Disclaimer: If I owned Sailor Moon or Dragon Ball/Z/GT, Usagi would wear a different hairstyle once in a while, ChibiUsa would have blue eyes like both of her parents, and there would be more full blooded saiyans left in the end other than just Goku and Vegeta.
Seventh Chapter
Future – Crystal Palace
It was a looming, slinking shadow. Crawling noiselessly, unnoticed, across the deserted passageways in the West Wing of Crystal Tokyo's Royal Palace.
Dark eyes made sure to look both sideways before the silent intruder sneaked inside a small corridor to their right, half tip-toeing and half hurtling till they reached one of the two mahogany doors.
They knocked twice, and after hearing no response from the inside, they proceeded to slowly ─and as quietly as possible─ swing the door open and slip inside…
…Well, they would have successfully slipped inside if it hadn't been for the scantily dressed pretty red-head standing almost over the threshold, with a baffled expression, right at the other side of that very same door.
"AAAHHHHHH!" the high pitched scream left Goku Junior's poor mistreated saiyajin ears ringing and he flailed his arms wildly as he fell backwards all the way to the ground.
"Junior?" a female voice asked, "w─ what are you doing here? You scared the hell out of me!"
"Owww…" G.J. groaned in pain while sprawled on the floor, waiting for the little imaginary hamburgers to stop rolling in circles around his head.
Vesta worriedly raised an eyebrow.
"Are you okay?"
"No, Granny, I dun' wanna go to school…" the dopey boy whined.
The red-head glanced down at him confused.
"Go-kun, I'm not your Son Pan-Obaasan" she told him in amusement.
With that Goku Junior instantly jumped to his feet, muttering frantically.
"I wasn't snooping around Nee-chan's room, I swear! I just got lost on the way to the kitchens!"
The young woman regarded him with an odd stare.
"Junior" she cut in, irritated "what in the name of Hestia are you going on about?"
At those words, the glassed-over eyes of the youth finally focused, blinking several times and looking at her up and down.
"Vessie" he started shooting back "what are you doing out of your room in only your panties and a T-shirt?"
VesVes wrapped her arms around her upper body, self-conscious.
"I was going to take a shower, when I remembered I had let CereCere borrow my hair conditioner and shampoo" she explained.
"Really…?" G.J. whistled, all too pleased.
Ohhh no. There it was, again.
That look…
"Um"
…didn't G.J. notice he was openly drooling at her?
"Lucky me"
She watched him leer at her in the most blatant manner, and started to get very uncomfortable. This was beginning to become a habit. She had always known he'd had a thing for her, but this was ridiculous.
From the moment they met when he was an eight-year-old rollicking little scamp, he would always follow her around trying to get her attention. The other three Asteroids and Serenity-sama thought it was cute, but Goku-san had mercilessly teased her telling her they would be related one day, 'cause his great-great grandson would grow up to be completely infatuated and wouldn't stop 'till they irrevocably tied-the-knot, if you know what I mean.
She hadn't taken that warning too seriously, before; but once Junior had reached puberty his attitude towards the senshi of the Sacred Hearth had stopped being the idolatry children sometimes manifested towards older members of the opposite sex, but the proper crush of a teenager, and ever since he'd finally become an adult he would not only subtly hit on her but he would give her those looks…
…So possessive. The red haired female shivered.
He looks at you like he could eat you alive, Juno had once whispered to her.
The mere idea was unsettling. He was eight years younger than her! He should be after the girls of his own age for sure, instead of wasting his time like this.
She was feeling definitely self conscious now.
"Um, I mean, see you later. I'll go take my shower now if you don't mind." She spluttered and made a move to leave.
"But I do mind"
Vesta looked down in shock at the strong but gentle hand clasped around her arm.
"Junior?"
His bottomless black orbs focused on her face.
"Why are you avoiding me?"
She met his gaze with as much resolve as she could muster.
"I don't know what you mean"
Then tried not to falter as he earnestly searched her eyes.
"Yes you do"
In an instant, she was gently pushed with her back towards the wall, the cold marble making the hairs on her skin stand on end, and he had planted his hands at both sides of her head, caging her in.
"J─ Junior"
"…Yeah?"
"What's gotten into you?"
"Mmm"
"You're acting weird…"
"Am I?"
"T─ This isn't like you at all"
"You think? ─sigh─ May be it has to do with the fact that the one woman I really, truly ever wanted is being distant to me"
There, he'd said it.
He'd finally told her.
What he'd been harbouring in secret all these years. The passion, the need, the fear of being rejected.
He just hoped he hadn't scared her away.
If I could only see what's going through her mind.
He had worshipped her from afar all of his life, this fiery Amazon, always watching her with concealed longing. When he had turned a teenager, he'd realized the depth of his feelings, torn because he knew he would never be able to have her; to be the devoted to Hestia made her untouchable, unreachable to all and every men in the world.
So he'd never said a thing about it, yet he knew others had their suspicions. He would always go out with red-heads. Tall, short, slim, fat, freckly, fair, corn-coloured, smart, stupid, funny, boring, childish, mature, pretty, not-so-pretty and down-right unattractive…
The only requisite was that they were red-heads… 'Cause She had locks the colour of blood.
