A/N: I would just like to point out that I am a girl. And also, I don't mind if anyone wants to use the name Colleen in their own fanfiction. I'm quite flattered, actually.

Q: Are you still deciding who Kakarot should date?

A: Not really. There are some details that I still come up with, very few happen spur of the moment while I'm writing, but I know how it's all going to end and who will be with who and who will or won't be born, killed, or resurrected. I can confidently say that none of you will see it coming, at least not from this point.

Q: How long are you going to keep Kakarot weak?

A: I wouldn't say that he's weak. He's not up to Bardock's or King Vegeta's level. He started with a low power level and worked his way up without eating any fruit. He could still take on just about anybody on the planet. Fenn is a rare case. Kakarot cannot be the only prodigy in the entire Saiyan race and Fenn will be around for a while. But I know that Kakarot hasn't really come out on top yet. He's itching to prove himself and live up to his father's expectations while exploring his own path. He's gonna find an interesting outlet to showcase his power that his parents may not approve of...

Chapter 21

I don't own DBZ

"Okay, it's time for a family meeting," Bardock told everyone as they all sat outside in the grass while he talked. "I've decided that I'm going to leave the planet to go defeat Frieza."

"It's about time," Raditz said.

"So what's changed?" Summer asked.

Bardock hated to admit it, but they all deserved to know. "It turns out that King Vegeta is a Super Saiyan."

"What?" everyone except for Bardock and Colleen yelled.

Kakarot was particularly upset. "I thought he wouldn't have the mental disposition to accomplish such a thing."

"I thought he was more like his son. I underestimated him." Bardock wondered how Vegeta was able to accomplish such a thing. If it was generic and similar to how Bardock transformed, it wouldn't be that difficult to explain that to his army. Rage really was a good way to break through. It wouldn't work for everyone—particularly Prince Vegeta—but it would work for enough. 'This might be a problem and I'm not sure if I could push Raditz or Kakarot far enough mentally to become a Super Saiyan, at least not right now. I don't think they've gone through enough.'

"Wait!" Kakarot said. "So are you telling me that you want to kill Frieza just because King Vegeta can now do it?"

"That seems really petty, don't you think?" Summer asked.

"It is extremely petty," Colleen said. "These two can't fight each other so now they're going to find another way to push each other's buttons. It's absurd!"

"Don't you want me to kill Frieza?" Bardock asked his mate. "He did blow up our home planet."

"Which led us to here."

"Which led Raditz to me," Summer interjected.

"And if Dad didn't find Mom, then I wouldn't be here," Tora said.

Bardock rubbed his forehead from a headache about to come on. "What are you saying? You think we owe something to Frieza?"

"No," Summer said, "but everything happens for a reason. Even the Saiyans like it here much better than their home world."

"Look," Bardock said sternly, "I would have fought Frieza sooner, but it was a very special circumstance. I couldn't leave the planet and leave you guys to fend for yourselves. I don't have that fear as long as King Vegeta is gone. Besides, we have our truce now."

"And how are you getting off the planet?" Raditz asked.

"I'll think of something. I still need to have a word with Bulma." 'Maybe she'll want to do something to get back on my good side.'

"I think Mom should go with you," Kara suggested.

"Why?" both her parents asked at the same time.

"Because, Papa, you overreact and I know Mama is one of the only people who can stop you from doing something stupid."

"I'm not going to do something stupid," Bardock assured.

"I think you might…" Raditz said. "Kara may not always see visions, but her precognition skills are more powerful than yours. Maybe it's best if you just take her advice and take Mother."

"But who will take care of you guys?" Colleen asked. "I might come back and you all might be dead and my house will be nothing but ashes."

"I can handle being the woman of the house," Summer assured.

Colleen cut her eyes at her daughter-in-law. "You're going to handle cooking for Kakarot, Raditz, Kara, the twins, and yourself?"

Her eyes bucked. "Yeah, maybe that's not such a good idea." 'But this would be a good time to prove myself.' "No, I can do it. I can."

"I guess that settles that," Bardock said.

Fasha frowned. "But I don't want you to leave, Grandpa!"

He felt himself beginning to soften up when he saw how upset his granddaughter was, but he had to compose himself. He didn't want his family to think he was soft. "This is something that I have to do."

"But you don't have to do it," Kakarot said. "You could just let King Vegeta do what he wants and leave it at that."

Bardock's family looked at him and waited for him to say something else. Some of them were curious while others like Kakarot had an attitude with the whole situation. Finally, he grunted and put his foot down. "I'm the head of this family and I'm gonna do what I think is best. That is final!"

Raditz sighed and started heading back in his house while mumbling under his breath, "We could have at least fixed your house before this."

The twins were over it and chased after their mother on the way inside of their home, bothering her about how they wanted to eat ice cream. Kara followed in case there was actually ice cream. Kakarot rolled his eyes and was about to just fly off to get some space, but Bardock placed his hand on his shoulder before he could leave. "I need to talk to you, Son."

Colleen decided to give them some privacy. "I'm gonna go talk dinner plans with Summer."

"What's up, Father?"

Bardock sighed heavily. "Alright, Boy, I give up. Why are you so upset?"

Raditz came back outside laughing hysterically and pointing at his little brother. Kakarot hoped Raditz didn't know about his loss to Fenn, but it was becoming more obvious with each hilarious second. "So the little prodigy finally met his match, huh?"

Kakarot growled. 'Curse you, Kara! You want me to keep your humiliation a secret and then you blurt out mine!' "Shut up," he seethed.

"What? Did you really think that out of the entire Saiyan race, you were the only one who was special?"

"What's going on? What happened today?" Bardock asked.

Raditz was beaming. "Apparently, Kakarot met Fenn—who is indeed a prodigy—and challenged him to a fight because he was all territorial over the princess. So they went into the middle of the city so he could prove himself and he thought he was going to win because Kara bet all their money on him, but he totally lost and made a fool out of himself!" Raditz could hardly get through the story before busting out in laughter again. He was laughing so hard that he was close to tears and had a hard time breathing. "I'm so happy right now!"

