~KK: HI! What a nice surprise, I didn't realise you were following along :) We will definitely be learning more about the Saiyans over time. Lovely to hear from you! Thank you for the review


When Bulla opened her eyes she found herself in a darkened room. Initially, she was certain it was some sort of holding cell, but as her senses adjusted, she realised there was too much furniture for this to be housing for a prisoner. There was even a lamp next to the bed, which she flicked it on.

What the…?

Bulla took in her strange surroundings. No windows, she noted. Maybe this really is a holding cell? But then why is there a closet? She pushed herself off the bed and wandered over to it, sliding the panel open, revealing nothing more than identical sets of armour and skin suits. This person's wardrobe looks like my dad's, she mused.

Turning to inspect the rest of the space, she spotted a door on her right leading to a bathroom. There was nothing of note inside, just a bar of soap and a straight-edge razor. There you have it, Bulla, this is definitely a man's room.

Ducking back out, the heiress noted another door. When she pulled the handle, it was locked. She couldn't help but snort at the idea of a measly lock keeping her contained and forced the door open with a mighty kick. After knocking it right off its hinges, Bulla stepped through the threshold and immediately began sprinting down the bare hallway, desperately seeking the kis of her two shipmates. For the second time, she found herself colliding with a cool chest plate when a soldier turned the corner.

Ugh, Bulla, she scolded herself, rubbing her face to soothe the tender skin. When she opened her eyes, she let out a sharp gasp, almost losing her balance as she stumbled backwards. "Goku?" she uttered, aquamarine brows drawing together in confusion.

It can't be. He looks younger, and his demeanour seems totally different.

"Goku?" he spoke gruffly, rearing his head. After a few seconds, his own eyes shot open as if something had just occurred to him. "You're coming with me." He grabbed her arm.

"Don't touch me!" she asserted, yanking it out of his grasp.

He gripped her again. "Don't play with me, kid."

She didn't flinch. "I'm stronger than I look."

The soldier jerked her closer. She could feel his forehead grazing against her own. "So am I," he warned, clenching his jaw.

"Turles." Both shot their heads up to see yet another Saiyan at the end of the passage. "Who are you hassling now?"

"I was just on my way to find you," he responded, standing up straight. "I've just figured out where the girl Auber found is from, and why there's no record of her in the system, if she's indeed one of us."

Bulla's thoughts raced while she allowed herself to be dragged over to the new arrival, quietly evaluating his appearance. He had a widow's peak, like her father, but that's where the similarities ended. This man was tall. Taller than most she had ever seen in her life, and his hair was obscene - spiky and reaching all the way to his thighs. He was an imposing figure, to put it lightly.

His own eyes narrowed once she reached him. "I know you," he muttered, although with marked uncertainty.

"No way," Bulla declared, lifting her nose. "I'd remember someone who looks as ridiculous as you."

"I know I've seen you somewhere before..." He brought his hand to her face while he scrutinised her features. She nudged his arm away, finding herself alarmed when she realised it wasn't budging.

"Does the word 'earth' jog your memory at all?" Turles smirked, watching the warrior smugly.

How could they-?

Bulla froze while the man threw Turles a look. "Fuck you," he growled. "Don't act like I was the only one to lose my life on that godforsaken planet."

WHAT?!

"For once, dear Raditz," Turles continued, smile unmoving. "I'm not taunting you. She called me Goku."

Raditz' dark orbs widened. "You!" He brought his finger to the heiress' face. "You were on that island where I found Kakarot!"

Kakarot? she gasped. Only daddy calls him that.

"You know what I'm talking about, don't you," he stated more than asked.

"I don't." She pulled away from his aggressively outstretched digit.

"Yes, you do." He stepped back, taking a better look at the rest of her. "I saw something flicker in your eyes just then." After a few moments, he added, "How did you give the others such trouble? You're a weakling earth woman. Your power levels were pathetic."

In a heartbeat, energy circled the heiress and she launched her fist right into his face. "How's that for pathetic?" Seeing the shock in both men's expressions, she took her opportunity and dashed the other direction.

Where are they? She frantically searched for familiar energy signatures, thankfully able to stop herself this time when a tall figure appeared in front of her.

Raditz wiped his fingers under his nostrils. "Nice swing," he sniffed.