There had been many, but none was ever enough like her. He would humour them and continue seeing them, pretending to care, yet in the end he was always left feeling empty… so empty that he'd sooner or later dump them and revert back to playfully flirting with his one and only. 'Cause even though she never took him seriously, being close to her was good enough to satisfy this yearning.
And now, the yearning for her to know what ate at his heart every time he looked at her was bursting inside of him. He pressed his body against her, his head resting on her shoulder, smelling her strawberry aroma.
"You don't mean that, Junior" she suddenly breathed.
"What makes you be so sure?" he whispered huskily against her neck.
"I'm too older than you" she argued.
"I decide that. Do you hear me complaining?"
"Don't joke about something like this" she told him with contempt.
"Why would I do that?" his arms encircled her waist, and he felt her growing tense.
"You already know it can't be" she insisted.
"Only if you don't want it" he retorted.
"Don't force me to remind you how little my opinion has to do with this" she murmured bitterly.
Her hands rested against his chest and she pushed him away from her, but he lifted his arms and once again had her cornered against the wall.
Fathomless black orbs clashed with blood red.
"If it was your choice…" he trailed off.
"Don't do this, Go-kun" she told him somehow sternly, but by the way she was slightly trembling and the new shaft of light in her showing unexpectedly in her eyes, he'd already had his answer.
After a long pause, her eyes lowered and she continued. "As a Vestal maiden, what you suggest is forbidden"
Her gaze lifted to his face once more.
"It'd be selfish of you to ask me to choose between what I believe in and what I feel"
His whole world sunk at those words.
"The vow I made can not be broken" Vesta finished "Otherwise it'd be punishable by death"
Mount Paotzu ─ Present
A melancholy and disheartened Chichi Mau- Son rummaged through her kitchen cabinets, looking for something that looked worth the effort of putting inside the microwave and then eating.
It had been a long time since she last felt so emotionally drained. The argument of the past night with her husband Goku had taken all of her energy and unbreakable will away from her, and it felt like she wouldn't be recovering them as soon as anyone would have liked to think.
She just didn't know what to do with herself this morning.
Today, she was feeling particularly disenchanted, dispirited and depressed, all with a capital 'D'. Not to mention sad and truly lonely. She fervently wished her two sons were still children, because then they would still be living with her, filling the house with their merry voices, their racquet and laughter. Then, she would be too busy being a mother and seeing to their needs to think of herself and her problems.
She decided to go for the leftovers of yesterday's lunch. Last night, after Goku left, she couldn't find it in herself to prepare a small supper, so she had gone straight to bed afterwards, with an empty stomach. However, right now she was too leaden and apathetic to pay attention to the certain protests of hunger her body was probably making.
I woke up at dawn, and looked at the sky. Everything was so blue…
Chichi waited until she heard the beep, took out the warmed plate and set it on the table, together with a glass and some cutlery. She was only going to have water. No need to take any more trouble than that for just one person.
Blue's all I see whenever I sit down and think.
Specially when they're sad.
How could everything turn out so wrong?
And specially when the person who is sad is you.
Her chest ached when she thought of some of the foul words she had said to her sensitive ever-caring hero. Chichi started being overwhelmed by the oppressive weight of regret.
Goku –sa…
Why was it that she could never be able to make him understand without hurting him? Why did she always have to cause him pain in order to get through to him? The truth was, it always ended making her ache as much as it hurt him.
It was a come back-and-forth situation. Her love for him wouldn't have it any other way.
…I'm sorry…
Because she loved him… with all the strength of her passionate, burning heart.
If she had to, she'd give her life for him.
Why was it that, sometimes, it wasn't enough?
Oh Love, how cruel you are…
She recalled every time she had been angry, frustrated, or exasperated with him.
All I ever wanted…
All the recriminations, the arguments, the misunderstandings; all those times she knew she should have shown more patience.
When did I mess up so bad?
Chichi closed her eyes and tried to remember the exact time, the exact moment her Goku had ceased being her husband to become more of her child.
Was it his fault? Was it hers? Had it been of both?
Does anyone really care?
All she ever cared now was to know what she could do to make it right again.
She knew of his love for fighting, of his great need to save and protect. She was aware that, in his eyes, it was that what gave his life any transcendental meaning. She also knew of his deep love and care for her and their children… It was just, that, sometimes, some things he did and the way he behaved made it terribly easier for her to forget. There were times when she didn't believe she really understood him at all.
She had tried to be strong; always faithful, always trusting, and it had all been for her family and for him. Yet sometimes she wasn't even sure if he realized.
However, she knew he never meant to hurt her. Only that the very things that had made her fall in love with him, his boyish looks, his carefree attitude, his eternal air of innocence and youth, his bravery and his heart o gold; even though she wouldn't have him any other way, these traits often conspired against them and their happiness together.
You've got to take the sour along with the sweet, that's what life is about
That was what her mother used to say, before she died. Never had Chichi understood these words and their meaning as much as she did now.
You are always asking yourself when it is and isn't worth it, though
Was she truly prepared to ask herself that question?
…Did she even want to know?
END TO THE 7TH CHAPTER
A/N: If you didn't understand the first scene, it's because you probably skipped reading chapter four (amused grin).
This chapter's dedicated to Usagi Asia Maxwell and angelwings6117, who, as I asked, guessed correctly who Galaxia was, and to Sky Unicorn, who guessed wrong but tried anyway.
So how did you guys all like this chapter?
Jay.
