A.N Sorry for the delay! Serradragon and I are working on something special for the anniversary for completing Finding Love. Keep your eyes open!
Atarau followed Bardock through the palace with her head held high, obviously feeling proud that others were giving them a wide berth. The commander almost snorted at the looks her fangs got from some of the guards. The cat intimidated them enough for them to walk through the palace without any delay.
She could tell something had happened to the sire of her young master, and she could smell a familiar scent on the alpha. It made her want to swish her twin tails in happiness. She took in the large gardens surrounding a fairly large house, and that smell was getting stronger. Her chest rumbled in a deep purr that had Bardock looking at her with a smile before stopping.
Atarau looked up at the man as he told her to sit and wait in front of the door. The puma cocked her head to the side as he called out.
"Kakarot." Her ears and tails perked up at the sound of her master's name. "There's someone here to see you." The door opened, and the cat recognized the alpha who trained under her master's sire. That smell hit her nose again, and she recognized it as her master. Whining she started looking for the beta.
As soon as the cat saw the small beta, she bolted straight for him and tackled him to the floor. Her large front legs wrapped around Kakarot, and Atarau licked, nuzzled, and purred in joy at being reunited with her master.
"The hell?!" Vegeta snapped close to the pair in the floor. "Bardock! Are you crazy?! That thing could make Toa lash out!"
The prince moved to push the large cat off his mate, but Atarau snarled at him while crouching her body protectively over the beta. She had waited years to be with her master again, and had every intention to eat anyone trying to take him away from her.
"Relax, princeling." The older dominate smiled down at his youngest son who seemed to be looking at the cat in shock as Atarau nuzzled him again once Vegeta backed off. "Atarau will be good for Kakarot."
Toa wasn't sure what this large animal on him was, but it wasn't hostile. Kakarot wasn't sure what to do either until his eyes landed on the small charm dangling around the cat's neck. He made that for his pet. Kakarot's eyes teared up as he wrapped his arms around the puma's neck.
"Atarau..." He softly whispered her name in the light colored fur. Toa shifted restlessly in his mind, but Kakarot just held his friend tight. She was huge now instead of the awkward leggy cat she had been when he left, the size of a large saber wolf.
It took some effort, but in the end, Atarau was sitting in the living room with her tails and body curled around the beta who had yet to let go of the puma. Both were purring and snuggling each other.
"I don't know what you were thinking, Bardock." Vegeta growled as his mate cling to the massive cat.
"Atarau was Kakarot's only friend." The older alpha explained. "Not to mention you see how protective she is of him. I'm not naive enough to believe someone can be with him every minute of every day forever. For Kakarot to heal he needs to feel relaxed and safe. Atarau can help with that, both in protecting him and offering him comfort and unconditional affection." Bardock explained
"He has that from us though."
"Kakarot and Toa don't believe that. From what you've told me, he's taken a huge beating to his self esteem. What he knows and believes to be true might not be the same things. He's going to have to relearn to think positive and that we actually care about him."
A loud squeal cut through the air and they saw Seba making a bee line right for the puma. Vegeta hooked the small cub around the waist and pulled him to his chest. Bardock wrangled the other young cub, Tasik. They didn't know how Atarau would take the cubs just yet, but she certainly might not like them jumping on her.
Seba was laughing as he tried to clamber over Vegeta's shoulder to the cat and reached for her. The cat tilted her head before stretching her neck out and sniffing at the cub. She didn't understand at first. Atarau smelled Kakarot on the miniature version of her master.
She watched the small cubs squirm where they were held as they tried to get out of the alphas' hold. It wasn't until the smaller clone of her master bit Vegeta did they manage to get away and scurry over to her.
The puma moved her head down to sniff the two boys as they reached up to pet her fur. Atarau purred as she sniffed the dark headed cub and realized that this was her master's offspring. The other one just smelt like her a little.
The large puma purred and nuzzled the cubs before snarling when she saw Bardock and Vegeta reach for the cubs. They were watching her with trepidation, and the cat let out an annoyed sigh.
Leaning over, Atarau gently bit the collar of Seba's shirt and lifted him until he was by her master before doing the same with Tasik. Seba trilled in happiness as he hugged his tama before petting the cat while the older boy looked over the large, fluffy tails.