"Where's my brother?" she demanded, expression stern.

"Brother, you say?" he nodded, apparently making a mental note. "Interesting."

Dammit!

"What have you done with them?" she tried again, voice beginning to lose its evenness. "Why can't I sense their energies?" Turles strolled up behind her.

"What do you mean you can't 'sense' them?" Raditz frowned.

She hesitated as she looked between the two men, each one watching her with keen interest. Bulla, shut up!

"Speak, girl." Turles dug his knuckle into her back.

"You can't make me do anything." She spun around to give him a defiant stare. "I'm stronger than both of you."

"Is that so?" Raditz smiled as he folded his arms, apparently genuinely amused. "She certainly has the attitude of a Saiyan, doesn't she?" He looked to his fellow soldier.

"I swear I'll blast this entire building until I find them," she snarled. She couldn't believe the nerve of these two, throwing her into a random room and taunting her once she'd woken up, as if it was entirely acceptable behaviour to subject a stranger to.

"I would advise against that," the taller of the two men responded.

Bulla was not appreciating the smug look on his face on the slightest. "And why would I listen to you?"

Raditz placed both palms on the heiress' shoulders and steered her further down the hallway, eventually reaching a window.

Despite her earlier conviction, she couldn't stop the exhale of defeat once she looked through the transparent panel.

Yup, that's space, she sighed.

Fuck.


A Saiyan in their natural habitat, Bulla mused, staying on high alert while she watched the two men gorge themselves in the cafeteria. Well, that wasn't entirely true. Turles was gorging himself on her left. The sound of food squelching around his mouth was almost enough to kill her own sizeable appetite. Raditz, on the other hand, was watching her with folded arms while she kept her own gaze averted.

Despite her fiery introduction, they apparently didn't feel the need to throw her back into her room. In fact, they seemed more intrigued by her than anything. Bulla held her spoon to her nose sceptically, giving it a sniff while she discreetly eyed Turles. I watched them serve me the the same thing that animal's eating, she pondered apprehensively. According to daddy, poison isn't really their style anyway. The heiress took a tentative sample. Not bad.

"Have you heard of the Saiyan race before?" Raditz finally voiced. She didn't answer, simply opting to continue with her meal. "The fact that you know my brother makes me think you do."

Bulla spat out her food. "Goku's your brother?!" she exclaimed, covering her mouth as her eyes darted around the caf. The rest of the room went quiet while way too many sets of dark orbs stared back at her.

"Keep dreaming, maggots!" Turles barked. "Back to your plates."

Much to the heiress' surprise, everyone did as he said, causing her to eye him with added suspicion. Dude's got influence. That's when she noticed that he had a cape attached to his shoulder piece, although not white like the squad leader back on Advent. His was navy.

He looks so much like Goku. She couldn't keep herself from staring at his profile.

"You and Kakarot have a child together." Bulla jumped at hearing the taller man's voice, distracting her from her quiet assessment. "He's your mate, isn't he." She transferred her attention back to Raditz, noting that he too wore a cape - red - and was still observing her carefully.

She nearly choked when she realised what he'd just said.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." She put out her hands. "Where the hell did that come from? No freaking way. That guy's almost the same age as my dad."

"The boy was yours, was he not?" Raditz readjusted in his seat, arms still folded.

"What boy? Dude." She lowered her head, glaring at him like he was still at a basic reading level. "I'm twenty-two. No kids for me yet, thank you very much."

"Twenty-two?" His eyebrows drew together in disbelief. "How is that possible? I visited your planet four decades ago, at least by earth standards. I know I saw you there that day."

She felt a pair of rough fingers on the back of her neck as Turles gripped and forced her head down. "Answer the question."

Bulla knocked his hand away and glared in warning. "I won't say it again. Keep your hands off me."

"Turles." Raditz gave a single nod and the Goku doppelganger begrudgingly returned to his meal.

After a few moments of deliberation, she decided to answer. "If you must know," she exhaled. "The woman you saw is my mother. She's friends with Goku."

"Kakarot?" Raditz clarified.

"Goku," she repeated. "The only one who calls him Kakarot is-" she cut herself off.

"Is who?"

"No one," she stalled. "He goes by Goku." Nice one Bulla. Just tell them your whole freakin' life story, why don't you.

