Hello good people! Well, I've gotten some truly beautiful reviews and as a thanks I've given you a quick update. I'm so glad you're all reading and reviewing and, as far as I can tell, liking the story. I'd like you all to tell me what you think about Trunks and Emily's relationship so far and about what happens in this new chapter. Any and all feedback is appreciated. I hope you all like chapter 11. Enjoy!
Also, Happy New Year! I hope you've all had a lovely year so far. Much Love, Sirius1Fan.
Chapter 11: The Saiyan Way
Emily was trying to follow Trunks' story but he was talking too fast. From what she could gather The Land Act meeting had gone his way. "...and it's all thanks to you." He finished, beaming at her and despite herself, Emily smiled back.
"I'm glad." she said.
"So...what would you like?"
"Excuse me?" Emily asked, feeling lost again.
"As a thank you for your help. I always pay my debts. What would you like?" Trunks explained.
"I thought you were taking me out to dinner as thanks?"
Trunks waved the comment away "Not good enough. Your notes" he smirked "worked better than I ever dreamed, so as thanks you can have whatever you want. If I can grant it, and as Prince I can grant a lot, it's yours." He smiled.
"Well..." Emily thought, stumped by the possibility of having whatever she wanted. Her first thought was a visit to Earth, but she knew already that Trunks couldn't give her that. It took the whole Royal Council to vote on it and, besides the King and Trunks, none of the noblemen and representatives in the Council would do it for her. She asked, instead, for something else "A day out."
"What?" Trunks kept the smile on his face but his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. He'd been expecting a request of jewelry or dresses. What women usually asked for from him. He wasn't sure what Emily was asking for now.
"I've been here for almost two months and I've barely been outside these castle walls. I want to know what the real Vegetasai is like. What saiyans are like. I want to spend a day out on the town." She said eagerly.
"Oh." Trunks smile started fading away "It's dangerous but maybe if I combine your guard and mine. I'll be there too, of could organize a quick tour and..."
"No. No guards." Emily stopped him "Last time there were so many I couldn't see anything but my guards. No guards this time."
"We can't go out there with no guards." Trunks told her annoyed. "We'd get mobbed. Besides my father would never allow it and..."
"Obviously we can't go out like this. And nobody has to know." Emily interrupted him.
"What do you mean?" Trunks said slowly, finally understanding and dreading what she was asking of him.
"I mean we sneak out and disguise ourselves." She grinned at him.
"Yes." Trunks groaned. "I was afraid that's what you meant."
It took a few hours of non-stop nagging to break Trunks and get him to agree. Emily was grateful that her many "do too", "do not" arguments with Goten during their childhood had finally payed off for something. It took them nearly a week to plan their escape and the only person who knew about it was Bra, who according to Trunks, had experience with sneaking out of the castle grounds. The plan was to go to breakfast, eat something from earth and pretend they had food poisoning for the rest of the day. The way saiyans ate, food poisoning and any other type of stomach pain was considered one of the worst illnesses you could get. Bra even provided them with genuine peasant attire. By the time the scaled down the last castle wall, Emery couldn't stop smiling from excitement. Trunks on the other hand looked like he would rather have the food poisoning than be there.
"Where should we go first?" Trunks asked his happy bride.
"Well, I never got to actually see the market place. Let's go." She spoke quickly and grabbed his hand and started pulling him along. He let her, and took a chance to study how Emily looked in her third class saiyan outfit. Bra had managed to get her hands on a moth eaten and worn out cotton dress and some old maiden slippers. They'd tied Emily's hair in a messy bun and dirtied her face a little. Like Trunks, she was wearing a moldy hooded cape on top of her outfit. She looked positively regal. Despite everything, she still looked beautiful. Trunks had no idea how they were going to blend in.
He caught his reflection in a mirror on one of the marketplace stands and grimaced. Bra had painted his hair black with a 24-hour solution she said she'd used on herself when leaving the castle. He hoped his sister was telling the truth and his hair would return to normal by the next morning. He didn't think he could get used to himself with black hair. Worse, he could not get used to the itchy farmer's clothes Bra had made him wear. To top it all off, the flimsy poor man shoes were killing his feet. He looked up and caught glance at Emily's smile before shaking his head. I guess one day like this isn't that bad.