Kakarot reaches up to scratch behind Atarau's ears making her lean into him slightly and give out a loud purr. The beta beamed at her when she gave him another lick on his cheek.
Seba gasped as he felt the vibrations from her chest and rested his head on her side to hear the soothing sound better. Tasik mewed and moved under one of the puma's front legs to curl up under her and started to bat at the charm hanging from her collar with his hands.
Atarau liked having the cub under her body, and used one of her front legs to shift the cub of her master under her as well. She then started to lick the black hair in an effort to groom the squirming cub while the other played with her charm.
Seeing her master still beside her, the cat moved him as well until he was under her tails close to the cubs. The small saiyan didn't want to let her go, but after some gentle nudging, Atarau managed to get her master between her front legs as well.
Once she had Kakarot settled with the cubs, the puma looked back at the older saiyans with a smug expressions.
"Well that was not what I expected..." Bardock said watching the display.
"What exactly surprised you?" Vegeta growled, for Bardock's sake it better not be the fact the puma wasn't trying to eat the cubs.
"The maternal behavior." He said watching as Atarau nuzzled Tasik and licked him. "I expected a little with Kakarot, but not her treating the cubs like...well her cubs."
"You get to explain to Tatama why there is a giant predator in the house that won't let us near Kakarot and the youngest cubs." Vegeta growled back as he felt his hackles rise as the puma's mouth was too close to the cubs. He knew this was Kakarot's pet, but instinct was hard to ignore.
"With any luck, Yasi won't be back for a little while and we won't have to."
"Oh I very much doubt it, Bardock." Yasi's voice came from behind them. Tarble and Kome were peering around the open doorway behind him with his tail bristling making Bardock sweat.
++break++
Turles sat across from King Vegeta in a private meeting room somewhat anxiously. He knew they had an agreement, but he was also the first to admit he was paranoid. Then again people really were out to kill him, so was is really paranoia? His hands itched to reach for a blaster that wasn't on his hip. The king of all saiyans slid a tablet in front of the pirate drawing his attention.
"A requisition for your resupply and your share of the profits from this whole venture." Vegeta said gruffly. "Do you have a departure timeframe in mind?" Turles just stared at the king mutely for a moment.
"Don't take this the wrong way...but you're really letting me leave here? Just like that?" Turles questioned. He honestly expected to have to sneak or fight his way off planet. His crew were already prepared for an emergency evacuation.
"You kept your end of the deal." Vegeta explained. "You returned my son, and you've helped Bardock get Kakarot back and possibly uncovered a plot 15 years old. There is quite possibly a traitor in my council."
"That doesn't sound like a good thing." Turles shot back.
"Better knowing there is a traitor than not. Either way I don't expect this to be of much concern to you beyond punishing the person responsible for hurting your nephew." That's right, he had to leave. He wouldn't be around to see Kakarot get better, or meet the new cubs. Tasik wasn't going to be happy leaving Seba either. Those two had latched onto each other surprisingly fast, and you couldn't find one without the other now.
Turles found his attention drawn by the folder King Vegeta set in front of him. Raising an eyebrow he looked to the monarch before opening the folder. His eyes widened.
"This is..."
"Your service file." Vegeta said calmly. "I admit I was curious about you so I made some discrete inquiries. You were near the top of your class, respectable power for a third class at 16 year old, if having a rather lax attitude towards leadership. You were recommended for a promotion to second class pending your final assessment in basic training. Then you do a 180. You begin showing up late to training drills, have an attitude, you were caught with stolen property ultimately resulting in dropping you from the military itself. Your brother hadn't even started basic training at the time and was still in his secondary classes."
"I don't see the point in this." Turles growled.
"I find it strange that one of the top recruits in a generation and possibly Bardock's equal with technology suddenly becomes a liability and a criminal when you were fast tracked to go to command classes." Vegeta said. "So what happened?"
"I don't owe you an explanation. You said it's right there in my file 'a disregard for authority' I believe you said."
"Every saiyan has a certain disregard for authority. Yours was nothing special. I've dealt with your brother enough to know that if I want answers I have find some of them myself." The King dropped another file on the table, this one older with a myriad of stamps and tags on it.