They continued their meal in silence for a few more minutes before he spoke up once more. "If that earth woman is your mother, and I have reason to believe you're telling the truth, then why am I told that you fight and smell like a Saiyan?"

Self-consciously, Bulla leaned her head over to her left armpit and took a discreet whiff. What is he talking about?

Blue eyes skated over the rest of the room. For a bunch of mean warriors, she had to admit they looked pretty harmless. The room was abuzz with chatter and laughter and two younger soldiers, surely no older than sixteen, were currently in a game of chase. The sexes intermingled easily and everyone seemed to be in good spirits.

And here I thought they'd all be grouchy like my dad. Clearly he's a special case.

Thoughts of her father brought some much-needed clarity. What the heck was going on right now? Was she a prisoner to these buffoons? They weren't even attempting to keep her restrained. To be fair, she was certain she could easily break out of whatever they'd put her in, but the fact that they weren't even trying was strange, to say the least.

Raditz didn't even seem offended when she socked him earlier. In fact, she was pretty sure she saw him smile. This is not how I expected being a captive to go.

But then, what's going on with my brother and Goten? She still hadn't picked up even a hint of their energy signatures. Her last memory of them was from that scuffle on Advent.

Oh Kami, what if they're still there? And I'm here all by myself with these weirdos!

The thought was mortifying, regardless of how capable she was at keeping herself protected.

"Can I go back to my room now?" she strategically dodged his earlier question. "I'm tired."

"You mean my room," Turles corrected, ripping a piece of roasted meat right off the leg.

"What?" she blurted, feeling herself beginning to shiver.

"You were assigned to my room," he informed, his nonchalance unnerving.

"Ack!" Bulla recoiled, not even attempting to veil her disgust. "I slept in your bed?" She wiped her arms down furiously.

"We were hardly going to throw you to the dormitories," he shrugged, entirely unaffected by her offence at being subjected to his bedsheets.

"Why your room?" she whined, face still contorting.

"Would you prefer mine?" Raditz interlocked his fingers on the table with a smirk.

"How about neither!" she scoffed, pointing her index finger into her mouth, pretending to retch.

"Well, that leaves Nappa then," Turles proclaimed, food sloshing around his mouth. "The girl has spoken, Raditz."

Nappa? Have I heard that name before?

"Who's Nappa?" she asked, daring to feel optimistic. Perhaps Saiyan naming conventions weren't unlike many earth customs, and a name ending in an 'A' suggested the person was female?

Both men began to chuckle as Turles nudged her arm with his elbow and pointed to a giant of a man laughing raucously at a nearby table. At just that moment, he downed the last of his drink, slammed it into the cafeteria bench, and roared into his neighbour's face.

Oh dear God.

She looked back to the two men at her table, weighing them up carefully.

It's surprisingly gentlemanly of them to offer up their rooms, she thought to herself. Although it's the least they could do, really. Bulla twisted around and saw that the entire kitchen staff had stopped what they were doing to stare at her. She accidentally bumped into the man next to her in her surprise, but he simply tilted his head towards her, glancing at the heiress out of the corner of his eye. Wackos… She turned back around. Anyway, whoever I choose, she considered. I'm going to have to deal with them on a regular basis. They'll probably be coming and going throughout the day, getting a change of clothes, taking a shower etcetera. Bulla let out a breath. So how do I pick between two asshole Saiyans?

Her gaze travelled from Turles to Raditz and back. Turles was still stuffing his face, while Raditz was pumping his chest with his fist. No doubt the barbarian swallowed something without chewing it enough times.

Choose the one that's been less of an asshole?

"You." She nodded to the man opposite her.

"What about me?" Raditz looked at her impassively.

"I'll take your room." She drew in a slow breath. "But I swear to God, if you try anything funny while I'm in there, I will snap your fucking dick right off."

Turles burst into gruff laughter. "I see you already know the ways of Saiyan foreplay."

Bulla caught the end of Raditz' lip twitching. "I was joking about that being an option."

"Well, you're serious about it now," she told him, giving Turles a dirty look. "Why is the choice between you three anyway?" she queried, ignoring the crude jab and taking another bite.

"We're the only ones on this ship with private quarters," Turles rasped, raising his hand to get the attention of one of the designated drink servers.

