, and tough. This was attractive to him. He had met a lot of girls in his life but he had never been attracted to even one of them. The thought of living with her didn't bother or scare him. "I want to try to love her."
The Ox-King rubbed his chin in thought, 'This would make ChiChi so happy. I would hate for her to think she wasted her time on him. She's turned down so many boys just anticipating Goku's return and he's the only one I trust to be strong enough to protect my daughter when I'm not there to do it myself. Yes, perhaps this is the right way to go'. "Right. Goku, years ago I had my servants build a fairly large furnished house on Mt. Paozu for you and ChiChi when the time came. I want you to take ChiChi up there and live together for a while. Just to see what happens."
Goku put his fist up to his face in determination and smiled, "I'll do it! Thank you Ox-King!"
The kings thoughts went back to his daughter crying outside. "Maybe you should be the one to tell ChiChi this happy news."
Goku nodded with a smile. Taking the ring and putting it in his pocket for safe keeping, he walked out in the direction ChiChi had taken off to.
Outside ChiChi was sitting on a rock over looking a pond with colorful fish. She cried quiet tears that were rolling down her face. She thought of all the plans she'd made for her and Goku. The hopes and dreams that kept creating themselves over the years. Childish illusions. The perfect house her father had made for them when Goku would marry her. The wasted years.
"ChiChi?" a voice called behind her.
She turned her head to see who was talking to her, "Oh, Goku." she wiped tears from her face using the back of her hand. "It's you" she sniffled. "What is it?"
"I want to love you" he said.
ChiChi's tears stopped and she turned around slowly to look him in the eyes, checking for seriousness, "Really?" she asked in disbelief.
Goku nodded, "I want to marry you, but your dad says I can't unless I love you so he wants us to go to the house he had made for us on Mt. Paozu and live together."
She studied his face, wondering what could've compelled him to make such a big decision so incredibly fast, guilt? "Are you sure you know what you're saying?"
"Yes. I know what I'm doing this time. I know now what a wife and husband are. I know what marriage is. I know what love is." Goku took her hand and pulled her up on her feet with him. "I want to do this."
ChiChi blushed at the feel of his touch. His eyes, lips, muscles, everything about him had gotten so handsome since they were kids. She smiled, "I always hoped this would happen."
"Just one question before we go."
"Yeah?" she asked wondering what romantic question he had in store for her.
"Can we eat first?" his goofiness returned within an instant.
She just couldn't help but smile too, "Oh Goku!"
A/N: So! There's that! Haha. Please tell me what you thought, I'm a little iffy on continuing this story but with the proper motivation I will keep adding on the chapters till we reach the end together :) I selected this rating because I am, in fact, planning a lemon, somewhere in this story. There's also going to be some mild sexual scenes in the near future as well if I choose to continue sooo... Just a little warning!
-SilverFoxx92