Always There
By Marron

Disclaimer: If you write it, they will come. That doesn't mean that you'll own Dragonball, though. Trust me, I've tried. --Please note, I'm not really a big fan of Y/M, but I have a very special friend that is. This fic was written for her. I'm more of a G/M girl myself, but to each their own. :D

Full Summary: This was written for Kinomi for her May/December page. It's a short, sappy story featuring Yamucha and Marron. I'm not really a YM fan at all, but if it makes my Neechan happy, I'll put up with it long enough to write her a fic starring those two. :P This is a short, sweet fic, rated M for Mushy. No violence, no nudity, no nothing. Just pure sappy romance type stuff.

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The rain poured down from the dull, gray sky in sheets, never stopping, never letting up. It was as though the heavens themselves has opened up, and the gods were crying tears of sorrow onto Mother Earth, her own salty tears streaming down the soil, mixed with the pure water of the sky.

Barely a sound could be heard over constant and loud pitter-pat of the rain, but one weak noise struggled against the sound of the rain, resonating through the air, and echoing off the bleak clouds. That sound was a voice.

The voice pleaded, in song wrapped with heartache, that angels shroud a soul with peace, and carry it to the loving arms of those in the heavens above. The voice, Marron's, sang above the rain at a funeral. Her father's funeral.

Kuririn's friends and family, some which he hadn't seen for years, others who were closer to him than words could convey, were all gathered together around his casket, and the large hole in the earth that would ultimately be Kuririn's final resting place. The friends stood, huddled together under umbrellas, with looks of grief-stricken disbelief etched into their faces. Many of them had known Kuririn most of their lives; he was a strong, determined man. Although he was not as strong as the Saiya-jin, he was indeed strong, and he never gave up. Now, Kuririn had passed away, not in the heat of battle, not protecting the ones he loved, but from a tumor that had slowly eaten away at his brain. Nobody had known until it was too late.

Marron's voice ebbed away before her song—one of her father's favorites that Bulma had suggested she sing at the funeral—could even finish, and she dissolved into sobs. Gokou, who was the closest to Kuririn and his family, put a comforting arm around Marron and nodded silently to the old monk who was there to send Kuririn into the next world. The monk finished the funeral rights, and the casket was lowered into the damp earth.

Most of the gathered group came around and gave Marron a sympathetic hug before leaving. Before long, she stood alone with her mother, who stared blankly out into the horizon. "Come on, Mama." She coaxed the woman, putting an arm around her. Ever since the night Kuririn had passed away, her mother had stopped speaking, stopped reacting. Marron could only guess that it was the shock of her loss that had rendered her mother as a lifeless shell of her former self. Although her mother was trapped inside her own mind, she knew that her mother still was alive inside; she knew because at night, when Marron would tuck her in, Juuhachi-gou's arm would stray to Kuririn's side of the bed, and silent tears would begin to trickle down her face.

All of it was tearing Marron up inside.

A hover car stopped next to them, and Yamucha hopped out of the driver's seat. He walked around to the passenger seat, pulling it forward and helping Marron get her mother situated in the back. Yamucha locked the seat back in place, and wordlessly, Marron climbed into the front seat. Yamucha got into the car, started the engine, and took off. He wasn't quite sure what to say to Marron, and so he remained silent. Yamucha had known Kuririn since he was a young teenager and Kuririn was a little boy. They, along with Gokou and Bulma, had all grown into adulthood together, and were all very good friends. After retiring from his baseball career, Yamucha had moved into the Kame House, and the large group—himself, Roshi, Oolong, Kuririn, Juuhachi-gou, and Marron—were all very happy, despite the lack of space on the tiny island.

Yamucha had watched Marron grow up into a beautiful, intelligent young woman and now, at 20, just when her life was beginning, it was sad to see something so horrible happen.

"You did good, Marron-chan." Yamucha finally spoke up, breaking the silence. He looked over to the blonde, who gave him a small, grateful smile.

"Thank you." She said quietly before returning her gaze back to the countryside. Bulma had insisted that everyone gather for a dinner in honor of Kuririn, and the ride to West Capitol by aircar was a bit lengthy. However, in her mother's state, Marron couldn't just fly. Yamucha had been kind enough to drive them. They would all spend the night at Capsule Corp., and start on the lengthy trip back to Kame House in the morning.

They rode for a little while longer, with nothing said between them, the only sound heard being the rain splattering against the roof and windshield of the aircar. Yamucha thought to himself, trying to figure out what to say to the young woman who sat in the passenger seat beside him. There was so much he wanted to say: how proud he was of her for taking care of all her father's funeral arrangements, how strong she was for keeping her head held high despite everything that had happened, how amazed he was that she had grown up to be such a beautiful, amazing young woman, despite growing up on a tiny little island, crowded together with not only her parents, but with a flirtatious ex-baseball pro, an old lecher, and a perverted pig. Yamucha wasn't quite sure how exactly to say everything, or even if he should bother. He decided to try, anyway.

"Marron-chan," he started, but then abruptly stopped as he heard a 'shhh' come from the back seat, as though someone was hushing him. He glanced in the rear-view mirror, to see Juuhachi-gou staring into the distance in a lifeless manner. Great, now I'm hearing things, he thought, and then shook his head. "Marron-chan," he continued, looking over at the young girl before growing quiet again. Marron was curled up on the seat, her head resting against the window; she was fast asleep. Yamucha stared at the girl for a while, before looking at Juuhachi-gou in the rear-view mirror again. "Sorry." He whispered and then turned his eyes back to the road.

