Chapter 28
The Saiyan and the pirate lay entwined together on her bed. It is late morning now and a faint drizzle splashes against the window. There is blue sky in the distance but overhead drifts a sombre grey cloud on fast winds. Not interested in the slight pattering on the glass, Ryoko sighs to herself. Restlessly fidgeting her legs about her eyes glance up to the face of Vegeta with a content and tender smile but she really wishes now that he would wake up. She has been awake for nearly an hour now and although she absolutely cherishes the time she spent during the night sleeping cuddled up beside him it is starting to lose its novelty and drag on a bit. Patience was never one of the things that Ryoko was graced with but at the same time she does not really want to move away and out from Vegeta's embrace. It is far too rare a chance for her to step away from and the warming comfort of his flesh against hers still feels as comforting and brings the same gay and joyous delight to her as it did before she fell asleep in his arms, however laying still for such a length of time is boring her and leaving her wanting more. Remembering from last night she knows that interacting with his sleeping body in a lustful manner does nothing for her but she's beginning to think it might be time to pleasantly wake him up so that they can continue where they left off.
Ryoko grins to herself. Her mind wanders off at the thought of him positively reacting to a good morning kiss and where that fantastical path may lead her. As much as she would love for that to happen and for her ungovernable feelings for him to be replied to with his own she is also wary of the very real possibility of him reacting negatively. Thinking on it though just before Jurai arrived he didn't seem to mind it too much that she kissed him then. Nothing ventured nothing gained but still the pain of him rejecting her advances again is something she is not too overly fond of. She traces figures of 8 along his chest with her fingernails as she ponders whether she should arouse him from his sleep whilst trying to arouse him in altogether separate ways. All of a sudden the toned muscles across his chest tense and brings her out of her reverie.
"Kakarot."
Vegeta's hand resting across Ryoko tightens into a fist and his brow furrows slightly as he whispers this name in his sleep. Ryoko chuckles to herself, even when asleep he is as stubborn and driven as a hell bent man. Her hand flows upwards across his chest and neck and then onto his face as she caresses and strokes his cheek and forehead whilst making shushing noises. Ryoko's heart burns brightly as she soothes the warrior, his clenched fist loosening. A surprised gasp sounds from her throat and a blush blossoms all over her face as a strength enters the arm wrapped around her. Confused and startled, Ryoko looks about her as he pulls her closer to him but soon realises it is nothing more than him moving in his sleep when she sees that his eyes are still firmly shut. Whether this is just a random movement or if all of this is just habitual from when he shared his bed with his wife she does not know but with her hand cupping his stern cheekbones, her face next to his and him holding and pulling her close she decides to seize the moment.
Lifting him up slightly from the bed as she firmly wraps her own arms around his shoulders and the back of his head, her fingers running through his coarse and wiry raven black hair, Ryoko locks her lips around his. Gnarled and weathered fingers stretch and flex. Each fibre of her body burns with the lustrous desire for him. The passion in her heart pours into her actions as she passionately kisses him again and again. More strength enters the sleeping body beneath her. Panting between each kiss her actions appear to have a sense of urgency and desperation to them for she knows he is waking up. Ryoko's closed eyes feel his eyelashes tickling hers as tired eyes begin to flutter awake. Opening her own golden eyes to see his half awake pupils stare blankly up at this face next to his own she smiles as she sees his eyes quickly widen and snap open fully but not before she breaks off the kiss and playfully licks him on the tip of his nose.
"Hiya Vegey, so, was it good for you hmm?" Ryoko coyly asks, smiling down at him as she lays upon his now awake body. She feels his body tense beneath her, his hand and arm leave her back and watches a very confused look dawn on his face. Not surprised by him behaving like this, Ryoko continues to merrily grin as she waits for the gears in his head to start turning – she can't blame a guy for being so amazed after waking up to a such stunning beauty first thing. Vegeta' eyes quickly dart about scanning the scene; the pirate licking her lips, her ample cleavage, this unfamiliar room with bottles littering the floor and silky white fabric. With his mind racing in a semi alarmed state his bewilderment ceases as he latches onto one piece of evidence before him.
" There are worse ways to awake but I don't really feel up for more pillow talk, you've had your fun Ryoko. Surprising to think though that you of all people did not take advantage of my state with that sordid mind of yours." He hopes that the fact that he can still feel some article of clothing covering him and her wearing nightwear means that during the night the opposite were not true. The sly grin on her face doesn't fill him with confidence though.
" Me? Whatever do you mean Vegey?"
" We might both be wearing clothes now but I've learnt not to underestimate you in such situations. Did you try any funny business with me whilst I was asleep?" Asking her straight and bluntly he doesn't bother to mess around with her innocent ignorance charade, it is quite important to him to know whatever she may have done or not done after he blacked out. She leans forward so that their noses and foreheads are touching. His cold eyes stare up at her and her feline and predatory gaze keeps his stare.
