A/N: Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry! This has taken way too long but you can read the reason on my profile... That's also why I haven't been reviewing like I normally do so gomen about that... and yes now I'm fine, don't worry. But! I think you guys are gonna enjoy this chapter the great time! Thanks a billion for reviews, you guys! They mean at the moment almost a world to me! Onwards!

Disclaimer: Old legend goes: you shall plot, you shall dream, you shall write fanfiction the hell much as you like, but you shall never own it, damn it!

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Chapter XIII - Illness

Inside the hut, in cool shadows hidden from the scorching sun, on the bed Kakarotto, the high commander of Vegetasei, lay unconscious and in severe pain despite all the help he had received from his mother and the old lady Nasha. A deep frown and bruises marred his handsome face and he occasionally grunted in pain; the herbal natural sedatives and medicine not quite enough to block out the pain and keep him unmoving.

He would survive. Kakarotto would stay in the books of living. He was too stubborn to die like that and very few patients had died in the caring hands of Tannipu and Nasha and their old knowledge on nature own medicine. The healing herbs his mother had boiled and prepared, and made as simple potion of were slowly strengthening his life force, repairing torn insides and bones back to the pristine condition.

Kakarotto was trashing slightly as his dreams were that of pure chaos. He saw nothing but felt everything. He was sick again; the same feeling of nausea; the feeling like someone had just plunged their fist into his chest and wouldn't let go. Even if the Saiyajin male was unconscious, he still felt the environment swooning and turning sharply: the pain of broken body only adding to his suffering.

Just what was wrong with him! Henki damnit! He almost sobbed in frustartion. All he wanted was to stop the horrible conflicted feeling...!

He continued his restless healing, Nasha looking worriedly from beside the little cot the Saiyajin youth slept at. The boy was in physical pain and for understandable reason, but there was something else too. Nasha didn't quite see what could be causing such mental and and minor physical effects at the same time. There was something else wrong with Kakarotto other than just broken bones...

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Vegeta had quickly dragged Bulma and ChiChi behind one hut, after shooing away the noisy village folks who after being knocked around by Bardock left them at peace, and explained the situation for them very grudgingly at some points. He didn't want to repeat how he had beaten his high commander on the brink of death when he really was innocent and all his stupid mistakes. It really cost quite much of his pride.

" So let me get this straight, your highness: you thought high commander Kakarotto poisoned you when he really was just visiting his unknown family and nearly killed him? And before that you nearly killed us with your little temper tantrum? And now he's fine and all and healing because his mother patched him up? And then we landed on you, Vegeta- majesty?" Bulma demanded the short facts and Vegeta nodded gravely, still not liking the way the woman addressed him.

Bulma and ChiChi couldn't help but stare around in wonder. The second strongest man on Vegetasei was from here? This little shabby village? And above all a third class warrior! How did that man ever manage to get that far was a miracle in itself! Few third class slaves ever got promoted to a status of a second class Saiyajin.

"... then I guess many things about him make sense..." ChiChi mumbled to herself as Vegeta and Bulma seemed to have locked gazes and stare at each other challengingly. How Kakarotto knew what the life a third class really was suddenly made sense and ChiChi found herself regretting all those words how he could never understand what her life was and that shit. He probably knew even better than her how hard it was; living his youth in a slave plantation village... She shook her head lightly as the blue-haired genius and the prince started another conversation she paid no heed to. Where was the man now? Kakarotto was somewhere in the village hurt... sudden wave of worry crashed over her and she looked around in a vain hope to see the infuriating man she played soon-to-be mate to walking around the corner and smirking that sexy smirk...

She snapped out of her thoughts when Vegeta's voice suddenly pierced her ears: " So keep up the cover, women, got that?"

" Uhm, hai, prince Vegeta!" the women saluted sharply, remembering how ChiChi was supposed to be his sister and Bulma her best friend and his name was Getto.

" So, what do we do now?" Bulma asked. ChiChi shrugged as she had no idea and Vegeta looked thoughtful. Bulma huffed indignantly at their response.