Kakarot exploded and rushed for his brother, but Bardock held his son back. "A normal Saiyan boy beat you?"

"He's not ordinary," Raditz said seriously, before mocking Kara by clasping his hands together and raising the pitch of his voice. "He's the dreamiest Saiyan ever!"

"Shut up!" Kara yelled from the front door. "I didn't mean to say that!"

"It must have really sucked to lose to someone smarter, better looking, and stronger than you, Kakarot, especially in front of a girl that you've got the hots for."

Kakarot hollered and tried to break free of his father's grip, but Bardock held him steady. "Get out of here," he told Raditz.

"I'm done. I'm done!" He headed back for his home and had to run into the wrath of Kara's foot that rammed itself right into his femur. "Ow!"

"It's what you deserve, you jerk!" She pouted and stormed off inside.

"Calm down," Bardock threw his son on the ground. "Everybody loses eventually, even you."

"Not Goku," he mocked quietly.

"No, he lost as well, especially when he was a boy. He competed in a martial arts tournament three times before becoming the world champion and even that was difficult. Someone is always going to test you. That's why you work hard."

"No one tests you. You're just going to kill Frieza as another way to toy with King Vegeta."

"You disapprove?" Bardock asked surprised.

"I don't care about you making him look like a fool or deflating his ego or crushing his dreams. Anything you do to him, he deserves. Just don't kid yourself and pretend that it's for another reason."

"I did want to kill Frieza. It was just best keeping Vegeta on a leash. I did want revenge on Frieza. The race might have survived, but my crew was destroyed."

"But you killed Dadoria, so you technically already avenged them. Just admit this is petty."

"Maybe it is…" Bardock did believe in the reasons why he kept Frieza alive. He could live peaceably for a little while with his family while Vegeta was off world and let him deal with Frieza, but that seemed like such a wrong thing to do. Vegeta died easily against Frieza in his vision. He didn't even survive a kick. At least Bardock was taken out in a blast that destroyed the planet. He had a much better chance and he had hated Frieza for so long. But there was more to it than that. After seeing Goku fight Frieza so hard in a struggle to survive and then achieving Super Saiyan after his best friend was murdered, it almost even seemed wrong for Bardock to do it. "A part of me wishes that you were able to do it…defeat Frieza."

Kakarot's eyes slightly bucked. He didn't believe that he was the sole reason, but maybe a little bit subconsciously, Bardock wanted his son to kill Frieza and waited. Kakarot knew that his father never expected King Vegeta to reach Super Saiyan, so who else did he expect to defeat Frieza? Kakarot understood why his people hated and feared Frieza so, but he couldn't personally feel that rage. He was, however, pissed off. "Father, how many Saiyans have been killed because you didn't act out on this?"

"A lot less than the amount of innocent people they kill around the universe."

"Big deal. Saiyans purge a few planets, but at least we give our enemies a fighting chance. Frieza literally destroys planets when he's bored or frustrated!" Kakarot thought of Fenn and how he lost his parents. Bardock could have prevented that. "We Saiyans kill people—good or bad—if they're in our way. That's true, but we're soldiers in Vegeta's army. We got in Frieza's planet trading system to save our lives. You shouldn't have screwed around with this, Father."

'He has a point…' "You're right, Boy. I shouldn't have hesitated. But I should have killed Frieza because it was the right thing to do."

Kakarot could have puked. 'There he goes on the hero tangent again.' "Whatever. Now are you gonna stay so you can finally teach me Kaio-Ken or what?"

'That's what this tongue lashing is about? I thought Kakarot was having an issue of morality!' Bardock became annoyed. "You know I don't think you're ready to learn that technique."

"Come on! I'm strong and old enough to learn it. You didn't even show Raditz!"

"That's because I know you two. You over do it and you push yourselves too hard. If you boys would have known the Kaio-Ken technique, you would have killed yourselves and you still would have never been strong enough to kill King Vegeta. Then where would we be?"

Kakarot shrugged. "I don't know. I guess Mother wouldn't be wondering about dinner so much."

"This is serious, Kakarot!" Bardock wasn't always sure how to deal with Kakarot. He was very brash and had no sense of consequence. Goku was that way, especially when he was a boy. He would charge into just about any fight or scenario. 'Maybe him losing to this Fenn isn't so awful. He needs to learn that he's not the best. He has to earn that title.' "I'm not teaching you the Kaio-Ken until I know you're ready. I'm still going to kill Frieza and I'm not arguing about this with any of you anymore. Is that clear?"

Kakarot was still angry, but he held in his tongue. "Yes Sir."

"Now, this is for you." He reached inside of his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper."

Kakarot gasped. "You can read and write?" That smart quip earned Kakarot a good smack in the head! "Sorry."

"Yeah, you should be."

Kakarot looked at the paper and saw that it was a list of the dragonballs with detailed instructions. "You want me to hunt the dragonballs while you're gone?"

"I don't think we should wait. There are other people searching for them."

Kakarot read a name on the list and chuckled. "Who is Emperor Pilaf?"

"Someone you should feel free to kill…" Bardock hadn't personally met the little blue man, but he was highly annoyed with him. After his failed attempts of becoming king of the planet, he came back years later and turned his immature and idiotic adult son into a kid and still lost easily. He didn't want to risk something that stupid happening again.

Kakarot's eyes bucked once he saw another name. "Bulma has a dragonball?"

"I'm sure she's not aware of it. If she knew what they were capable of, I'm sure she'd wish herself into a Saiyan or all humans would be Saiyans or something incredibly drastic. I can't fathom what she would do…" He mumbled, "…besides wish for a boyfriend."

"Boyfriend?"