" That's for me to know and you to find out Vegey, if you want we could have a little hanky panky right now. I mean, you're not putting up any resistance." Ryoko's voice drops into a sultry whisper as she places her hands either side of his face. At this point though she senses a massive surge in ki. Vegeta is back in action. No longer the helpless, wounded and exhausted man she bested late last evening the warrior who has scorched dozens of worlds is back and although not fully rested and recovered his power once again absolutely dwarfs her. He does not speak but he has very firmly answered her. Dejectedly sighing to herself she lowers her head onto the pillow beside him and forlornly sighs. The moment has gone and passed now, terminated by the man she loves once again. She inhales and opens her mouth to say something but doesn't. Vegeta sits up as best as he can with a woman still atop him. Ryoko does not budge, her body stays on top of his and her arms around him even though she can see that he wants to get up and move. He wants to get up and leave her.
"Please Vegey, can't you stay just a little while longer? I promise I won't do anything, just stay, please?" Ryoko's arms tighten across his chest, not wanting him to leave her alone. The Saiyan looks down at her, her crestfallen eyes gazing up at him from the pillow, and pats her on the head before moving her arms off of him. She tried to resist but her strength once again means nothing to him, trying to stop him through physical means is just a waste of effort and energy.
"I have rested here far too long already, it's already well after sunrise and I haven't even started my training. You've had enough of your fun, I must train now." Being very careful and delicate about how he touches her Vegeta delicately manoeuvres Ryoko off of himself so that he is free to move. Those golden and despondent orbs of hers implore him not to and so he simply breaks eye contact with her and sits up on the bed. Stretching out his feet and toes on the flooring he notices and remembers his injury. One night of good rest is not enough for a Saiyan to naturally heal a fractured bone, he might talk of training but this will severely limit what he is capable of. With his mind distracted by this sore and tender, ugly, yellowing bruise on his left calf the woman with an equally tender heart grabs one of his arms and squeezes tight. Nonchalantly he turns his head to look at the woman trying to prevent him from leaving.
" Can't you just skip your training today and spend your time with me instead of that damn machine?" She pleads for him to stay by her side. Ryoko doesn't want this magical night with Vegeta to end like this, she wants it to continue and not to lose him again to that room where he spends every waking moment he can in. Pulling on his beefy arms to get him back into the bed with her accomplishes nothing and she knows that her words will not sway him but nevertheless she won't let this go without a fight.
" Skip my training? … All this time and you still fail to understand the prince of Saiyans. To be a Saiyan is to train. To get stronger, faster, more powerful is to be a Saiyan, and I have to surpass Kakarot. I know that you women believe I spend too much time in there, Bulma has told me enough times before you two came along to ' just relax', but that is one thing I cannot and will not do. For every second I do not train, Kakarot pulls ahead that little bit more. At least 8 hours of my daily training is to just maintain my current levels of power and that clown's absurd natural prowess makes it that much harder to gain on him. I spent two years in the hyperbolic time chamber and failed to come close to what he achieved in just one. If I do not train to my utmost limits and beyond them then I will never reach his power and be forced to continue this life of shame and being second best to a soft-headed fool. For Bulma's sake he has to fall, he has to taste defeat by my hands and kneel before his prince."
"But Vegey why can't you just forget about Kakarot for one day. What about me?" Ryoko cuddles up against his arm and back, resting her head on his shoulder and pressing herself against him. She is never the one he thinks about or does anything for unless the situation utterly demands for it. He never once has even chosen to spend time with her voluntarily. With his whole life being devoted to war and power he has no time at all for her or for anyone else. Ryoko does not want to spend her days just watching him from the background, she wants him. He spends more time thinking about the one he loathes and despises to an unparalleled level than her and she doesn't like it. She doesn't understand why she can't get him to stop doing something that causes him pain, why he always has to go and leave her and why he can't see how much she loves him.
Vegeta stays silent as she begs him not to go. From the way this morning has started he does not see the rest of this dreary day faring any better for him, especially with his leg being wounded and having already depleted the store of Senzu beans. He hears what Ryoko is saying, he hears her words and the feelings behind her words but this is not a situation he wants to be in any longer. Her having used his declining strength and health for her own desires does not sit well with him. It will definitely complicate matters, make her even more confident against Ayeka over whatever she believes she accomplished here and he still does not know what truly transpired when he finally succumbed to sleep. He has told her that he cannot love any woman with his wife still on his mind so he doesn't understand why she is under the illusion that all of his grief has magically vanished and he will actually do as she asks. She is persistent and tenacious, that he will not argue, yet for someone who professes to love him she clearly does not know him half as well as she believes she does.