" I for once am getting all sweaty and bothered in this heat and I want one of those light outfits the villagers are wearing! Our majesty here has seemingly already blended in the local folk, I'd say!" Bulma said and looked at Vegeta's only trouser-wearing form and fought hard not to blush at the sight of his bare and muscular chest.

" Fine, let's get yo some clothes. It seems we will spend some time in this village..." Vegeta growled lowly and they marched off to ask for some clothes from the villagers. They found Bardock leaning on the wall nearby, arms crossed and eyes closed, obviously waiting for them and wanting more answers. ChiChi stared for a moment almost mistaking the man for Kakarotto: only the man was taller and had more stern exterior and a scar on his left cheek but nonetheless she was startled by the resemblance.

They lied to him some more about the true facts, ChiChi figured out this was Kakarotto's father, and Bardock then accepting their explanation led them to his house. The trio stepped inside the little shack to slightly cooler air and watched around with great interest. It was one big, very cozy looking room with a little corner kitchen; some worn and colorful sitting pillows littered the floor around one low, square table. There was another room at the back and a ladder led upstairs probably for more sleeping space. The smells of fresh fruits, sweat, the humid jungle air, the mixed scents of the persons living there and slight smell of sex mingled in the shack, making it alive with life. The palace environment the trio was used to was always clean of smells so Bulma and ChiChi blushed as they smelt the scent of recent mating. Vegeta only lifted an eyebrow.

" Tannipu! The short man who saved Kakarotto and his lady companions are here for clothes!" Bardock hollered and Bulma stomped on her ruler's foot to stop him from strangling the man. Nobody called him, the ruler of all Saiyajins, short! A head of a woman peeked from upstairs and she agilely jumped down, her tail curving quickly around her waist.

" So, you two are the ones that fell from the sky, huh?" she blurted out and sized them all up. " Guess I can loan you something... since you seem to be about my size..." she pointedly ignored them all and walked her hips and tail swinging to a cupboard and went thru some pieces of clothes.

Vegeta, Bulma and ChiChi only gaped at her. This was Kakarotto's mother? Blunt and pretty much bad-natured Saiyajin woman? Bardock laughed heartily and smirked at his guests. They thought he was dumb third class villager, ey? They were hiding something, he was sure of that! The fact that the son of the former king he had worked as a scientist many years ago until the king had thrown him out and lowered his rank to that of a third class... he met Taan and got kids... and now he wondered what did Prince Vegeta want with his son and why the almost-legal-ruler was worried about his son's health? He had not been around when the prince was born but the resemblance to the old King was too great to mistake...

He eyed the black-haired Saiyajin woman. The girl had muttered Kakarotto's name when they fell (none still knew why) and was obviously an acquaintance of his son. The blue-haired female albino wore and over-sized white lab coat and ugly glasses that screamed she was a scientist in exaggerated manner. Bardock knew only one other scientist albino in the city: Doctor Buriefusu, a man he had seen and worked with for a short while. The scarred man would have never believed that the nerdy and weak freak scientist could have mate and produce children...

And it had not been a coincidence that Vegeta, or Getto as he called himself, was given a royal blue trousers after all.

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" Ah... now this is way better!" Bulma almost laughed out loud and she twirled around in her new outfit consisting of worn brown mini-skirt and pale bikini-type top. She had taken off her glasses and brushed her short hair and now looked nothing like she usually did. Vegeta's jaw practically hit the floor as she emerged from the other room she and ChiChi had changed their clothes in. Where the hell had the mousy and idiotic genius woman gone to? Instead of an ugly lab rat in front of him stood a stunning piece of female ass in very revealing and curve-hugging clothes.

Vegeta swallowed unnoticeably: who ever knew the mismatch woman got such a full and curvy figure. Without her big glasses and the lab coat she was like another person... Vegeta forced his eyes to look at her face and not her breasts to appear like he was not affected in the least. ChiChi soon joined them dressed in slightly worn and torn red mini-skirt and bikini top. Her hair was pulled up into a ponytail leaving her bangs framing her face charmingly. The slave-turned-noblewoman was quite glad being rid of her fancy dress and constricting hairdo.