"Don't…" Bardock didn't even feel like going into it. "Let's not even talk about it. Just try not to kill everyone in your way and get the dragonballs back without tipping off anybody to what they can do. When you get all seven, do not make a wish. We're just gonna keep them safe so no one else can use them and that's all."

"Okay." 'I'm gonna have to best the smartest person on the planet.' Kakarot smirked. 'I do like a challenge.' "I can do this. Don't worry about it."

"I'm not worried, Kakarot. I know you're quite capable of finding the dragonballs." 'You're better at it than anyone else in the universe.' "Now let's go see what your mother wants to do about dinner."

Bulma was sitting with Queen Cellena in her parlor in front of a pile of clothes. Queen Cellena kept changing for her and coming out with various outfits. She didn't try on many gowns. Most were different types of body armor and even some lingerie. Bulma thought it was a little odd, but then she started to enjoy the fashion show. It was like she was a little girl with her Saiyan mother again.

"What do you think of this one?" Cellena said after she emerged from her bathroom with a red skimpy lace nightgown.

Bulma scrunched up her face. "I like it…but I think the black one suits you better."

"You're right. You're absolutely right."

Bulma laughed. "Why are you so nervous? You've been mated to this man for years."

"It's no secret that we've grown estranged, Bulma. Now things are finally getting back on track with the two of us." She smirked. "Besides, he's become so much more attractive now that he's a Super Saiyan."

"Vegeta told me a little bit about it. He sounded jealous."

Cellena laughed. "That's no shock there. My son always wants to be the best. The idea of having a rival is maddening to him. But it's good that his father's success has sparked a jealousy. Perhaps he won't be so relaxed anymore. He's becoming lazy."

"He still trains every day."

"Yes, but not with the same passion. He's distracted. My son finds it hard to multitask. He always has to have his one obsession and everything else gets sidetracked."

It was very difficult for Bulma not to smirk. "Why aren't you trying on clothes for your daughter?"

Cellena laughed. "I think it would horrify Cerina to death for me to try out lingerie that I would wear for her father, no matter how old she might get. Vegeta didn't like when I was frisky with his father in front of him either. Children will always be children."

"Not me though."

"You've always been different, Bulma." Cellena smiled at her adopted daughter and then went back in the bathroom to change.

Bulma meditated on what Cellena had said. She was so glad to be favored by her queen. She really did love her and she wasn't sad about replacing her biological mother with Cellena. It would all be worth it when she could finally convince Cellena to drop the ban between Saiyans and humans and Vegeta asked her to be his mate. Cellena would realize that she secretly wanted that all along. 'And then I'll be her successor as she has raised me to be.'

Cellena emerged from the bathroom in a comfortable long blue dress. "I think I have enough clothes for my trip."

"Why do you even need to do all this? You guys are going to go fight a bunch of Frieza's men and then kill him. How is any of that romantic?"

"Oh Bulma…" Cellena joined Bulma on the couch and smiled blissfully. "Saiyan men are unlike your humans. We get excited when we fight. It's the most pleasurable thing in the entire universe to us."

She cocked her brow. "The most pleasurable?"

Cellena pondered. "I suppose it depends who you're having sex with." Cellena laughed, but she noticed Bulma blushed and she gasped. "Bulma, are you not a virgin?"

"My Queen…" She hid her face with a pillow from embarrassment.

"Bulma! You must tell me who has stolen your affections." She forced the pillow out of her hands. "Bulma, you must!"

'Why is she so happy? Does she really not suspect that I've been with her son? Is she in that much denial or does she secretly wish it was true?' "Let's go back to Saiyan thing. I'm curious."

"Oh, alright." Cellena knew she wasn't going to force it out of Bulma anyway. "Vegeta has always been vicious and he is excited by bloodshed. When I'm in the middle of a battle with him and I'm spot on…" Even Cellena started blushing. "Perhaps I shouldn't tell this to you."

"I'm not Cerina. You can tell me anything." Bulma liked that she was actually Cellena's friend and someone she confided in. She also wanted a clue as to how she could trap Vegeta further into loving her. Understanding the mind of Vegeta's father was the perfect way!

"Well…Vegeta sometimes becomes very…aroused when he watches me fight. There have been plenty of times when the two of us would be on the battlefield and then we would start engaging in sex."

"Wow…" Bulma would have never really thought of something like that. "You know, in human culture when someone is aroused by violence, we call them sociopaths."

Cellena laughed. "Well, as I said, Saiyans are different." Cellena shuttered. "You don't want to see our kind of sociopaths."

"I'm certain I don't." Bulma smiled. 'So I've got to show Vegeta how much of a warrior I am.' She wasn't sure what she could do. She couldn't go on any missions with him. With her current power level, she would be no match for any of their enemies. 'I will find a way.' "This has been a fascinating conversation." She laughed. "It's a good thing human boys aren't so hard."

Cellena was so fond of her dear Bulma. She had raised the girl since she was a child and now she was a valuable member of her family. "Sometimes I wish you were a Saiyan. I would love to introduce you to so many fine elites."

"That's what Cassava says to me all the time." It pleased Bulma that only her human blood kept her from being on top. Sooner or later, she would make that irrelevant.

Cellena's door began to slowly open and Cerina poked her head through. "Mother?" When she came in and saw Bulma sitting and smiling with her mother, she felt like she was intruding. "Oh…Hi, Bulma. I didn't know you were in here."

Bulma smiled. She wanted to make Cerina feel left out. "Your mother and I were just having some adult conversations."

Cerina felt very uncomfortable, especially if the conversation involved her parents. "I can leave if it's private."

"No." Cellena patted a spot on the couch in between her and Bulma. "Come here, my daughter. Tell me about your visit in the city."

She braced herself. 'It might be okay to tell my mother about seeing Kakarot, but I don't wanna tell her in front of Bulma. I don't know if I should tell her that secret.' "Well…"

When Cerina sat in front of Cellena, Cellena noticed her daughter's hair and started running her fingers in it. "Your hair is thickening out. I'd say it's time for another perm."