"Is that so?" She cocked a blue eyebrow, mildly amused. "And what makes you geniuses so special?"

"Nappa and I are generals," Turles answered absently, eyeing a fellow female soldier as she sauntered past their table, before rolling his head back and glancing at the heiress.

"And what about you?" Bulla wiped her greasy hands with a rag and tossed it into Raditz' plate. He looked down at it, decidedly unimpressed.

"Raditz is our leader."

She stopped chewing. And breathing. "You're the leader of the Saiyans?" she uttered in disbelief, mouth full of food.

"And?" he cocked a single dark eyebrow.

"But… You're a third class."

Both men instantly turned their heads to glare at her. "What would you know about the Saiyan class system?" Turles asked with a hint of warning.

"Nothing!" she quickly offered. "I just figured… that since Goku is considered a lower class Saiyan, you would be too?" she directed at the man opposite her.

"We're all that's left," Raditz answered after a few seconds, much to Bulla's relief. Hopefully they wouldn't dwell too long on her slip up. "All members of the royal family are classified dead."

"As it should be," she heard Turles mutter under his breath while he finished the last of his bone.

Bulla gulped. I guess their intel isn't entirely accurate.

"So how does Goku's brother end up becoming the new Saiyan overlord?" she asked cautiously. I can't imagine daddy will be too impressed once he catches wind of this. Her first thought was to deliberately hone in on their power levels, rather than gloss over it as she had done initially to establish that her own cap exceeded anyone else's.

Hmm. She squinted in thought. There seem to be tiers, like a pyramid. Just using the cafeteria as her sample size she realised most soldiers were mediocre at best. Perhaps on the level of the more powerful humans back on earth, if not higher. A handful were stronger still. She suspected those were the squad captains. Bulla looked to Nappa. Then him. He's powerful. Really powerful. Twisting her head ever so slightly, she took in Turles. And this prick even more so. Bulla then eyed Raditz suspiciously. I'm tempted to say he's the same as Turles, but… it's hard to be sure. He didn't even flinch when I punched him, she weighed. Plus, he didn't budge when I pushed his arm away earlier... Could they all be masking?

Raditz glanced back at her. She could tell he was mulling something over in his own head while he regarded her, before finally speaking up. "You ask a lot of questions, don't you."

She shrugged her shoulders attempting to keep her demeanour casual. "Call me curious." She plunged her fork into her mouth. Shit, this is kind of good.

"Raditz is who our people wanted leading them," Turles answered from her left, pointing his, now bare, bone at the taller man. "After Bardock. He basically paved the way for his son."

Bulla gasped. Goten's grandfather was their leader before his uncle? ...Bardock, Turles called him. She tried not to make it too obvious that this was pretty significant news.

Raditz pushed himself up from the table, eyes glossing over the rest of the room's inhabitants. "I'm heading off. Turles can show you the way to my suite later."

She glanced at the aforementioned Saiyan in her peripheral vision and saw he was still contentedly digging into his meal. He paused when he caught her watching him and offered an ungraceful, "What?"

The heiress rose too. "I'll come with you!" she called out, skipping through the double doors after him.

"No you won't," he told her, keeping his eyes ahead. "I need to make a call."

"Well I don't want to be left alone with your rabid general," she argued.

"You want my room and my company it seems," he smirked, tail unwrapping itself from his waist.

"That's not what I meant!" She puffed out her cheeks. "But I don't feel your grimy hands on me every five minutes, so, for now, you're the better option."

He glanced back at her for a moment before responding. "Go wander the ship or something."

"Wait." She paused, cocking her head. "I can do that?"

"Are you not familiar with what legs are for," he uttered blandly, cape swaying while he marched forward.

"Of course I am, smartass!" she bit, feeling her face redden. "But I thought I'd be on lockdown or something. I'm not exactly one of your trusty soldiers."

"Are you honestly making an argument for why I should keep you under constant supervision?" His eyebrows drew together in bemusement while he looked back at her. "I have neither the time, nor the interest in watching you all day. Perhaps you can't say the same about me."

Bulla had to suppress a scream at the steady flow of casual jabs.