"Your mother's file." Vegeta said when Turles didn't move to touch it. "And I found something interesting. Around the same time you started falling into your bad habits your mother Cress was discharged from the military for injury."
"That's nothing remarkable." Turles snarled. "Bardock could have told you that. Our mother was a great fighter and was hurt in the line of duty. It happened all the time back then."
"True but how often did they suffer from rusak'man?" Vegeta commented. "Bardock never knew did he? Your mother came home and was officially discharged for a permanent shoulder injury. She couldn't fight anymore or do much physical labor, meaning she couldn't have drawn much of an income to take care of you and a young growing alpha."
"You don't know anything." Turles said quietly.
"I know you tried to get work and blew off training to take jobs down at the docks because they would hire underaged saiyans no questions asked. I know how expensive medication is and that around the time your mother Cress needed it you stopped showing up to training and were caught with stolen property that could have been sold for roughly the same amount medication cost."
"You don't know anything!" Turles shouted slamming his hands on the table. "You were born an elite, you never had to scrape to get by. You were never turned down aid because you weren't seen as important enough. You never knew what it was like to work yourself the to bone just for scraps and to go home and give that to your mother and sibling just so they didn't go without. Don't think you can guilt me into anything, your majesty. I've been dealing with pompous assholes since you were a cub. You might have put together more than anyone else ever has but you know nothing."
"You sound rather proud of yourself."
"I did what I had to, and I made sure my family was taken care of in place of the people that should have taken care of them to begin with."
"But then you ran away." KV shot back.
"I left to keep my family clean. Mother was finally approved for aid and Bardock was flying through training. If Bardock was connected back with my actions...I made sure he didn't have to get his hands dirty and in the long run look where he got."
"So was it worth running your name through the mud. For your brother to get everything that could have been yours?"
"I've always been proud of my little brother. He has the better head for leadership anyways. So is there a point to this trip down memory lane or was that solely to piss me off?"
"I like to know about my operatives when I consider them for a job."
"A job..." He was confused. "You want to hire me, a criminal?"
"You call yourself that but what if I were to say everything you've done until now was on orders from the saiyan military?" Vegeta said. "You know better than anyone that no operation is truly clean. What I'm offering you is a pardon for all your past actions, and those you'll continue to commit."
"And what do you want in return?" Turles was suspicious.
"What you've been doing all this time. Plundering our enemies, getting information, I want you to to work for the saiyans."
Turles blinked for a few minutes as he tried to focus on what he was being told. Going through his past had shaken the pirate slightly off balance. The monarch had discovered more about his past than he was comfortable with.
"So you want me to be a spy?" He asked incredulously. "You're asking me, a pirate that has a list of crimes against the Saiyan Empire and the Colds as long as my tail, to work as a spy for you?"
"Yes." steepled his fingers. "I don't see what is so difficult about making a decision, Turles. You would be doing essentially what you were doing before you came to assist in finding my son, only you'd be working under me."
"With all due respect, your majesty…have you lost your mind?!" The dark skinned saiyan almost shouted at the other alpha. "There is no way that your council would believe that I've been working under you this whole time! Not to mention about my crew-!"
"The council will have no choice but to believe me since I am King." He said with a hint of steel in his tone. "As for your crew, feel free to explain that they will be better protected from other empires if they agree to this. I'm sure that will win them over."
stood up and walked over to a window overlooking the city beyond the palace with his arms clasped behind his back.
"With what happened to Kakarot, it makes me wonder if similar incidents have happened in the past, and I also wonder if the traitor has connections with our enemies. I need someone who is good about getting information to find that out, and from what I know about you, Turles, you are the best there is."
"While I appreciate the praise, what exactly is in this for me?" The pirate asked with his arms crossing over his chest. "Besides a clean slate from the Saiyan Empire and better protection from the Colds."
"How about a safe place for that Matu woman you brought along with her nephew?" The king smirked at the surprised reaction.
"I'm sorry. What nephew? The only Matu we had on board was Chorri."
"Our doctors did a scan of everyone that came back from the mission, and they showed that the hybrid cub you care for is the Matu's nephew." turned to face Turles once more. "If you work for me, I can guarantee a safe place for her and that cub while you are away and the ability to visit them as often as you'd like. On top of that you can keep a majority of anything you plunder."