"Not tonight, Mother." Cerina was still upset when she thought about what happened to Kara. "I'm not in the mood."

"That's fine." She could sense that something was bothering her daughter and she wanted to make her feel better. "In the meantime, how about I brush it for you?"

She smiled. "I'd like that."

Bulma was hit with an instant pang of jealousy, but she wouldn't let it show on her face. 'That's something that Cellena is only supposed to do with me!' "Are you sure you don't want to try on some more clothes?"

"I'm fine, Bulma. I'm going to have some time with Cerina."

"Alright." Bulma forced herself to smile and got up. "I've got some things to do anyway." Bulma could always be working on a project, but she didn't need to leave. She just couldn't stomach Cellena brushing Cerina's hair. 'She never brushed my hair! I only brushed hers.' Bulma knew that Cerina was Cellena's biological daughter, but that made no difference to her. She couldn't shake her jealousy.

"But before you go," Cellena said, "could you summon my son here?"

Bulma smiled, but had evil intentions. "Shouldn't you clean all of your lingerie off the floor first?" Bulma struggled not to laugh after seeing the look of horror on Cerina's face.

"I'll have it done by the time he gets here. You know how slow he can be when he's summoned."

"Oh, I know." Bulma laughed it off and left the room, but she was not happy. She decided to get back at Cerina the only way she really could: by securing her position as queen. She wore a nice silver watch around her wrist, but it had several functions that the Saiyans weren't aware of. She pressed a button on the side of it and all of the cameras in the palace repeated the same still image while she was free to roam the halls without any eyes on her. She walked to Vegeta's gravity chamber to summon him like she was supposed to. Vegeta's gravity chamber was also supposed to be locked, but Bulma pressed another button and the machine shut down and opened immediately for her.

Bulma planned on putting aside her frustrations by passionately kissing Vegeta, but all her plans were blown to hell once she saw Vegeta and Cassava making out.

Cassava noticed Bulma first and pulled away from Vegeta. "Bulma…" She was a little embarrassed, but she didn't think it was a big deal. "We were training…"

"Your tongues?"

Vegeta was on edge. He was not sure what Bulma was about to do.

Bulma forced herself to smile like a good friend happy for Cassava, but the truth was that she was so angry it felt like she was going to melt her skin right off her bones. "Vegeta, your mother wants you."

He was still cautious. "What for?"

"I don't know," she said. "I wouldn't keep her waiting though. It seemed important."

Vegeta couldn't get the thought of Bulma killing that bunny out of his head. He knew it was impossible for Bulma to kill Cassava, but he was still uneasy about it. "I'll go now then."

Cassava couldn't stop smiling. She waited for Vegeta to get out of earshot before she started gossiping. "He's such a good kisser!"

"I can imagine…" She had to continuously remind herself that she was Cassava's friend and that she was happy for her. "So, you decided to progress?"

Cassava grabbed a hold of Bulma's arm. "Let's go to my room and gossip."

'I hope she doesn't plan on having sex with Vegeta tonight.' "How about you and I have a slumber party?"

"What's that?"

"It's when girls sleep together in a room and gossip and do a bunch of girly things and eat junk food."

Cassava frowned. 'I was thinking about advancing my relationship with Vegeta…'

"We can talk about Vegeta. After all, nobody knows him more than me."

'She's right about that. I should see what she has to say.'

Vegeta walked into his mother's parlor and expected her to be alone. Instead, his entire family was inside. He felt like he was in trouble, but remained calm as always. "What's this about?"

"Sit down," his father pointed to the couch across from him.

Vegeta sat down cautiously. He tried to think of anything he might have done that he might have deserved to be punished for, but nothing came to mind. "Yes, Father?"

"Now that I've achieved the legendary, I'm going to go put an end to Frieza's reign. I'll be leaving first thing tomorrow morning."

"I figured as much," Prince Vegeta said. 'If father has achieved Super Saiyan, then I know I can too. It only bothers me that a low level like Bardock was able to achieve it first. I have to experience Super Saiyan for myself.' "I'm sure Frieza will be no match for you."

"I'm going with your father," Cellena said.

Cerina gasped. "Mother, you can't!" Cerina would miss her mother immensely and she also knew that she ran things on the planet. "What about all of your responsibilities?"

"That's why we've summoned your brother," the king told his daughter. "He needs to demonstrate some initiative and take care of things while we're gone."

"I'll be in charge of the planet?" Vegeta tried not to smile, because he knew it would be mischievous. He wasn't planning to do anything against his parents' wishes, but it probably wasn't the best idea placing all the power in his hands.

"Tell us now whether or not you think you can manage," his father said. "I believe you're more than capable, but your mother is concerned that your head isn't in the right place."

"Of course it is!" Vegeta said. "I'm the heir to this empire and once I achieve Super Saiyan, this universe will be brought to its knees unless they follow our rule. How can I inherit all if I can't handle a planet?"

The king smiled at his son. "That's a good answer, my son. It's the one I expected."

Cellena still wasn't convinced, but she had to put her trust in her son. "Basila will assist you and make sure you keep track of all of your responsibilities."

"Be wary of Bulma though," the king said.

"Why?"

"She's a wise one and I'd hate for her to manipulate you into thinking of new laws while we're away." King Vegeta recognized Bulma's ambition. She did put her feelings for her father aside to serve his murderer. She loved climbing to ladder.

Prince Vegeta was offended. "She doesn't manipulate me!"

"So you claim…" Cerina said.

Vegeta glared at his little sister. "She won't even be a concern. She has her orders and I'll listen to Basila's advisements. The empire is in good hands."

Bulma was in the kitchen looking up treats for her and Cassava to eat while Bulma did her best to manipulate her into not sleeping with Vegeta. She grabbed some peanut butter and some chocolate frosting and she wondered if she should put some drugs in the food so Cassava would pass out. 'Or maybe I should just kill her right now.'