"No, earthling," he finally breathed. "I will not waste time corralling you, and I don't expect any of my subordinates to either. There's plenty of us and only one of you. Do the math and stir trouble at your own peril." He stopped at a door at the end of the passage. "Now go find someone else to pester."

She could only gape at how easily he dismissed her before entering the room and closing the door in her face. That guy is an ass and a half! Where does he get off?

Fine. She spun on her boot. Time to go exploring and see if I can find traces of the others.

Bulla wandered back the way she came before following a group of Saiyans into a nearby lift. It was certainly a tight squeeze, all these broad shoulders and muscled arms from men and women alike. The heiress caught one of them gawking at her and threw a harsh glare, simply eliciting a wink from the man. She gasped at his complete lack of trepidation and snapped her head away.

She heard soon someone sniffing and recoiled when she realised a woman behind her smelling her hair. The lift could not have dinged faster, saving her from any further bubble intrusions. Bulla poured out with the rest of them, ensuring she kept her distance while they split off in their various directions.

It seemed she'd come upon a floor of soldier residences. She walked past door after door showing rows of single sleeper beds that looked awfully uncomfortable. One of the rooms was empty, so she chanced slipping in, noting twelve cots, six along each side with a little chest at the foot of every one.

There were two doors at the opposite end, so she stepped into the one of the left. Her eyes took in a string of toilet cubicles before she spotted a long urinal along the back wall and quickly shuffled out. Oops! Wrong one. When she returned to the previous room to inspect the second door she immediately heard running water and spotted clouds of steam. Nothing could have prepared her for the sight of five Saiyans, fully nude, scrubbing themselves down, entirely unfazed by her sudden appearance.

The craziest part was, two of them were women! Just letting all their bits hanging out while the men did the same. There wasn't even a dividing wall or anything similar to attempt some sort of separation.

That may have been the fastest she'd ever flown.


"Is my brother around? When can I see him?" Bulla asked while she made her way down one of the many halls of this colossus of a ship.

Raditz ignored the question, nodding to a fellow soldier who saluted him as they passed. "Who was the other one? Another relative of yours?"

Was…? She planted her feet. And more like a relative of yours.

Annoyed that she still wasn't getting any answers, Bulla quietly considered how wise it was to tell Raditz the truth about his connection with the dark-haired hybrid. It may have been something she could use to her advantage, but something told her Saiyans weren't as sentimental or easily swayed by blood ties as those from her homeworld.

"A friend," she stated simply, picking up the pace once more.

"A friend?" he repeated, rolling his head to glance at her curiously while he continued forward.

"A good friend," she added, attempting to suppress the images of their all too brief, boundary-crossing make-out session. Can't say I've ever done that with a friend.

Apparently they reached their stop, because he paused at an entirely unremarkable door and unlocked it. With a quick inspection, she deduced that it was rather the same as Turles' quarters. Same layout - bed, closet, end table with a lamp, door leading to a bathroom.

He undid the clips on his cape and hung it up inside his closest while the heiress watched him with unexpected interest. When he began peeling off his armour and bodysuit, she looked away bashfully.

"Would you like some privacy?" she mumbled, keeping her attention on the back wall.

He looked at her quizzically before shrugging off her comment and stepping into the bathroom, not even bothering to close the door behind him when he turned on the shower.

Do these people have no shame?

She sat on the edge of the double bed and pressed her palms to her face, taking a deep breath while she dragged her hands up to her hairline and raked her fingers through her aquamarine locks.

I wonder how long they're going to keep me here? As soon as we touch ground, I'm beating all their asses, she silently grumbled. At least they're giving me my own room. Silver linings, I guess.

After what must surely have been the world's shortest shower, Raditz reentered his suite, completely bare. When Bulla realised he didn't even have Goten's poor idea of decency, she swivelled her head sharply, face turning beet red as she stifled a giggle in her hands.

"Dude!" she exclaimed, staring at the floor. "Please. I really don't want to see the Son family jewels."

I could make an exception for one of them though...

"What are you rattling about," he muttered dully, towelling himself down.

Making a concerted effort to distract herself, she decided to keep talking. "Why am I here?" she asked, folding her arms while she remained seated on one side of the mattress, keeping her back to him.

"That's a rather philosophical question for this late into the evening, isn't it?" he snorted at his own dumb joke while he dragged the cloth over his arms.