It was the middle of the day and the marketplace was completely packed. As they maneuvered through the throngs of saiyan shoppers a large man pushed Emily out of the way. Trunks immediately pulled her to him and kept his hand around her waist protectively.
"It wasn't this crowded last time." Emily yelled over the chaos of people.
"Last time, you came in the morning of a travel day. This is afternoon market on a work day."
"Want to get a drink?" Emily asked pointing to what appeared to be a tavern. Laughing and burping saiyans were flying in and out of the place. Trunks looked like he'd rather do anything but that. Emily ignored his expression and dragged him along.
When they swung the front doors open, the sight before them stopped them dead in their tracks. A saiyan man and woman in a frilly but torn dress were grunting against the wall, engaging in well...intercourse. Emily stared open-mouthed at the unabashed couple who was laughing and heaving simultaneously. Trunks pulled her away towards a table and made a hand gesture to the barman.
"Wow. Ha...what...did you see...what?" Emily sputtered, still shocked by what she had seen.
"Yeah. It happens. Saiyans are creatures driven by instinct Sexual drive is an instinct they don't bother to surpress." Trunks spoke, too casually for Emily's liking.
"The nobles do. Bother to suppress it, I mean." Emily said, feeling weird for actually appreciating something from the snotty saiyan first class.
"They don't, actually, but they do manage to not surpress it in private quarters. Public sating of sexual needs is now frowned upon in the first class community. It wasn't always like that." Trunks shrugged, keeping his hood up as the barman passed by with two pints of...something that was smoking.
"It wasn't? So first class used to..."she pointed at the now yelling couple. "Out in public too?"
"That's what I hear." Trunks shrugged and sniffed his drink, eyeing the dirty mug with caution.
"And what happened to...change that?" Emily asked, her face getting redder with every yelp of pleasure emitted from the couple.
"Freeza didn't like it." He said simply, his face darkening slightly.
"Right." Emily said quietly. She'd heard all about Freeza's reign of terror over the saiyans and other planets from her father and older brother. "So it's all about instinct here? Relationships?"
"Well yes...and no." Trunks took a swig from his flask "After imprinting, satisfying your needs with just anybody becomes more difficult."
"I'm sorry?" Emily said, coughing whatever it was she drinking. Tasted like tar with alcohol mixed in with something that resembled green tea, but not quite. "Imprinting?"
"Yes." Trunks seemed confused at her lack of knowledge "Saiyans imprint."
"Humans don't. Elaborate please." She took another sip of the tarty drink.
"Well, in the old days when saiyans found their 'ape mate'..." Trunks was interrupted by Emily snorting and spilling a bit of her drink on top of the table.
"I'm sorry." She giggled "Ape mate?"
"Yes." Trunks said, again confused. "My mother says you humans have an equivalent term...soul-mates, I think."
"Oh." Emily said, her laughter dying out. "Sorry, please keep going."
"Well, in the old days when a saiyan found their ape mate they imprinted upon them and were together forever." Trunks sipped more of his drink. The couple at the entrance had long since finished and all that could be heard was the incomprehensible chatter around the tavern floor. Emily's cheeks however, remained flushed and Trunks couldn't help but stare at how they made her whole face glow.
"And now?" Emily asked.
"Well now..." Trunks continued "Imprinting is more about convenience. For example, we" he pointed at the two of them "are not the only arranged marriage in Vegetasai. To make the transition easier, married couples force themselves to imprint on each other to make their union easier to bear."
"I'm sorry. How does one imprint and why force themselves?" Emily was officially fascinated by this concept of saiyan life.
"Well, imprinting is mostly done in a moment of passion. During intercourse your canines grow out a bit and you must bite your mate and have her bite you back to complete imprinting." The look on Emily's face was quite comical and made Trunks chuckle before continuing his explanation. "When an impression is 'true' the moment of passion isn't necessary. You're drawn to your ape mate and simply bite, instinctively-or so I've heard. The older saiyans told me stories about it once. How they would constantly loose control around their ape mates for no reason at all. It must've been horrible."
"So you don't necessarily have to imprint on your 'ape mate'?" Emily asked, trying to understand.
"Not necessarily, no. In fact, hardly anyone does anymore."
"Wait so what effects do imprinting with someone have? Why does it make an arranged marriage easier?" Emily wondered.