"What are you doing?" Vegeta asked.

She turned around and rolled her eyes when she saw him. "Don't talk to me, Vegeta."

"Is that any way to talk to the new ruler of earth?" he said with a smile.

Bulma chuckled. "So your dad is going to leave you in charge."

"Who else would he leave in charge?"

"I don't know." She shrugged. "I figured they wouldn't trust you. I bet you've still got a babysitter."

"Basila is supposed to advise me."

"Ah." 'Figures. There's no way that Cellena completely trusts him.' "Well, no matter. I'm sure the two of us could have some fun while they're gone." She smiled. 'There's so much I wanna do without Cellena and King Vegeta breathing down my neck.'

Vegeta knew Bulma well enough to know that there was something else she wanted to say. He wanted to get it over with before she built it up inside of her and came back with a vengeance. "Are you still mad about Cassava and me?"

She laughed. "I'm the one who set you two up. If you don't kiss then she's gonna catch on that this is all a ruse." She looked to Vegeta and expected him to laugh along with her, but he looked a little upset. Then she became really pissed. "It is a ruse, Vegeta. You're not in love with her."

"Bulma, Cassava is probably going to be my queen. It might be time that you got that through your thick head."

"She can't even please you like I can." Bulma placed her hand on Vegeta's chest and smiled naughtily. "She's a prude and you know it."

He slightly glared. "And I bet it's your fault, isn't it?"

Bulma grumbled and threw her hands down at her side. "You two can't have sex."

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because…" Bulma knew that she could think of a plausible reason, but she was just too angry to form it into words. "I said so!"

Vegeta suddenly realized why his family thought the way that they did. He knew that Bulma manipulated people and he knew that she did things to manipulate him, but he certainly didn't know the extent of it. "You're not the boss of me."

Vegeta was not happy. Usually, she was so cool, but there had to be a reason why she was cracking. "I thought you said that you weren't in love with me."

"I'm not, but Cassava doesn't need to get cocky or pregnant or anything!" If Bulma had to hear Cassava talk about her sex life with Vegeta, she was going to go nuts!

He crossed his arms. "What's worse for you, Bulma? Is it the fact that Cassava is actually competition or that I can make my own decisions?"

Bulma was beginning to realize that there wasn't anything she could say to him to make him stop from having sex with Cassava. "If you have sex with her, there will be consequences."

"I'm so afraid," he mocked.

"You should be." Bulma snatched her snacks and hurried to go up to Cassava's room. Vegeta was a bust, but she knew that she would be able to manipulate Cassava as always. She busted through the door and plopped down on the bed with Cassava. "Alright, Cassava, it's time to gossip."

Cassava smiled excitedly and just before she could open her mouth, there was a knock at the door. "Hold on." She got up and walked to the door and was glad to see him. "Prince Vegeta."

He peeked inside and spotted Bulma spying from far back. She was still glaring, but he didn't care. He enjoyed screwing with her. "I want you to join me tonight, Cassava. Leave Bulma and be in my room no less than five minutes."

Cassava was in awe. "Okay." She did her best not to explode from excitement and closed the door slowly before falling on top of it and squealing like a little girl. "Bulma, I've gotta go."

"I heard." 'She cannot take her relationship with Vegeta to the next level, not if he's really considered her being his mate.' "But just because he wants to have sex with you, I implore you to think about Cellena. She's not gonna respect you if you just shack up with her son."

"Vegeta is about an appropriate age to pick a mate. I don't want to screw this up. I have to focus on what he wants and that's me." Cassava was so happy. 'I'm going to become the queen. Mother will be so happy.' "Thanks for all your help, Bulma. Now, I've got a prince waiting for me."

"You're welcome…" Bulma forced herself to smile, but she wanted to choke Cassava until her eyes rolled into the back of her head. Bulma pretended to be happy for Cassava, but as she was being showed to the door, she started simmering in her hatred. 'I have to find a way to fix this by any means necessary.'

She couldn't work. She was much too upset and tried to sleep off her anger, but she wasn't tired at all. After trying for a few hours, she turned to the one person she knew she always could go to.

"Who is knocking on our door at this hour?" King Vegeta mumbled.

Cellena sat up and sighed heavily. She could tell by the energy signature who it was. She just couldn't believe that that they would bother her. "I'll get the door." She put on a robe and walked over to the door and opened it up. "Bulma?"

Bulma's was overcome with emotion. "I need you right now, Mother."

Cellena did not want to leave the side of her mate or the comfort of her own bed, but she would do just about anything for Bulma. "Come on." She went with Bulma into her private parlor and they got into Cellena's private stash of peanut butter, graham crackers, and chocolate frosting.

"It's just like I'm a little girl again," Bulma said.

"Except there's no lightning or thunder, so you had better start explain yourself."

Bulma knew that she couldn't tell Cellena the truth, but she felt compelled to tell her something. "The boy that stole my affections…we're not together anymore. I'm certain that he's in love with me, but he's cheating on me with another girl."

Cellena slightly glared, but she kept a smile on her face. "What's his name?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Why not?" she asked offended. "Do you think I'm going to find your human and destroy him?"

"Maybe."

"Maybe…" Cellena wasn't sure what she would do. She was so outraged for her adopted daughter.

"He's an athlete. He's not very cute, but he's got a special something in him that makes him sexy."

Cellena didn't care if he was the ruler over several sectors! "Well, you can't let him treat you this way. Find someone else."

"You tough it out when King Vegeta does something against you."

Cellena calmed down a little bit at the slap in her face. She knew Vegeta satisfied himself sexually with other women when he was away for a long time and she did not like it. "We're mates. We're bonded. No matter what happens, we can work through it. He's just so proud sometimes."

'Maybe I can pick her brain about her mate and figure out what to do about Vegeta.' "So, how do you work through your problems with him?"

