It was a curious thing, friendship. It could come from forged bonds between others, or completely out of nowhere. Sometimes, the most unlikely of people became friends, either by proxy or as a real member of one's life.
Yamcha liked to believe that he was fairly fortunate. Mostly. He had his good spirits regardless of the obstacles thrown at him, and always tried to remain upbeat. He could safely say it was one of his positive traits.
Apparently charming villains was also one of his day jobs now. At least, that's what his friends were saying.
But in the wise words of Puar…
"I think it's kind of nice that you're getting along so well with him."
It had been morning after sleeping off the alcohol in his body (he was still convinced that wine had at LEAST 50% alcohol content) when his best friend had come to check up on him. He had mostly been hanging around Oolong and leaving Yamcha to his own devices, but since he had seen both him and Frieza walking off towards rooms together, the flying feline had had his concerns.
"You really think so?" Yamcha honestly thought that Puar would be the first one to throw up his dukes and want to beat Frieza up if he ever hurt him. Wasn't that what friends did?
"Yeah!" the flying cat looked happy, "I mean, you were right! Most of Goku's friends now have tried to kill him… what if you became good friends with Frieza? He doesn't seem to want to hurt you, AND you would have a powerful ally!"
"I dunno, that wine he gave me sure sent me spinning."
"I actually agree with Frieza on the fact that you are a lightweight."
"Jee, thanks Puar."
The cat had to giggle.
He did consider his current situation. Frieza seemed interested in him, at least as a companion when he wasn't engaged with the Gods or giving death glares to the saiyans in the room, and everyone at least seemed relieved that the tyrant was occupied. No doubt, they had some gratefulness for his help towards saving the Universe, but it didn't change the fact that Frieza was still, for all intents and purposes, evil, had had big plans that he made no secret about in wanting the top job as God of the Multiverses, and seemed to have zero remorse at the idea of slaughtering almost everyone in the room.
But there was also a sense of calm that seemed to come about him whenever he and Yamcha 'hung out' - it didn't seem as though Frieza had any sinister plans for him, at least. It brought him only a small amount of comfort.
"He has been pretty nice to me, you know, for an evil emperor who almost owned the entire Universe," he mused almost to himself, but Puar giggled, which caused him to at least smirk. He supposed it was amusing.
Still… the unusual friendship he had managed to strike with Frieza was one that he honestly didn't mind having, and continuing. Even if he still found himself scared of the icejin from time to time, he felt that was a natural reaction to having someone around who could potentially get into a mood and kill him.
He decided it was weird being friends with a villain.
He wondered how Bulma had done it with Vegeta during his villain years.
Suddenly, he didn't want to know.
Ah well.
"Well Puar, whatever happens, I'm just glad I made a friend."
Wearing clothing was somewhat of an oddity that he wasn't quite used to, Frieza decided.
While he liked his formal suit just fine, he had to admit he much preferred to just walk around in his own skin in his true form. He supposed it was different when in his other forms… not that he really cared anyway.
It was nice to relax for the day. Right now, he was lying on his back on his rather decently sized bed, his legs folded over one another and playing with the crest of Universe 7 in his fingers. The icejin watched as he flicked it from left to right along his knuckles, his mind in thought.
Frieza was not one to settle, not for anything nor anyone. He wanted the best, and only the best, because that was what he deserved. So of course it was his goal to be a God! Not work for one.
He grabbed the badge, a growl in his throat. He was the one who had workers, not the one being the worker!
The tyrant took a deep breath and let it out. Calm down, this is beneath you.
He put the badge down, back with the cape it was attached to in the first place, and sat up with a sigh. He hated fighting with his own brain on things he really didn't want to give a damn about. Frieza just wanted to rule the known Universe and have his lackeys do all the work. Except he was fresh out of lackeys.
Damn.
Well, some of the planets he still technically owned and conquered would likely still be around. All he had to do was go BACK to those planets, now with the hand of a God behind him, and simply… convince them to come back onto the force. And this time, he wouldn't make the mistake of trying to get on the rough side of the saiyans, loathe as he was to admit. He would not hide from them, but he wasn't going to let them run his life, either. He would work for Beerus… for now.
With that decided, the icejin stood up and stretched. Maybe today he would go and harass that human some more.
A smile formed on his face at the thought… he couldn't believe that he had gotten to know that fighter, if he could even be called that. He was nothing power wise… but something about him was interesting to say the least, more than what he had already observed, anyway. He could become a valuable asset to his army-
Frieza paused. Something seemed off with that thought.
He shrugged and went to get dressed - no matter. He wouldn't think about it more for now.
The last day of the party was mostly a wind down so that everyone would be on their way back to their various homes, and their various jobs around the multiverse. It had been a chance for Yamcha in particular to go out and look around the area. They had brought food from Earth, of course, but where they were was rich with minerals and beautiful stones. Yamcha knew a fair bit about different metals from Earth at least, since he had spent the majority of his time in the desert growing up, and often times people dumped stuff out there that they really had no business dumping.
