Insert standard disclaimer here.
The Price You Pay: Chapter Twenty-Four
"I don't understand, Radditz," the Saiya-jin no Ouji began to brood. He didn't like situations like these. He didn't like situations that he couldn't explain, especially ones that involved him, and if some levity didn't come soon he had the distinct feeling he was going to blow something up.
"Neither do I, sire." Radditz stood upright with his feet shoulder-width apart and his hands behind his back. It was the stance he had been trained to stand in all his life around royalty.
Yes, I have the military to thank for my perfect posture, thought Radditz with a sarcastic smirk.
"Why the hell are you smirking, you fool?" the fiesty prince nearly screamed. He felt as if the muscles in his neck would snap at any moment.
"My apologies, sire. I did not realize I was smirking." Radditz immediately sobered. The Prince was one Saiya-jin he definitely didn't want to piss off. He didn't really understand what had Vegeta's panties in a bunch though.
The Saiya-jin no Ouji began pacing up the crimson carpet in the hallway outside of his quarters. The mysterious woman lay inside, completely unaware of the confusion surrounding her. Vegeta glanced anxiously at the door.
"I think that for the time being it would be wise for her to stay in this branch of the palace where she is easily accessible. We know nothing about her and frail as she may seem I want to be perfectly certain that there is no possible threat brewing here." The Prince appeared lost in his own thoughts for a moment.
"Of course, sire."
"In the mean time, I want you to investigate her origin. Where does she come from? And more importantly, how did she get here without our knowing? She does have a pathetic ki level but not nearly low enough to be undetected," he was lecturing. She was vaguely familiar to him. The way he'd brushed her hair from her eyes earlier had been complete reflex, habit. "Oh, and Radditz, a slow death will await you if word of this reaches my father."
"Of course, sire," said Radditz with confusion in his eyes as he stared blankly into the now empty hall.
Why doesn't he want the King to know?
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Listening to the men converse "quietly" in the hall, Bulma couldn't help but be confused. Her? A threat? To what? What was going on? What was this nonsense about not knowing who she was? She was his mate, dammit!
Just as I thought earlier, this is insanity. Complete insanity.
Bulma rubbed her eyes. There was an aching behind them that she knew came with over-resting. She could have been knocked out for hours. Uncertain, she glanced around for any indication of the time. The room was shaded in darkness.
Her body ached, she noticed after a few minutes. Bulma squeezed her eyes shut. The room was permeated with his smell, utterly saturated. Bulma sat up and wrapped her arms around herself.
Where are you, Vegeta?
Suddenly, there was the sound of an opening door. Bulma's heart began to flutter and beat more quickly in fear. It was dark. Who knew what sort of creature was lurking in the unknown shadows? She was beginning to despise her human senses—they always came up short when she needed them most. She could hear footsteps and masculine breathing.
"Vegeta...?" she whispered into the darkness.
"How do you do that, onna?" came an irritated voice. He seemed a bit frazzled. Clearly she'd ruined the element of surprise.
"Do what?" She was immediately on the defensive. Her only response was a grunt.
Ah, back to caveman again. Where did I go wrong? thought Bulma with a grin in spite of herself.
There was a candle lit before Bulma knew what was going on and Vegeta's rich, dark brown eyes were staring at her intently. She inhaled quickly, surprised by his sudden proximity and her failure at sensing his nearness. Something was wrong if she couldn't sense him. On Earth, she'd always been able to gauge his whereabouts.
"You aren't afraid are you, little one?" He grinned devilishly and Bulma could feel herself begin to relax. It was the same Vegeta, sadistic all the way. He did always get a kick out of scaring her. But there was something different about his eyes and demeanor. Vegeta though he may be, he was somehow different, altered.
She smiled coyly. "Always, Vegeta," she responded sarcastically, emphasizing his name in a possessive way. It was meant to be playful. This confused him. His eyebrows furrowed and his gaze hardened.
"Watch your tone. I am the Saiya-jin no Ouji. No one addresses me without the use of my formal title." His words were hard but his eyes softened just the least bit. Bulma gazed at his tail. The tip of it was lashing around playfully.
Well, at least there's one way you can always tell how a Saiya-jin feels. Something is definitely different.
Vegeta was frowning.
"I'm going to be direct," started Vegeta, "we don't know who you are. The head of my guard, Radditz, does not know how it is you arrived in the royal gardens without being detected, and—" he hesitated and gazed at her. Bulma found herself longing for the gold hues which had, until most recently, punctuated his eyes whenever he was around at her.
"You are unaware of why I possess a black mark of the Seal of the House of Vegeta-sei on my upper back," Bulma finished for him. It was obvious that this point held some strange, distraught emotion for him. She couldn't decide what it was, or even if she wanted to know.
Was he suffering from amnesia? Or was he just toying with her? Something about the altered cadence in his voice stopped her from moving closer.
"It would be wise for you to start speaking now, onna. I would hate to be forced to use methods of extraction which would mar your delicate beauty." It was a threat, and a damned serious one at that. Bulma looked at the Saiya-jin no Ouji and contemplated his unfamiliar stare. This was no idle threat.
You really don't remember?
Bulma bit down on her lower lip. She had to sober up quickly. This Vegeta wasn't playing games. Either he was pretending not to know her or remember anything of their being mated, or he was suffering from sort of strange amnesia. Still, neither of these situations explained the altered reality surrounding her and the fact she was on a planet which should have been destroyed close to three decades ago.
She examined him. After weeks of close contact with the Saiya-jin no Ouji and over a year of acquaintance, she was all too familiar with the subtle nuances of Vegeta's personality. The man in front of her was nothing like the one she knew. This was not her Vegeta at all.
She thought about telling him the truth, but as the candle light reflected upon his chiseled face, a devious, cold-hearted expression appeared and all she could do was stumble. Who was this man?
"Well?" he demanded. His tail was still flicking back and forth anxiously. She was just another victim, a prey animal he was waiting to devour.
"I don't know." I don't know you. She fought the tunnel vision as it blotted away the room surrounding her, and she fought as her eyes shut, pulled down by the lead of all the strange thoughts surrounding her. But it wasn't enough. Bulma surrendered herself to the welcoming nothingness; an emotional pit of darkness filled with cold words and the warmth of Vegeta's embrace which seemed just out of reach.