Cellena wouldn't normally talk about those sort of things, but she had a habit of talking to Bulma ever since she was small. "It's difficult for Saiyan women to be submissive, but our independence is something we have to control if we want to keep our mate happy. But we never lose our independence." She smiled. "You make him think he's won, even if you did. And find the right time to put your foot down." Cellena recalled when she stood up to Vegeta about her loyalty toward him and Bardock. Vegeta made passionate love to her once she recovered from her injury.

Bulma thought she could hack anything, but she was so upset about Cassava that she didn't know if she could take it. "You think I should leave him?"

Cellena cut her eyes at Bulma. She couldn't believe she was being so foolish. "There are plenty of human athletes, Bulma. A warrior might be better suited for you."

She shrugged. "I could beat them up anyway. They wouldn't impress me."

"I suppose you're right." Cellena did enjoy being with her Bulma, but she had to be suspicious. "Why did you bother coming to me? I thought you and Cassava were having a girls night or something."

'Here we go…' Bulma forced herself to be excited. "You didn't hear this from me, but Vegeta summoned her."

Cellena's eyes widened and she was excited. "Are they bonding?"

"No. I think Vegeta is the type to play the field and he probably will until you and King Vegeta force him to find a mate."

Cellena was no fool. She had her suspicions, but she wanted to give Bulma the benefit of the doubt. Now she couldn't deny it anymore. "You like my son, don't you?"

Bulma was only a little surprised, but she did not panic. "Why would you say that?"

"I can see it in your eyes." It was even more obvious after Cellena asked. "He's fond of you as well, Bulma. Sometimes, you seem inseparable." She was holding a cup of hot chocolate and she began to circle her finger around the rim of the cup as she began to get ticked off. "This boy who is cheating on you wouldn't happen to be my son, now would it?"

"No!" Bulma laughed. "I know the law and if there's anyone I love more than anything, it's me."

"I know." 'She is a very selfish girl. I do find it hard to believe that she would risk her life for a relationship with Vegeta. Aiming for queen would be too high of a goal. She must surely know that. Unless she plans on Vegeta being so fond of her that he changes the law when he's king to be with her, she'll never be queen. But that won't happen unless my mate and I are dead and with Vegeta's Super Saiyan powers, that won't happen any time soon. My son will be mated to a Saiyan before Bulma gets the chance to fulfill her plans. She must know that. There has to be another angle.' "That's why I believe you, but know that I am cautious."

'She doesn't need to waist her potential on foolish dreams. She's too valuable to die for something stupid. I have to make sure she makes the right decision.' "Just as I expect Vegeta to carry on our family's legacy, I expect the same of you. You should have a child as brilliant as yourself or at least close to it. Find yourself another human and this time, introduce me."

'Uh-oh.' "Why?"

"Because," she threatened, "I need to make sure that you're not playing me, Bulma, and I want to make sure you get over my son. My law will stand firm. Do you understand?"

"I do." 'Maybe I shouldn't have underestimated her, but that doesn't mean that she'll win in the end. I'm still smarter than her.' "Believe me; I wouldn't want to jeopardize our friendship for anything. Like I said, Vegeta likes to play the field. According to you, I shouldn't be with someone like that."

'Who does she think she's trying to fool? She hasn't had any revelation. Maybe Vegeta will do all the work for me though. My son is not going to commit himself to a human when there are so many Saiyan women willing to throw themselves at him. If he finds a girl with a scent to make him go into heat, it'll be all over for Bulma anyway.' "Now, are you feeling any better?"

"Yes." Bulma started yawning. Her brain was scheming too hard to be tired, but she wanted a proper excuse to leave. "I think I'll try to get some sleep. I'm trying to find other brilliant minds to bring in, so I have a busy day tomorrow."

"You should make an effort to get more Saiyans in your lab."

Bulma sighed. "That's won't be easy, but I will try." She then left and started walking back to her room. Cellena might have figured her out, but she still gave her some good ideas about what to do with Vegeta. 'I'm going to be queen. I swear that I will!'

When Bulma walked inside of her room and the lights automatically turned on, there was an intruder sitting in a chair with a smug smile on his face. "What do you want, Bardock?" She quickly closed the door behind her.

"I have some things to discuss with you, Bulma."

"Like what?" she asked.

"Master Roshi, for starters."

'I hope Vegeta still keeps his bargain if he expects me to keep his future hidden.' "Vegeta killed him."

"What?" 'That's not the answer I suspected at all!' "Why?"

"He's obsessed with me, just like you wanted him to be. When I told him that Master Roshi touched me…" She forced tears to well up into her eyes. It was true that Master Roshi did touch her, but she always fought back. She wasn't as scarred as she was pretending to be. "Vegeta went crazy."

'I should have known Roshi would touch her, but I didn't think he'd end up dead.' On one hand, Bardock regretted everything because his son's teacher was dead. But a part of him didn't care at all. 'I guess he did get what he deserved, dirty pervert.' "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want you to retaliate. I care about Vegeta." 'My acting today is completely flawless!' "I know you're having a hard time trusting me, especially after I observed the operation to remove Fasha's tail, but I swear I'm still on your side. I released Raditz from prison!"

'Cerina did that, but I'm not giving that away.' "I thought someone else did."

"Cerina asked me to help you and I did."

'Well, I guess that changes some things. I still can't completely trust her, but I know she doesn't want to go against me.' "I need a spaceship."

"Why?"

"Colleen and I are going to find Frieza and we're going to destroy him before King Vegeta can." Bardock could tell that she was about to say a million different things, so he rose his hand to stop her. "Don't ask questions; just tell me whether or not you can do it."

'Well, I do still hate King Vegeta and this will make me look good in Bardock's eyes.' "Sure. I just have to make sure that this doesn't come back on me. That shouldn't be too hard." She walked over to a mantle in her room and pulled down a small trap door that most people wouldn't be able to find. Inside of it, there was a capsule. "This should do it."

