Chapter Two: Starting Anew?



Later that night, Trunks lay in his bed, thinking. 'I wonder where Jun suddenly came from. She's half saiyan, but what's her mother's race? I don't think she was human because then Jun wouldn't keep it from me.'

Jumbled thoughts ran through Trunks' mind as he tossed and turned.

As he was about to fall asleep, blood-curdling screams pierced the silence of the night and sent shivers down his spine. He jumped out of bed and ran for Jun's room. He threw open the door and found her, sobbing, in her bed. She looked up at him with large frightened eyes and he crossed the room to take her in his arms.

Awakened by Jun's screams, Bulma had gotten up and peered into her guest's room. When she saw that her son was already there comforting Jun, the older woman smiled and went back to her room.

Trunks stroked the other half saiyan's hair, softly murmuring in her ear. After a few moments, she began to drift back to sleep again.

The next morning, Trunks woke up and yawned. He looked down at the weight on his chest and realized he fell asleep in Jun's bed and she was using him as a pillow.

"Mmm, warm." she murmured in her sleep, sliding her hand from his chest to his stomach.

Trunks' face flushed and he tried to crawl out of bed without waking her. She suddenly growled and muttered something under her breath. He froze there and groaned softly when he heard his mother outside the room.

'I bet mom took a picture. she will probably tease me to no end and Jun will be worse. I bet she'll want to repeat this,' he thought.

He lay there wondering why he hadn't gone to his own room last night when Jun woke up with a start. She rubbed her eyes, yawned and turned to crawl out of bed when she saw Trunks. who wore only his boxers. All colour left her face and she clamped her hands over her nose as it began to bleed.

The lavender-haired halfling blushed and bolted out the door.

Several minutes later, Trunks was sitting in the dining room, sipping his coffee and nibbling on his toast.

"So, what happened last night?" asked Bulma.

He looked up and shrugged. "I'm guessing she had a nightmare. That's all."

His mother rolled her eyes and said, "You know very well I'm asking about what happened with you two. You spent the night with her and all." she murmured, the ghost of a smile on her lips. Trunks choked on his coffee and Jun stepped in then. She looked at the young man and blushed, then sat at the other end of the table.

"Good Morning, Mrs. Briefs. Good Morning, Trunks."

Bulma smiled and replied, "Good Morning, Jun. Please, call me Bulma. Are you feeling better now?"

The girl nodded and got up quietly. "I'd like to be excused now." she said and ran back out.

The older woman watched her in surprise and nudged her son in the arm, making him choke again. "Well? Now's your opportunity! Aren't you going to go after her?" she asked impatiently.

Trunks didn't question his mother, he just got up and ran after Jun. The poor boy, horribly confused and hoping to be able to finish his breakfast soon, followed the female warrior to the top of his home.

He sat down next to her and placed an arm around her thin shoulders. "What's wrong? Is it about last night?" he asked softly. When she edged away from him in reply, he frowned and tightened his grip. "Tell me. You can't be keeping so many secrets from us if you're going to be living here," he growled softly in her ear.

Jun cringed and brought her knees up against her chest, her tail wrapping around her waist at the same time. "Last night.I had a nightmare, obviously. It had something to do with Planet Vegeta. But, tell me, how long have you been on this planet?"

"All my life. I was born here," he replied, wondering what this had to do with anything.

The other saiyan looked at him strangely and bit her lip thoughtfully, muttering, "Strange. your father, no doubt, should have been sent here to take over this planet or something. Our kind wouldn't even go near such a weak, under-developed planet as this for no reason. Who was your father?"

Trunks looked slightly annoyed but replied after a short hesitation, "Vegeta."

Jun blanched visibly and her jaw dropped. "Prince Vegeta? You're the heir of the great prince?" she asked incredulously.

"Jun! I don't mean to be rude or anything, but what does this have to do with anything? I don't see what point you're trying to get across here by asking all these questions."

She growled and broke away from Trunks' embrace. "This has a LOT to do with everything! Do you know that the last time I saw the prince was supposedly two days ago, and he was only eighteen then! Now I come here and he has a son that is as old as he is! It doesn't make sense!"

She took a deep breath and looked at Trunks who was staring at her in shock. "I'm very sorry. I didn't mean to yell. You're going to catch flies if you don't close your mouth, you know."

Trunks closed his mouth and stood up. "Okay. First of all, calm down and tell me what has been upsetting you before." he said calmly.

Jun stood up also and walked around to stretch her legs. "Well, in my nightmare, I was reliving the day that my planet blew up. I still remember Mr. Bardock trying to take on Freezer, and failing miserably. Several moments later, Freezer's henchmen took me away and tried to get me to tell them who my mother was. It was known to all that I wasn't a pure saiyan, but none knew my mother's identity, I didn't even know myself. They tortured me because I couldn't tell them, but eventually, they got fed up.

I was left with scientists who experimented on me for years. They kept me alive because I always managed to pull through and gave them accurate results. So, with a life as a guinea pig, I was allowed to live. Not a very comfortable life or anything, but I had no choice. They had tested my blood and it took them several years to find out what race I was. Once they found out, I was locked up again. Another boy was kept there, the last of his kind. My mother's planet was blown up, too, and he managed to escape. He was tortured daily and I was forced to watch."

There, she trailed off and Trunks studied her face, hoping she would reveal more.

"I woke up when something happened to him. I can't remember what it was. The more I try to remember, the more fades from my mind. Everything about my life used to be so clear to me, but suddenly I find holes in my memory. He was very important to me; it felt like our lives were nearly connected. He was my best friend, my only friend for several years, and now I can't remember his name or what he looked like. There's just something about him that makes me shake with grief and fear for him. We used to talk a lot about the future and what might happen. We used to joke around about time travel and how we'd both live to see a better future. I never expected to see it without him. I feel like I've abandoned him."

Trunks shook his head sadly and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Don't feel bad. I know that if you could have helped him, you would have. None of this is your fault. For the moment, just try to relax and enjoy this peaceful life. You never know when it can be taken away."

Jun smiled weakly and nodded as he led her back inside. They ate their breakfast in silence and the two half saiyans spent the rest of the day getting to know more about each other and getting rid of each other's painful and stressing memories.

Jun thought that maybe she'll finally get the peace she longed for.

In the evening, as Jun was getting ready for bed, she thought she heard a noise. She looked around the room and saw nothing. Just as she slipped another of Bulma's old nightgowns over her head, something caught her eye. She looked into the mirror and it was like she was forced back into her nightmare. But this vision was much more horrible than anything she had ever dreamt.

"Traitor." a hoarse voice rasped out.

She stared at it numbly, her voice caught in her throat. After several tense minutes, she thought she was on the brink of insanity. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. The only thing she could do was scream.