" So now what, Getto?" She asked from Vegeta who cringed at his cover name. The man looked around and then faced Bardock who stood in his customary akimbo stance. Tannipu was leaning on the wall, scrutinizing them with her icy black and fatigued gaze.

" Can we see Kakarotto?" the prince asked and Bardock nodded slowly.

" We have to get back to the field anyways and inform those other worthless brats about their brother's condition. He's resting in Nasha's hut couple houses down from here. I believe you can ask if you get lost..." the last sentence was said with dry sarcasm, his eyes sparkling mischievously and ChiChi's heart jumped again. He looked so much like Kakarotto when he was teasing her badly... The couple left and left the confused trio behind.

Vegeta scoffed and marched out, Bulma and ChiChi running after him, intending to find his subordinate. He soon realized that it was he same house he had carried the half dead Saiyajin male into and felt like slapping himself for such stupidity. Where the hell would an injured man go from there? Not far that was sure...

" Wait! Your- uh Ve--- no Getto!" Bulma yelled stumbling at the monarch as he entered one of the houses confidently. ChiChi followed, a tight knot forming in her stomach for some reason. She had not forgotten his threats and words to her and how he had hit her but in her heart and mind she had already forgiven him. She couldn't hold any grudge against him, even if he was an asshole, after finding out his little secrets.

ChiChi worriedly wondered what would Prince Vegeta do to Kakarotto now: would he be executed or beaten to death? Humiliated to in front of whole Vegetasei? Killed personally by the Prince? Her stomach twisted. It wasn't fair; after all that man had done for their planet and ruler... she hurried inside the little shack.

Inside the air was cooler and much darker and she could see Bulma and Vegeta's forms bent over a sleeping figure on a cot at the other side of the house. An elder Saiyajin lady was sitting nearby looking worried and thoughtful. ChiChi walked closer, nervous and unidentified feeling rising in her soul. Saruyan! She peered down at Kakarotto's sleeping form, covered by rough-looking brown sheets. She couldn't help the gasp escaping her lips.

He was drenched in sweat and tense all over, his handsome face contorted into a painful expression of pain and conflict. He trashed about slightly, grunting in his dreams like he had just taken a physical blow. His black and wild hair was messy and dirty and matted with dried and crusty blood. Cuts and purple bruises marred his face and ChiChi saw he was covered all over in bandages that were red from the bleeding. Kakarotto looked like shit.

ChiChi frowned and wanted badly to stroke his face soothingly, but something held her back and she didn't dare. Just because she had forgiven the jerk didn't mean she liked him any more than earlier she had.

" Kiesus and Saruyan better stop Henki from taking him..." Bulma prayed and gulped. The commander had always been nice to her and treated her like a genius she was when many ignored and degraded her because she was nerdy. She shot a dirty look at Vegeta whose face was seemingly carved out of stone, but Bulma swore she saw a flash of regret in his coal eyes.

" He is gonna pull it?" ChiChi asked from the elder woman, assuming she knew what was going on with the high commander.

The woman tsk'ed in contempt. " Of course the lad is gonna pull it thru! He's Bardock and Tannipu's son for Saruyan's ball's sake! He's a lot tougher than few broken bones! Believe me; I've seen him in worse condition! All lot in his family are too stubborn to die just like that! I'm Nasha by the way."

" I'm ChiChi, the albino is Bulma and I think you know Getto already," ChiChi answered, her eyebrows forked. Seen him in worse condition? Hell, a man couldn't get worse from that!

" But," Nasha continued, looking worried, " there's something else wring with him than just broken bones."

" Something else...?" Vegeta echoed, waiting for more.

" Yes, his condition is not normal. He should be paralyzed by the herb we gave him to help him heal better and faster so he won't use his energy for moving around but something is causing him to be restless; a feeling or emotion strong enough to break the herb's effects... the pain he's feeling is not from the wounds but reflects from something else, " she gestured at Kakarotto, " And I'd say from the way the lad is handling it, he's partially very used to it and knows how to deal with it even in unconscious state."