She tossed it into Bardock's hands. "It's off the record books and can't be traced back to me. Your ship should be cloaked and it should be a little bit faster than whatever one Vegeta uses, so you can leave after their launch in the morning and still beat them."

"Do you know where Frieza will be?"

"No. I didn't look into it, but I will find out and send the coordinates to the computer in the ship."

Bardock smiled. "As always, I am impressed."

"Well, I'm a clever girl. I know what I'm doing, Bardock."

"I never doubted that you did."

"Now if you'll excuse me, I need my rest. Apparently you do too, because Vegeta is launching at five in the morning. You probably wanna leave around six, plus I don't have any food stocked inside."

"I better go take care of that…or have Colleen do that." 'I wish I could figure out if there was another angle to all this, but her mind is quiet and calm.' "Alright, Bulma. I'll see you when I get back." He placed his fingers on his forehead and then disappeared.

Bulma smirked. 'There's so much I can do with King Vegeta and Bardock off the planet. I won't have any supervision at all.'

Cerina woke up to the soft touch of a hand on her arm and a heavy body sitting on her bed. When she looked up, she saw it was the face of her father and calmed down. "Father?" She sat up and wiped her eyes. "What are you doing in my room?"

"I wanted to see you before I left."

A smile burst on her face. "You didn't have to do that, Father." She felt so loved.

He smiled. "But I wanted to." But then his smile fell. It was true that he was fond of his daughter and that he would do anything for her, but there were certain things he had to protect her from. "But I also wanted to discuss this."

He placed a human magazine on Cerina's bed and she gulped when she saw the cover. Humans were obsessed with her because she was the princess of the planet and she wouldn't blast the paparazzi like her father and brother. Her mother would sometimes cooperate with the human press, so they liked her as well. But Cerina was obviously the nicest and most sensible one, so she was the biggest celebrity on the planet. She shouldn't have been surprised that she was on the cover of one of the most popular magazines with her arm grabbing a hold of Kakarot's. "I can explain…"

"Please do."

'Oh boy…' "I was shopping in a bookstore. Kakarot showed up and it was a complete coincidence. Then Fenn showed up and the two of them got all macho and they had to fight. I decided to watch their battle and then as we Saiyans do, we got hungry and decided to eat. That was all."

Vegeta understood what his daughter said, but the headline still disturbed him.

"The Princess and the Freak: True Love?" There was also a picture of Cerina, Kakarot, and Fenn and an article that titled "Rivalry Born for Princess's Affections". The humans wrote about the clothes Cerina wore, the books she picked up, and the places she went and ate that day. It was mindboggling to King Vegeta how obsessed they were.

"Humans have active imaginations, but this article is the one that bothers me the most, even more than the one with Kakarot." He turned a couple of pages to find a picture of Cerina defending Kara. "A Princess of Compassion," he read with disgust. "This is not the image the humans need to see."

"But father, she's one of our subjects and she's only four. She didn't deserve to suffer such humiliation."

"She and her brother should have defended her honor."

"Kakarot did—"

"So why did you get involved?"

Cerina began to get upset. She couldn't take back what she did and she was sure that she would do it again. "Why is it so awful that I'm the way that I am?"

Vegeta placed his hand on his daughter's small shoulders. "Cerina, Broly will come eventually. I know it in my bones. There's no way to stop it. If I can't stop him, he'll probably destroy me and your brother. Then you would be next in line to be queen."

Her eyes widened. "You would let me be queen?" She never thought that he would before. She felt honored.

"I know how powerful you are, Cerina. I know that you could bring this universe to its knees and raise the Saiyan Empire to higher heights than it's ever seen." He smirked with pride, remembering how high her power level was when she was born. He knew that he was wrong to ever want to destroy her. She was very powerful and she was capable of becoming even stronger. "However, I need to know that you're mentally strong enough for this task."

Cerina sighed and stared at the magazine. She was a woman of compassion. There was no way to get around it, but she didn't want to disappoint her father. "These humans love me, Father. Sometimes, it's better to be loved than feared." She braced herself for his tongue lashing.

"Hmm…" 'I never thought of it that way. These humans certainly wouldn't rebel against her. We're not knocking over planets and selling anymore. We are building an empire of followers.' "Perhaps you're right, my daughter."

"I am?" she asked surprised.

"I do believe you are too soft, but you can still toughen out. But these humans love their celebrities. Perhaps you should be theirs and we'll see how it goes. Your mother is well loved by our people. That's why I know she can lead when I'm gone. As long as we show our people how powerful you are, you'll have their respect and admiration as well."

Cerina smiled. 'I can't believe this!' "Alright, Father. I'll continue training hard and I'll fight to prove myself."

"Maybe a tournament."

"Or something different…" She shrugged. "I'll think of something."

Vegeta smiled and patted his daughter on the head. "Very good, Cerina. I will see you when I return."

Cerina waited until her father was gone before falling back into her bed squealing. 'I can't believe this!'

The door opened back up and Cerina quickly sat up straight and emotionless. "Yes, Father?"

"About Kakarot…" He became very stern. "I do not want you to see this boy. Do you understand?"

Her heart completely sank. "Yes, Father."

When her father closed the door, she flopped on her bed and frowned miserably. 'Kakarot…' She picked up her magazine and stared at the cover for a while. 'But I think he'd be perfect…'

When Bulma woke up in the morning, King Vegeta and Cellena were already gone. When she checked her system files, she could see that Bardock and Colleen had launched as well. Things might have went south with Cassava and Vegeta hooking up, but she was determined to set things straight. 'The game isn't over yet.'

Prince Vegeta must have been suffering from a massive ego enlargement, because he had the nerve to have Cassava summon Bulma while she was working in her lab. Bulma wanted to scratch out Cassava's eyes, but she remained calm and did as she was told. When she arrived in the throne room, Vegeta was sitting in his father's chair with a huge grin on his face. "Bulma," he said.