"Well once you imprint on someone you become connected to them subconsciously It's a bond that you can never be rid of. Bonding like that with your arranged bride is helpful. Makes the sex more satisfying and the life of togetherness easier to bear. It even makes it harder to stray into another woman's bed chamber. Not impossible of course."
"Or so you hear." Emily said dryly.
"Or so I hear." Trunks nodded, smirking a little at her dry tone.
"What if you imprint on someone and they've already imprinted on someone else?" Emily asked suddenly.
Trunks shrugged. "You'll lead a very unfulfilled life. That is why marrying someone who has already imprinted with someone else is discouraged. Makes for very difficult married life."
"I bet." Emily snorted when a thought occurred to her "Have you ever imprinted on someone?"
"No." Trunks laughed "Nor have I been imprinted on. I'm just a half-saiyan, like you. I'm not entirely sure I can imprint."
Emily nodded not saying anything but feeling slightly relieved for reasons she didn't want to dwelve on. Emily was about to say something when a group of people entering the tavern caught her eye. "Look!" she pointed at the women in the group "They're wearing pants! Why can they wear pants and I can't?"
Trunks glanced and turned to look at Emily "Because that's their uniform. They're third class saiyan warriors. They're the only kind of women who can wear pants on Vegetasai. You may too when training or in battle."
"Are all third class saiyans warriors?" Emily asked, still staring at the loud and increasingly drunk group.
"No, not now. They used to be. Before my father took the thrones and Vegetasai only income was the conquering other planets, the third class was the warrior class. They were the laymen. Second class saiyans are mostly merchants or artisans that make money off their craft. Third class saiyans now a days can be either warriors or farmers and workers. Many unmarried third class choose the warrior path because it makes it possible to ascend your rank. If you think you're strong enough and you pass a rather difficult test you can achieve a higher warrior rank despite your third class background. Few have done it though."
"Bardock." Emily said, referring for the first time ever to her estranged grandfather.
"Yes. He and his sons have managed it." Trunks looked at her seriously "It's an impressive family."
Emily gave him a confident smile "They've got nothing on my dad."
"What did he do?" Trunks finally asked the question he'd been wondering since the day he met Emily and her father.
"Excuse me?" Emily finished her drink and signaled the barman for more.
"Well, I asked my father why Kar...Gok...your father was allowed to live outside of Vegetasai and marry a human without the Council knowing about it. All ambassadors return once a year to leave a report with the Royal Council you see? But I'd never seen your father before so I knew he wasn't an ambassador My dad told me your father had been granted independence. My father granted him freedom of his ties to Vegetasai. It is a something only done to those most trusted by the King provided they serve Vegetasai with a great favor. Your dad, what did he do?"
Emily just stared at him blankly as the barman refilled their mugs "You don't know?" she whispered.
"Know what?" Trunks took the barman's drink. Before Emily could answer the barman spoke in a gruff voice "This is your second round. Let me see your method of payment." Trunks look at Emily meaningfully and she just stared back at him, confused.
"Show him your money." She told him.
"But I never carry money around with me." Trunks said aloud. Before either of them could say anything else the barman gave a loud yell and turned the table upside down making the half-saiyan couple stand in surprise.
"FREELOADERS!" The barman started yelling, his face red from lack of oxygen intake "NO PAY, NO SERVICE! GET OUT THIEVES! GET OUT!" They didn't need telling twice. Without hesitating, Trunks grabbed hold of Emily's hand and sped off putting as much distance as he could between them and the angry barman. He was almost halfway around the planet when he realized he was holding on to Emily and had probably injured her at the speed he was pulling her. He stopped and dropped down to the ground to tend to her. When he finally turned to look at her, she was shaking, crouched down on the ground.
"Emily. I didn't realize... I was going too fast." He hesitated and put a hand on her back "Do you need medical attention?" Emily moved her face towards him and he realized she was laughing. She guffawed and fell back against the stone wall in a fit of giggles that resounded around the walls of the dark alleyway they'd landed on. Trunks tried telling her off for not taking what just happened seriously, but that just made her laugh harder. Finally her laughter became so contagious that Trunks gave in and slumped against another wall and laughed alongside her. They laughed until their stomachs ached and the last of their giggles had died out. They stayed there for a few minutes, slumped against the dirty alleyway walls, weak with mirth.