Turles tried not to let his emotions show on his face as he thought about the pros and cons of agreeing to work for the empire. Not only will this allow him a significantly more freedom in saiyan Territory, but it would also allow him to visit his brother and family more often. Not to mention providing a safe and stable environment to raise Tasik in. If the alpha was honest with himself, he was always worried about something happening to the boy while he was on his long trips and space. His eyes narrowed at the monarch while his mind picked up a critical detail.
"So that's it, you intend to black mail me into doing this." King Vegeta rolled his eyes before sitting at the table again.
"My husband would castrate me if I tried to blackmail you using a cub. Furthermore it appears that Chorri is the only medic Kakarot will allow near him, and she is fully aware of his history without us needing to bring in someone else. I'm offering you an extra incentive. Both of them can stay here in the palace while you are away. They would be safe in the event your cover is blown and from anyone with a grudge against you. If you choose, I'm sure you could acquire a house in the residential district or even borrow Bardock's house since he's living in the guest house for now. Chorri and Tasik could stay in the guest house as well."
"I'm very aware you've been burned before, Turles. And I'm offering you this in good faith. So long as you are willing to operate as a spy for me any crimes will be pardoned, just try not to kill saiyans please. Should you become compromised I give you my word you will have a safe haven here. We can fit your ship with new tech and weapons, and your knowledge will only strengthen our own. I'm tired of having to chase one of our own for something that was our fault in the first place. I'd much rather have you working with us than against us, Turles."
"Where do I sign?"
++break++
Bardock stretched popping his back with a content sigh before towel drying his hair a bit more. Say what you want about the fancy decor the guest house had one hell of a shower.
Seeing how it was just him, Kakarot and the cubs at the moment he opted against putting on a shirt and sat in front of the fire place with his brush. There was something soothing about drying his fur next to the fire and brushing it.
A soft noise caught his attention. A pair of dark eyes was peering at him over the arm of the couch along with a wild shock of hair. The alpha hid a smile as he continued his grooming. Kakarot always was the curious cub growing up. Bardock hoped that was still the case with his son and that by letting his cub come to him they could better repair their relationship. He wanted to blame the distance between them on the mental injury, and the the trauma his son experienced, but he knew that it was just as likely his son remembered and feared him because of their argument. His brush moved with sure familiar strokes as his mind wandered.
Kalious there wasn't a day he didn't wish he could go back and stop himself from saying those words. He wondered if Kakarot blamed him in part for what happened. Vegeta had all but confirmed that. How could Kakarot ever think he'd hate him for being weak? He had always loved his son regardless of his power. His son was born with the lowest power ever recorded, and he still raised and did everything possible to protect and make him happy, to help him grow. How much of Kakarot's thoughts and fears were the result of torture and his dehumanizing treatment shattering his self worth? Bardock was more than familiar with what prisoners of war dealt with even before the mess with 228. Vegeta was kept from the worst of the missions because of his status high power level or not, but Bardock has seen things that still gave him nightmares. Seeing what happened to the inhabitants of a planet they liberated from the Colds ...there were death camps, slavery, things like Frieza's maze just not as elaborate, arenas where prisoners had to fight or die sometimes against animals or other prisoners. But it had never been other saiyans. When it became apparent Frieza was trying to capture a saiyan they all chose death over capture of possible. And according to the logs from 228, Frieza had only ever gotten ahold of a handful. And Kakarot was the last and only beta, male or female at that. The others were either too old or by some odd twist of fate, infertile. Bardock could only believe Kalious and Tarro we're watching out for them.
Looking up he came face to face with His son crouched within arm's distance watching him. He never even heard him move from the couch. There was something familiar staring back from those dark eyes.
"Kakarot?" Bardock asked mindful of Vegeta's insistence that Kakarot and Toa were separate and very different. Bardock wasn't so sure that was the case. It sounded more like Toa was Kakarot's raw instinct personified rather than a completely separate personality, however they'd need Kakarot to speak with a therapist to know for sure. The beta nodded a bit hesitantly before his eyes flickered to the brush in his hands.
"What...what that?" Bardock's heart clenched. His son forgot something as basic as grooming.
"A brush." He said softly holding the soft bristle brush out for his son to take. His hand brushed over the bristles and the handle.