"Prince Vegeta." She bowed before him. "You're looking comfortable."

"Well, I've only dreamt of sitting on the throne my whole life, so I'm pretty pleased with myself."

Bulma looked around to make sure no one was there with them. "Why are we alone?"

"Because I wanted us to be."

She frowned miserably. "Did Cassava please you?"

"Thoroughly and several times." He smirked evilly. "Do you need the details?"

"No thank you." Bulma's eyes filled with tears and her lips began to quiver. She struggled to fight them back, but she was sobbing in a few seconds while Vegeta looked on kind of horrified.

"What is wrong with you, Woman?"

"I realized…" She struggled to speak through her sobbing. "You were right, Vegeta. I am in love with you."

He was shocked. "And you're admitting it to me?"

She nodded. "And I know my mind isn't clear and I'm jeopardizing everything. You were right. It's best if we just stop."

"Stop?" He nearly began to panic. "You mean stop relations all together?"

"It's the only way…" She wiped her tears. "It's the only way."

Vegeta remembered what he had said, but he never thought Bulma would admit such a thing. He thought she would yell at him a whole bunch and deny having real feelings for him. Now he was being forced to give up something he didn't want to. "Fine. We will stop…"

Bulma heard him, but she knew he wouldn't last. Sooner or later, Vegeta would realize how much he wanted her. 'Bravo, Bulma. That was quite the performance.' "I do have to get to work. I'm scouring the world for more brilliant minds to help build the empire."

Vegeta nodded, though he was a little disappointed. 'I thought she'd have something much more interesting planned.' "Fine then. Be off."

Summer had been slaving all morning to make sure she started off her first day as the woman of the house well. She made sure there was plenty of food for everyone. But when she gathered everyone at the table, she noticed that there was one person missing. "Where is Kakarot?"

"Probably over his girlfriend's house," Tora said teasingly.

Raditz shook his head. "There's no way Kakarot is going to end up with a human. He's using her."

Summer cut her eyes at her mate. "And what's so wrong with humans?"

"Nothing to me, but Kakarot is not going to conform like that. Just you wait. This Chi-Chi girl doesn't stand a chance."

"I wouldn't say that she doesn't stand a chance," Kara said. "Kakarot doesn't know what he wants. He only thinks that he does."

"Do you know if Kakarot is going to choose Princess Cerina?" Fasha asked.

Kara shook her head. "Kakarot is determined to do his own thing that I can't really tell. If I said one thing, he might do the opposite. We'll all just have to wait and see."

Kakarot landed on the balcony of Chi-Chi's palace where she usually waited for him when she made breakfast. She was there as usual, but she was generally very happy when he arrived. Now she looked angry. "Is today a bad day for this?"

She pushed a magazine across the table. "Explain this."

Kakarot looked at it and realized why Chi-Chi was so upset, but all he did was laugh. "Come on! I'm not with the Princess—not that's any of your business considering that we aren't together either."

"You don't like her at all?"

He shrugged. "Honestly, she's a little too nice for me."

"How can you say that? She stood up for your sister!" Chi-Chi was beginning to doubt if she stood a chance at all.

Kakarot did remember that and he was extremely grateful toward Cerina, but he wasn't a saint and he didn't want to turn into one either. "Yeah, and she also scolded me for being ecstatic that my grandfather was killed for being a traitor to my family."

Chi-Chi had heard some of the Baga stories. She certainly wouldn't miss him either. "So, what's worse: being too nice or too pushy?"

"I haven't figured that out yet." He smirked. "But I do like to eat."

Chi-Chi smiled. "Okay. I've got a bunch of different egg recipes that I tried!"

"Good, because I'm gonna need my strength."

"Why? What are you planning?"

"I've gotta find the rest of the dragonballs. I think it'll be simple enough. My father knows where they are and gave me specific instructions except for one."

"So, how are you gonna find it?"

"Easily. I'm gonna break into Capsule Corporation by outsmarting the most advanced system in the world, built by the smartest woman in the world."

"Do you need any help?"

"If you don't mind."

"Of course I don't. It sounds like fun." Chi-Chi certainly was pleased. 'Another wonderful date!'

Bulma flew across the planet to an icy mountain palace hidden to the world, except by those who knew where it was. There were human guards all over with advanced weapons that could have killed her, but no one fired a single shot. After all, she supplied them with the equipment.

"Bulma?" A three-eyed man flew from the top of the palace to greet her down below. "What are you doing here? We don't have anything scheduled.

"I know, Tien, but now is a good time to launch the full scale attack on the Saiyans. The two strongest among them have left the planet. Even Cellena is gone. Prince Vegeta is in charge and he doesn't know how to run anything."

"They say he's more bloodthirsty than his father! Why should we attack him?"

"The next full moon will be perfect, Tien. The Saiyans sleep during the full moon."

"And if they wake up during the attack, they'll transform and destroy us!"

"They won't. I'll make sure of it." She smirked. "They'll be sitting ducks."

Tien paused to think about it. 'I guess there will never be a good time.' "I'll have to talk to my superiors about this."

"Is Dr. Gero here?"

"No. We don't know where he is and even if we did, we wouldn't tell you. We still can't trust you." He was disgusted. "You're one of them. You live in their palace and they say you never leave Prince Vegeta's side."

"But I only pretend to be one of them." She gently placed her hand on his cheek. "Come on, Tien. You know that I love you."

He took her soft hand and kissed it. "Bulma, I can't let my feelings for you jeopardize the fate of humanity."

"I understand. But at least give a message to Gero so his Red Ribbon Army and the rest of the human rebels can gather together and join in on the fight to take back the planet."

"I'll do what I can." Tien didn't know if he could all the way trust Bulma, but he knew they needed her help to win against the Saiyans. "I'm putting my trust in you, Bulma."

"I know," she said. "And it'll pay off in the end. I promise."

To be continued…