" What's wrong with Kakarotto then?" Bulma inquired curiously, the other wanting to know the same.

" No idea," Nasha said indifferently and the trio sweatdropped.

ChiChi bit her lip; so he had not been okay the last few weeks. The way he looked tired and pained sometimes and always so tense; ready for an attack all the time...

" How long this has gone on?" Vegeta asked calmly, his eyes glued to Kakarotto's prone and agony-filled form. Another secret the man had kept from him and everybody else but Vegeta understood why. He wouldn't want to be caught dead on in a state like this in any situation!

" I can't say, since I don't know," the elder Saiyajin female retorted sharply and then sighed, " I've known him from the baby... but I don't know what the hell is wrong with him now."

" About a month."

" What?" Nasha, Bulma and Vegeta blurted in unison and three pairs of eyes settled on ChiChi, who looked down on the floor thoughtfully.

" I said about a month. For the past week he's been so tired and tense all the time like fearing this would happen when he can't go away... his eyes were so closed and confused all the time but the way he carried himself indicated it was normal situation for him. I don't think even he knowns what's going on with himself... something is making him sick," ChiChi ventured bravely, " He used to leave suddenly and then come back like nothing had happened, but he was always out of breath and looked like he had been fighting. I thought nothing of it since I really didn't care whatta hell the asshole did..."

The black-haired kitchen slave frowned deeply and stared at Kakarotto; like lost in thoughts. " Like something is eating and wearing him thin from inside..." she whispered quietly.

" Poison, maybe?" Vegeta suggested, feeling unfamiliar emotion surging in him: worry for his one and only friend. The irony of the possibility didn't go past him, Bulma or ChiChi: the man who supposedly poisoned the prince was being poisoned...

" Not, not poison," Nasha declared, " the herbal mix Taan made is powerful enough to cleanse the body of any kind of toxins and I know a poisoned person when I see one. I haven't been the doctor of this village for sixty years for nothing, y'know!"

The trio stared silently at the scowling woman and then at suffering Kakarotto.

" When he wakes we will get more information out of him, so I suggest you go to Bardock's house for now. I'll take care of your friend here. Now shuu!" she ushered the young folk out to the humid heat. Vegeta growled and almost began forming a chi blast in his hand and blast the friggin' woman to ashes but Bulma once again stomped on his toes.

" Don't even think about it, your highness!" she whispered vehemently and Vegeta almost leveled her with his burning gaze. ' Gee, the grouch surely recovered fast from that poison,' Bulma thought as she stepped back, frightened.

" Stop it you two!" ChiChi chided them and the started towards Bardock's shack, determined not to let two glares burning holes inot her back disturb her in any way. She had lot to think about right now.

Vegeta spat on the ground. The slave girl was getting too bold for her own good not to mention the blue-haired vixen...! After ChiChi left he turned back to Bulma and a question came into his mind.

" Tell me, Mismatch, how in the hell you two bitched ended up in this village?" he demanded gravely and Bulma smirked proudly.

" Easy, 'Getto', the antidote I gave is also a homing device only I can follow and I slipped a bug into your chest armour, by the way, too... so we got into my speeder plane since neither me or ChiChi can fly, " she blushed in anger and embarrassment as Vegeta smirked at her degradingly, " and set our course here, but I guess I forgot to fuel the speeder... so yeah..." she admitted sheepishly.

" We kinda crashed!" she announced happily, hoping her cheeks weren't flaming red from the shame she felt in front of the prince. To her utter surprise he let out a roaring laughter and began laughing like a maniac.

" You're one hellova idiot, arencha Mismatch?" he bellowed between gasps of laughter and made Bulma angry.

" Hey! I'm not and idiot! You take it back you swine!" she took an angry swing at him he easily dodged. Bulma lost her balance and fell flat on her face only increasing his laughter. Growling fiercely she got up and began cursing and insulting him and soon full war broke out...

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A/N: Sorry this wasn't much of anything but I'm just getting back into this story, so bear with me. Next chapter should be much better with G/CC and all...! Please review, onegai and kudasai! Ja ne!