"I...remember..." he said softly as one hand came up to tangle in his hair. "I...think...little...like Seba..." his voice was soft and raspy, obviously little used as some of his words slurred slightly. Vegeta said it had been years since anyone heard Kakarot speak before now. Bardock smiled softly at his cub.
"That's right. I used to sit in front of the fire like this with you in my lap. We'd brush you hair and tail after a bath. Sometimes Raditz would join us and he'd let you brush his hair." His heart ached as he remembered those happy times. "Sometimes you'd fall asleep. It turned into something we did every night I was home from missions."
"I…liked…" The beta touched his hair once more while looking at the brush. "You...do again?"
Bardock blinked in confusion for a few minutes. Was his son asking what he thought he was asking?
"You want me to brush your hair and tail?" The alpha slowly asked to make sure he was right. When he got an affirmative noise from the younger man, Bardock took a deep breath to ready himself. "Ok, I can do that, but we'll need to wash your mane and tail so I can brush them."
Almost instantly, Kakarot seemed to shrink in on himself, but the alpha just purred.
"It's alright, kyuata." Bardock softly said as he reached out slowly to rub the top of the smaller male's head. "I promise that it won't be bad. In fact, I think you'll like it. Come with me."
The slightly skittish beta reached out to hold the alpha's tail as he was lead to a bathroom. His dark eyes darted around the room with a wariness before seeing a large, beige tub halfway embedded in the floor with steps leading down.
"Here we are. You just take off your clothes and sit in the tub." Bardock smiled over his shoulder as he moved to turn on the water, making sure it was warm. The sound of running water made Kakarot flinch, but the older saiyan brushed his tail over the beta's arm while letting out a purr. Bardock searched the the beige cabinet under the sink and pulled out a clear bottle with a golden liquid sluggishly sloshing around. "This might make things better."
Kakarot let out a trill as he saw bubbles form after the alpha poured some of the liquid in the bath. He tilted his head and leaned a bit close to the tub to sniff the citrus scent.
"Come on, cub." Bardock's chuckling brought the beta's attention back over to him. "Undress before the water gets too high."
With curiosity overruling his fear of the tub, Kakarot got out of his clothes with the help of his father before slowly dropping a foot into the bath. Feeling the bubbles pop against his skin made the small beta trill once more with a smile on his face.
It surprised Bardock just how quickly Kakarot got into the tub before finding a seat. He scooped up a handful of the bubbles to bring them closer to his face. His tail came out of the water to touch his handful of popping bubbles, and the submissive chirped at the sight of suds in his fur.
"Do you like the bubbles, Kakarot?" Bardock asked before laughing when the younger saiyan tried to bite one. "Careful, they might smell good, but they don't taste good."
"This…bubbles?" Eyes filled with childlike wonder looked up at the alpha before looking back down at the bath. A small smile grew on Kakarot's face as he pushed some of the suds. He sighed and practically melted in the water with only his head from his chin up staying above the water. "They…tickle."
"I bet." Bardock filled a pitcher with water before shutting the water off. He took a glance at the content beta, and remembered just how he reacted last time they tried to wash him. "Would you like me to wash your mane?"
"Will…hurt?" Came from a small voice, and the alpha felt his chest ache over the words.
"No, it won't hurt." The dominant moved closer to nuzzle his face in the tangled mass of spikes on his son's head. "I will never hurt you."
Kakarot stared into the alpha's eyes for what felt like hours to Bardock, but he when he nodded, the larger saiyan let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
"Alright, kyuata." Bardock moved around the tub to sit almost behind the beta, but he made sure to remain in sight of Kakarot. "I'm just going to pour some of this water over your head to get your hair wet. Remember it's only me."
Kakarot whined when he felt the water, and he tensed in fright. Seeing the reaction, Bardock instantly started to talk, hoping that his voice would keep the small beta in the now.
"It's been years since I've done this. You were barely taller then my knee when you asked me to stop." He ran his fingers through the beta's hair while remaining gentle. "You would purr every time I washed your hair and tail. Sometimes you would almost fall asleep before we were done."
Kakarot slowly relaxed and closed his eyes as he listened to his father, and he could remember some of the things Bardock was talking about.
"Here, smell this."
Kakarot opened his eyes to see a bottle of thick pale green liquid, and he moved closer to sniff at the opening.