"Now what?" Emily hiccuped.
Trunks turned to her, his eyes still sparkling with laughter. "When we get back to the castle, I'll have someone take some money down to the barman."
"Well" Emily smiled "That's awfully noble of you but that's not what I meant. I meant, where do we go now?"
Trunks looked around and his lingering smile disappeared beneath a worried expression. "We should go back. This is a dark side of town." He stood up and lent her his hand.
"By dark you mean...?" Emily asked, taking his hand and pulling herself up.
"Poor. And dangerous." He answered, terribly close to her face. He'd pulled her too hard, and now she stood inches from him. It took her a few seconds to move away.
"I think we can handle it." Emily answered and started walking down the alleyway.
Trunks' face darkened but before he could stop her, an explosion resounded somewhere to their left. Emily took up a fighting position but Trunks moved in front of her to cover her. Yells and screams could be heard from where the explosion took place. Kis were starting to rise and Emily knew a fight had broken out. Trunks wanted to get Emily out of there but before he could suggest it, she'd already taken off in the direction of the explosion. Cursing her stubbornness he flew closely after her, impressed by the speed with which she moved. They arrived at the scene and Trunks took in the sight before him. A fight had broken out between a couple of saiyans who were mindlessly blasting everything in their way while trying, and failing, to hit each other. Trunks moved in with the rest of the men trying to stop the arguing warriors. He was hesitant about using his full power to stop the fight. He could do it easily but he recognized some of the men around him as castle guards. If he drew attention to himself, they would surely recognize him. Suddenly, the strongest and drunkest of the two fighting men threw a mad blast at his opponent who swerved out of the way at the last second. To Trunks' horror, the ki blast continued off straight for a young girl who stood in it's path, immobilized by fear. Before Trunks could react, he saw Emily flying straight towards the girl, wrapping her arms around her and taking the blast fully on her backside. Trunks felt his stomach drop to his feet. His eyes widened, and his body was filled with cold fear. The drunk men were finally restrained and the rest of the crowd stared curiously at the place where Emily had taken the blast. When the smoke cleared again, Trunks breathed a sigh of relief as the feeling returned to his insides. Emily turned, angry but unscathed and the little girl's frightened face peeked from behind her.
"Thank you!" a woman yelled and ran towards the girl "I was regrouping all the children and she got away from me."
"Who are you?" Emily asked suspiciously. The little girl was a clearly a saiyan and this woman was purple and had several tentacles.
"I'm Iridna. Her caretaker. I care for the children of the orphanage." She raised a purple tentacle and pointed to the rundown house a few feet away.
"Oh." Emily said, staring at the house in horror.
"Thanks." The little girl mumbled "I'm Kyra."
Emily smiled at the little girl but had no chance to say anything because Trunks arrived at that moment.
"Let's go." He said roughly, grabbing her wrist forcefully and flying her away. He was moving faster than he had before and he was gripping her tighlty by the arm, hurting her.
"Trunks!" she yelled as the wind wipped her face. She was struggling against his grip. "Let go, Trunks. You're hurting me!" She yelled and powered up making Trunks fall back by her burst of ki. He turned back to her, his hair was starting to loose it's black color and his face was contorted in rage.
"Are you nuts!" He yelled at her. "Do you not understand who you are! You are my wife and Princess of Vegetasai. You are here to save the earth and this planet! We have not finished our deal with the witch! If you die before the year is up, millions of people will die!" He finished. His chest huffing as he floated in mid air. The air around him crackled with energy.
"I know that." Emily hissed back. Angry at him for yelling at her.
"Then what" he yelled "are you thinking PLACING YOURSELF IN THE MIDDLE OF AN ATTACK!"
"That little girl would've died!" Emily yelled back, equally upset. She was having a hard time controlling her ki.
"Millions would've died if you had died." Trunks gritted his teeth. "I would've had to answer to your father, your brothers, my own father. I was the one who brought you out here. If anything had happened... it would've been my..." he cut himself off mid sentence, his eyes shining with anger and an emotion Emily could not identify. He turned around and sped off. Leaving her alone, dressed like a peasant, in the middle of Vegetasai.
She gave an angry yell and flew after him, following his pulsing ki.