"Let me rephrase." Bulla clenched her jaw. "Why did your stupid soldiers knock me out and put me on this goddamn boat?" she demanded, falling to her back so she could stare at the ceiling. "What was your great plan?"

"There was no great plan," he answered. She could hear him at his wardrobe again. "You simply caught Auber's notice when eight of his men couldn't take you down. There is no history of you within our ranks and yet evidence suggests you're potentially Saiyan."

"Who cares what I am?" she moaned into her hands. "I'm obviously not part of your society."

"I agree with you." He shut the closet door. "We're no traffickers, girl. There's simply been a misunderstanding."

"A misunderstanding?" she repeated back to him, pressing into her palms as she threw him a death glare. "This is one hell of a misunderstanding! You've fucking abducted me!"

"Yes, yes." He waved her off before bringing his finger to his ear to give it a good clean. Ew. "And as soon as we reach Crest, I'll provide a space pod that will return you to that vapid planet we found you on."

"...And how long will that take?" she asked tentatively, feeling herself beginning to calm.

"Forty days, give or take."

"Forty days?!" she yelled, blood pressure skyrocketing once more. She really couldn't believe what she was hearing. "What the hell kind of misunderstanding leads to me being cooped up with Neanderthals for more than a month?"

"The kind where you're part of a dwindling race and make a rushed judgement while you're out retrieving last minute supplies since your ship is on the verge of departing," he answered brusquely from the other side of the room. "He suspected that you three were Saiyans who were simply lost, stuck, or unaccounted for. You wouldn't be the first." He flicked off the bathroom and main lights before approaching her.

"Remind me to thank him when I see him next," she growled, narrowing her eyes. "Auber was it? He's going straight on my Christmas card list."

"You really have got quite an attitude," he laughed as he walked towards her. "Are you sure you aren't Saiyan?"

"A big ship like this," she spoke with concerted restraint, ignoring his taunting. "And you don't have a single space pod on standby?"

"Of course we do," he responded, beginning to shuffle with the blankets behind her. "But you're delusional if you think we'll sacrifice one of them to you before we reach our base."

Bulla twisted to look at him, about to unleash all verbal hell when she stopped to observe him "What are you doing?" she asked sceptically, ensuring to keep her gaze above his neckline.

"What do you mean 'what am I doing'?" he sighed, apparently tired of her questions. "I'm getting into bed. It's time to sleep."

Bulla stared at him, dumbfounded. "You're sleeping here?" She pointed to the mattress.

"Are beds different on your planet?" he responded, though not with any real interest.

"No, I mean...If you're sleeping here then where do I sleep?" she asked, slowly realising that she may not appreciate his upcoming answer.

He looked at her as though she were completely mentally vacant.

"Here," he slowly pointed to the same mattress. "Do I need to remind you that you were the one who demanded this room?"

Her heart was beginning to pound. She thought it was weird enough living with Goten on the ship, and she had known him all her life. Now she found herself sharing a freaking room with a guy she met a few hours ago? Somehow she allowed herself to believe that he was giving his suite up for her, merely popping in every now and then to use his personal bathroom or retrieve his things.

She could feel herself wanting to scream.

"You expect me." She pressed her fingers to her breastbone. "A young woman who has been apprehended by you and your lackeys against her will, to sleep next to you - naked! May I add - on our very first day meeting, and be fine with it?"

He didn't seem to see a problem. "You can feel free to sleep nude too if it suits you."

This time she did scream, before throwing the nearest thing at his face she could find - a boot, unfortunately. Something heavier would have been more satisfying. "You're a pig." She stormed over to the door.

"I can guarantee you, you won't have a better time out there," he called out.

"Do you not have any women's only dorms?" she fumed, fists clenched while she stood in the open threshold.

"Why would we?" The question was so barefaced she could hardly believe her ears. "There's no need for us to separate the sexes."

"For decency, perhaps?!" How is this not obvious?

He let out a hearty chuckle. "The women in our ranks are no more decent than anyone else, girl. Join them if you wish. I don't care. Be warned though, I've heard murmurings that you've caught a few eyes."

"Ugh!" she groaned, slamming the door closed. I suppose one gross Saiyan is better than a whole swarm of them. She marched over to his bed and grabbed the pillow, yanking his coverings at the same time.