The former warrior wasn't a dumpster diver by any means, but now and then, something could grab his attention. Today was no different. As he searched around outside the giant mansion where they were having their party, he spotted something lying in the sand, and shining brightly in the light of the two suns. Yamcha went over to pick it up, and identified the lump as a very lustrous metal.
He smiled - it would do perfectly.
"Oh, there you are~"
The smooth voice was unmistakable now, and in the past might've brought him some degree of fear. But the events of the party had Yamcha turning towards the sound with a sheepish smile, "hi, Frieza. Were you looking for me?"
Said former emperor huffed, "I merely noticed your absence," but his tail was making slow curls behind him - a sign of happiness? He was still getting to know the other's body language.
"Oh, well, sorry about that," the human scratched his cheek, "I went out to do a bit of exploring in this place," he shrugged, "old habits die hard."
"Huh…" It was something foreign to Frieza to simply want to go out and explore. He went out and conquered, not explored. A playful idea, for certain… too bad he had no need for such whimsy.
"Anyway, today's the last day of the party, so I guess you'll be heading back into space?"
Yamcha's question made Frieza brush away the thoughts and focus more on the present, and he nodded, bemusement in his tone, "that's right. Though to be honest, even I'm not sure what I will do first."
A bold faced lie. He knew exactly what he was going to do. He was going to go find his planets, get himself a new ship, and get some lackeys. But Yamcha didn't need to know that.
Why, he didn't know.
"Ah, well… I didn't think we'd see each other again," that line annoyed Frieza slightly, "so I made you this," he held out a small box.
Well. Colour him surprised. The icejin blinked, took the box, blinked again and looked back at the human, "you made me something?"
"Yeah!" He had had a little help from some of Bulma's tech, of course, mostly the use of a portable metal press. Why she had such a thing was beyond him, but it made making a chain a heck of a lot easier, especially one as fine as the one he ended up forging from the metal.
But he suspected that Frieza didn't need nor want to know that.
"Truthfully, it was nice to spend time with someone at this party," the human smiled, "I didn't ever imagine I'd be able to talk to you, Frieza, but, well… it was nice! So I wanted you to have something to keep. You know… a good memory kinda keepsake?"
It was a good thing they were alone right now, Frieza thought to himself as he opened the box. Inside was a shimmering silver coloured necklace, though the metal used was clearly not silver, but something far stronger. The icejin took it out of the box and looked it over - it was a little rough around the edges, but one had to expect that from someone that he suspected had never made something this fine before.
Still… he found himself momentarily speechless. Yamcha had made this himself, because he wanted to, not because he was obliged or ordered to, merely because he felt like their interactions had been worth preserving in the form of a gift. Maybe the human was just that kind of person… maybe.
He glanced up at him. He had to be sure; "why are you giving me this?"
He had to be sure.
"It was really all I could think of that you might like," Yamcha's face fell somewhat, "not to your taste?"
"No, it's fine," he wouldn't think further on it, and he smiled before turning around, "well, put it on me."
"Oh, r-right!" Yamcha walked closer and took the necklace out of Frieza's hand to clip it around his neck.
Frieza turned back around once it was done. Him standing there in his formal attire, with the cloak that Beerus gave him, the crest of their shared universe… and the glimmering silver chain… Yamcha could feel a little bit of heat in his cheeks.
He looked like the royalty that he knew Frieza was.
"It-it suits you!"
"Hmph, of course it does~" he could play it cool as much as he wanted, but internally Frieza's mind was going a mile a minute. "Thank you for the gift," he tapped the chain, "perhaps we will meet again… in due time."
"You mean, you'll visit Earth?" the human asked curiously, though he had to wonder… would that be met with a good reception?
Unlikely.
"Perhaps I may, perhaps I may not," the icejin shrugged, "only time will tell."
"Well… it was nice to meet you regardless, Frieza," Yamcha offered with a smile.
"Mm. Likewise," with a casual wave, the space emperor left the hallway to make it back to his room.
It was only there that he closed the door and leaned against it, and looked down at the shining metal on his chest, resting against the purple cloth.
It's links, he noticed, were all somewhat unique in the sense they weren't all the same shape. He had to smile a little bit at that. It was a little bit unorthodox, and it was obviously made in a bit of a hurry… but to Frieza, it added to its charm.
Maybe he would see the human again. With his new ability to suppress his energy signature, he could all but sneak onto Earth if he felt like it without those annoying saiyans getting in his way and demanding a tell all for what he was doing. They didn't need to know a damned thing.
And wouldn't it just be the funniest thing ever… Frieza chuckled to himself, a smirk on his face…
Yes. Wouldn't it just be the funniest thing ever…
… if he bonded further with one of their very own fighters.