After about two hours worth of driving, Yamucha finally pulled up in front of the round, gleaming dome of the Capsule Corporation. He powered down the air-car, and then gently put a hand on Marron's shoulder to wake her. "We're here." He said, a bit on the soft side, but loud enough to stir the girl from her slumber. Marron's eyes fluttered open and, stifling a yawn, she stretched like a cat before looking to Yamucha. He gave her a small smile, then climbed out of his seat and rounded the car to open the door for her. Marron voiced a tiny 'thank you' as he helped her pull the passenger seat forward and coax her mother out of the back seat with soothing words. Yamucha watched her face as she helped Juuhachi-gou out of the car, and frowned at the pain he saw reflecting in the young girl's eyes. It's not fair, he thought, idly, that she not only had to lose her father, but had to lose her mother, too. Especially like this.

The dinner they held in Kuririn's honor was rather unceremonious, especially considering the eating habits of the slew of Saiya-jin and demi-Saiya-jin at the table. After dinner was finished, everyone sat around drinking tea or coffee, talking about old times, and their fondest memories of their dearly departed friend. Marron sat next to her mother, as silent and motionless as the woman herself, listening to everyone's words. After a while, she quietly excused herself and got up, heading outside.

"Poor dear," Bulma sighed. "Maybe someone should go talk to her. Trunks?"

Trunks groaned. "But Okaa-san…" He whined, causing Goten to snicker uncontrollably.

"Yeah, Trunks-kun. Now's your perfect chance to sweep Marron off her feet!" He giggled through his hands.

Trunks glowered at Goten with a sour face that would have even put Vegeta to shame. "You're one to talk, mister 'I've been secretly in love with Marron since she was fifteen!'" He muttered.

"Hey! That's not true!" Goten pouted, punching Trunks in the arm. Trunks returned the punch, and before long, the two young men were slapping each other back and forth like little girls.

"Juvenile," Yamucha muttered, shaking his head. "I'll go check on her, Bulma."

Bulma sighed. "Thank you, Yamucha."

***

"Hey, little chestnut. Everything okay?" Marron didn't bother to turn around; she didn't need to look to know that it was Yamucha standing over her. She leaned against the railing bordering the back porch, and simply shrugged in response to Yamucha's query.

"No, I suppose everything doesn't seem okay, does it?" He chuckled despite himself as he leaned against the railing next to her. "Your father passed away, and your mother was so shocked and grief-stricken by it that she withdrew into a catatonic state. Things don't seem to be okay at all."

There was a short silence, where Yamucha mentally kicked himself for what he had just said, before Marron spoke up. "I always knew they'd die." She said softly. "Someday, I mean. I always knew that I would lose them. But not like this. Papa was supposed to grow old, live to be even older than Kamesennin, Kaa-san too. They were supposed to grow old together, and live happily ever after."

"They were together for twenty years. That's a long time." Yamucha pointed out.

"Not long enough." Tears began to stream down Marron's face as she turned to look up at the older man. She looked as though she would fall, as though her legs were no longer willing to stand beneath her, and all he could do was wrap his arms around her with a comforting hug. There they stood like that, for what seemed like an eternity to Yamucha, as Marron sobbed into his chest.

"Don't cry any more, little chestnut," Yamucha consoled her, stroking her soft hair with his hand. "Things will get better with time. I know it doesn't seem that way right now, but it's true. Your mother is a very strong woman—she'll come out of shock soon, because deep inside she knows that she still has you. She also knows that even if your father isn't here with us anymore, that doesn't mean he's completely gone. Your father was a good man; he had the biggest heart of anyone I've ever known—even Gokou! Right now he's in Heaven, looking down on us. He's telling us not to be sad, Marron-chan. He's telling us not to feel sad, because he's watching over us, and he'll always be with us. Can you feel him, little chestnut? Can you feel his loving gaze on you from the stars above?"

Marron's sobs subsided and, as she leaned against Yamucha's chest for support, she held her breath. "Yes." She whispered, her breath still ragged from crying. "I can feel him. I can." She looked up at Yamucha, who smiled softly at her.

"See? You'll never really be without him." He assured her as she looked down into her azure eyes. She stared back at him, her expression and her eyes filled with something that he couldn't quite recognize; a feeling that was distant, yet familiar. "Marron, I--"

"I'm in love with you, you know." She cut him off. "It's not the time, or the place to say it, but I do." Yamucha looked into her face for any signs of her words being a joke, but all he saw was the truth. "You've always helped me when I needed it. Now, more than ever, proves it. You've always been there for me; always let me confide in you, always believing in me, even if nobody else seemed to. You're right, things will be okay, because of you."

Yamucha wasn't quite sure what to say. He felt the shy honesty in her voice, the love in her eyes, and the complete and utter shock of her confession. Truthfully, he had felt something for her since her seventeenth birthday; he felt worse than Oolong and Roshi combined for being attracted to such a young girl. But it wasn't just her body, it was everything about her. He wanted to be with her, protect her. And, at that particular moment, he wanted to kiss her. He slowly lowered his head to hers and tipped her chin up with a calloused finger as her large blue eyes slid shut. He closed his eyes, taking in her scent, her warmth, and he could almost feel the soft touch of her lips against his own.

"Marron-chan, come quick!" The clattering of the back door, and Bra's excited voice as she ran outside caused Marron and Yamucha to turn towards the girl. "It's your mother! It's Juuhachi-gou! She moved on her own!"

"What?" Marron asked, blinking.

"Juuhachi-gou! She's come out of her shock! Come quick!" Bra gave her friend a swift hug, and then ran back inside.

Marron looked up at Yamucha, who smiled back at her. "See? I told you everything would be okay." He said. "Let's go see your mother."

Marron nodded, her eyes filling with tears of both relief and joy, and they went inside, hand in hand, together, as they always would from that time on.

~End~