"Smells…like baban."
"Very good." The alpha smiled when he saw Kakarot look up at him. He poured a small amount in his hands and lathered them up. "It's Raditz's. I think it'll help smooth out your mane. You used to use his shampoo all the time."
As soon as Bardock sunk his fingers into Kakarot's hair, he lightly started to massage his scalp, and the beta immediately started to purr. Surprisingly Kakarot's tail rose up out of the water and swayed contently. For a few moments Bardock let himself believe he was back in the past again with his youngest cub, that Kakarot hadn't been raped and tortured, that they had never fought about anything more serious than when his bed time was even if he fell asleep on his own well before whatever time was decided on.
And then reality hit him hard. The thick tangles that refused to loosen in Kakarot's hair and how painfully thin his cub was even after two weeks of good food couldn't be ignored. Slowly his fingers stopped moving as guilt started to crush him. No matter how many times his brother told him otherwise, this was his fault.
"Teti?" Kakarot was looking up at him with a hint of...fear? He could see the other lurking behind his son's then clear as day.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, cub." Bardock said as his voice shook. "This is my fault. I wish we'd never had that stupid fight. I was scared Kakarot. I didn't want to lose you. Tora, my best friend and battle brother...he almost died before Fasha and I got him back here and then I came home to you wanting to officially get a team assignment...I'm sorry, Kakarot. I just wanted you to be safe, and I overreacted." His son whined softly.
"You...want...?" Kakarot seemed to be thinking hard as he struggled to get his words out. There was hope in his eyes, a tiny fragile hope that Bardock knew would shatter easily. "Not strong..." he finally managed with a whine as his hands came up to fist in his hair..."not good...not fight...not-"
"Shhh." Bardock soothed seeing Kakarot was getting upset. He understood some of what his son was trying to say. Gently he coaxed his son into letting go of his hair, and he could see tears forming in his cub's eyes. "I have always wanted you, cub. I will always want you." He wiped the soap from his hands and carefully brushed the tears from Kakarot's eyes.
"I never stopped looking for you, cub. And I'm so sorry it took me so long to find you. You could spend the rest of your life at home not fighting anymore, and I would still love you just as much. No matter what happened you are still my kyuata and that will never change. I will always love you cub, no matter what."
Bardock looked into the wide, shocked eyes of his youngest son trying to convey everything he felt though his eyes. He could see that flicker of hope still burning there, and he wanted to make it grow.
He didn't want to be the one responsible for crushing whatever hope and faith in others his cub had left.
Kakarot blinked a few times and tears slid down his cheeks before they were brushed gently away by rough thumbs.
His teti still wanted him? He still…loved him? Both Toa and Kakarot were overwhelmed with joy over those words. He almost couldn't believe the words, but the older saiyan didn't smell deceitful. Also his eyes seemed to be almost begging him to believe his words.
His chest warmed with the knowledge that Teti was there and loved him. He wanted to tell the dominant that he loved him too, but his mouth opened and closed soundlessly. His nose scrunched up in frustration. His hands came up to grip the alpha's wrists as he tried to focus on the words he wanted to say.
"L-love…you, Teti."
Bardock felt his eyes sting over the words. The tears had him nervous and almost terrified that he had said something wrong, but it looked like he had gotten through to Kakarot.
The beta wrapped his arms around the older man's neck and moved to nuzzle his face in the crook of Bardock's neck when the alpha sputtered some. The sound made the beta pull back only to blink at the sight of his father's face before letting out soft almost inaudible giggles.
Shampoo suds covered the alpha's chin and mouth in a irregular shaped goatee with a stripe of suds on his cheek that he was wiping away.
Bardock froze at the sight and sound of his kyuata's amusement before chuckling himself as he cleaned his face off of soap.
Seeing Kakarot enjoying himself and laughing made his spirits brighten. The sight was exactly the same from when he was younger, and it made him realize that his son was still in there. He just needed help in reconnecting to the outside world.
He reached out to lightly pull on one of the soapy spikes of hair on his youngest head.
"Come on, Kakarot. Let's finish your bath and we'll get your hair and tail brushed."
Kakarot chirped and leaned his head back. A soft purring came from his chest as he felt fingers slowly but eventually work out all the tangles in his mane.