"What are you doing now, you restless imp?"

"Setting myself up on your floor!" she declared in a huff, dropping to her knees while she folded the blanket in half, allowing it to serve as both sheet and comforter.

"What strange people," she heard him mumble to himself while he walked over to his closet to retrieve another blanket.

She decided to let his comment go, now entirely over interacting with him. While she could concede that his intentions hardly seemed lecherous, it didn't make it any easier dealing with someone who was so blind to the comfortability levels of others.

This guy's a sexual harassment case waiting to happen. Where's their HR department?

Before she knew it, Bulla could hear the sound of his soft snoring filling the room, only adding to her annoyance at the unfazed Saiyan.

May as well try to get some rest too, she sighed. Hopefully tomorrow there'll be more answers.


Ugh, Bulla soothed her aching shoulder. Reduced to lying on the floor like a peasant. How the mighty have fallen. She pushed herself up and rubbed her eye, longing for a good teeth brushing.

Her roommate was still asleep, from what she could tell, and she found herself curious. Ensuring to stay quiet, she pushed herself up and lightly stepped over to his side of the bed. Thankfully, the sheets were covering him from the waist down.

"I wouldn't try anything if I were you," he cautioned, lifting a lid.

"Light sleeper?" she smirked, flicking on his lamp.

"You learn to sleep with one eye open in Frieza's ranks," he muttered.

Bulla paused. "You know Frieza?"

Raditz opened both eyes at the question. "That's one way to put it." He grabbed the top sheet and threw it off, bringing his feet to the floor.

The heiress abruptly turned her head, cheeks once again warming at his nonchalance. God, how many times a day am I going to have to dodge seeing this guy's dick?

"I worked for the bastard for most of my life," he added, standing tall and making his way towards the closet. "The first one, at least."

Bulla failed to suppress the gasp that came at this new piece of info. I wonder if Raditz knew daddy? He looked back at her, observing her expression carefully, but didn't say anything further while he pulled on his black bodysuit, much to her relief.

"This surprises you?" he finally commented, slipping one arm through his chest piece, along with his head, followed by the other limb.

It looks a lot like the one mom showed me once from back when daddy worked for Frieza too, she noted. Except his has that hole through the heart from when Frieza killed him.

"Uh, yeah," she mumbled, sitting down on the mattress while she reached for a believable excuse. Eventually, she decided to just distract him with another question. "So I guess you guys don't do his dirty work anymore, huh?"

"Our days of being Frieza's dogs are over," he answered with a hint of bitterness she had yet to witness thus far as he secured his cape to the shoulders. "I'd rather return to the afterlife than perform a single deed in his name ever again."

"So does that mean you're good guys now?" Bulla swung around to watch him curiously, head tilted while she attempted to gauge him in a new light.

"What a childish notion," he laughed, pausing to look at her in amusement while he readjusted his shoulder straps. "You really are one of those feeble-minded earthlings, aren't you?"

Bulla scoffed at the dig. "You don't have to be an ass about it!" she called out when he stepped into his bathroom to finish getting ready for the new day.

"There is no 'good', nor 'bad', girl." He popped back out, waltzing through the suite while he towelled his face. "There's simply doing what needs to be done."

Once again feeling her patience wearing thin at the unrefined beast of a Saiyan, Bulla changed the subject. "What have you done with the two men I was travelling with?" she asked for a third time, realising that she wasn't any closer to being able to establish anything about these brutish apes. Suddenly, she jumped up from the bed, aquamarine orbs widening as a sick realisation shuddered through her. "I swear to God, if I hear of anything having happened to either of those two," she warned, poking her finger into his chest plate. "I will kill you myself."

Expecting an equally threatening retort, Bulla was surprised to see a curl at the end of his mouth. Lifting his meaty hand, Raditz tilted her jaw upward and pressed his thumb to her chin. She could feel the fire in her belly rising.

"I like you," he smiled.


Post-chapter notes:

Thank you so much for your enthusiasm for previous chapter! Holy moly, what a treat that was. You really know how to encourage a girl.

Hopefully chapter 12 has been a worthy follow-up. Feel free to share any thoughts, questions, concerns or what-the-fucks. You guys force me to think on things, which I love.