" I will never forgive or forget what that clown has done to me. He might not mean harm but his sins against my honour and pride are countless. Asking me to give up, even momentarily, on my vengeance is like if I were to ask you to forfeit your own rivalry with Lady Ayeka and to concede defeat to her." Vegeta knows he has her with that. Both of them have their own nemeses and both of them have absolutely zero desire to ever end their grudge or to lose to their rival. Her arms let go of him. The Saiyan knew he could win this argument by playing the trump card that is her hatred for Ayeka and equating it to his addiction to exercise. Behind him Ryoko sits quietly on the bed with her hands on her knees. Vegeta rolls his shoulders and cricks his neck as in his mind he tests himself to see how much good that long sleep did for him.
" … Like hell I'd ever concede you to her. I love you more than she ever could, Vegey." She speaks softly and places one open palm upon his broad back. Though his head is facing away from her she sees him nod in acknowledgement whilst his eyes scan her room for wherever she discarded the rags of clothing he was wearing. The room is an uncoordinated mess but he sees his tattered trousers and worn out boots on the floor next to her clothes. That sight of their clothes together causes Vegeta to frown. She truly did have the ability to do whatever she wished to him and he was the one who put himself in that position, his reckless abandon was what led to her having complete power over him. His ego and confidence may be large and inflated but they are not without the shadow of self loathing that spawned in his mind when he was bested by a low class warrior.
" That may be but you see my point. We both have our rivals, we both actively seek to win victory over them, and with that I will take my leave." Vegeta stands up and picks up his ruined clothing but not before internally bandaging his leg with his now bountiful supply of ki. Ryoko stays sat there with her arm hanging where he just was and looking at him but he is not looking at her. This lack of attention wounds her, it is as if he is ignoring her and she is someone who enjoys being the centre of attention. It seems as if his back is always turned to her. She wants him to look at her when he's talking and not to just walk about as if hurriedly leaving from some sordid and meaningless one night stand. He does not bother donning his clothes from yesterday and is walking towards the door when a woman in a white nightie teleports in front of the closed door.
" Hey Vegey, if you ever need someone to warm your bed and keep you company come night-time ..."
" You know my answer to such offers. When I do get to a point where I want my bed to be shared with a woman I won't keep it a secret. … Ryoko, did you or did you not-"
"No. Not like I didn't want to but … Well you definitely wouldn't have gotten any sleep that's for sure so I made the great sacrifice of my pleasure for your health Vegey." She smiles at him as he stands there before her and simply nods. Vegeta does not want to contemplate what might have happened but is relieved to find out that nothing beyond that unique wake up call passed between her and him during the onset of night. He motions for her to stand aside so that he can leave and so Ryoko opens the door behind her but still stands partially blocking his exit. Smiling at him from the doorway she waits as he covers the short distance towards her before she sticks her arm across the door-frame to bar his way. He doesn't react at all, for some reason he just knew that Ryoko was going to try one final attempt before he was going to escape.
" C'mon Vegey, you got to give a girl something. A little parting gift for Ryoko after I took such good care of you all throughout the night?" She cheekily grins at him and he exhales loudly. Vegeta's eyes coldly stare out the open door before him. With two fingers he pushes back her free arm that she tried to move close to his face so she could stroke it.
" You want something in return for an act I was forced into against my will?"
" Yep! Now don't get the wrong idea Vegey, I'm not the kind of woman who goes around asking for money for my tender and loving care but what I'm talking about is a favour for a favour." Ignoring the ire and irritation rife in his words she presses on with her request. He takes another step forwards and nearly pushes her cleanly aside. Ryoko is quick to put her arm back up to block him even though if he really wanted to go he would be gone so from the fact that he is still here shows her that he is listening to her – even though he is gradually making his way out and showing her that his patience with her has almost completely waned.
"What is it that you want me to debase myself into doing?" Finally his head turns to face hers, his cold eyes meeting hers.
"Now now Vegey don't be like that, it's as if you don't trust me or something. What I want is very simple and absolutely harmless. I want you to stroke my ears please." Ryoko smiles at him with a slight rosiness to her face. The Saiyan stands there silently, breathing deeply and staring at her with a callous expression. Like all her other attempts for him she knows this had a near zero chance of success but to her that means that she at least has a greater chance than if she did nothing at all. Her heart dictates that she must take action, it disallows her to just idly sit by and wait hence how this whole situation came about. His lips curl downwards in open disdain.
" Let me get this straight. You are demanding of me to sexually pleasure you because you believe that you did me some great service last night. What you are calling care would be more accurately described as assault, holding someone against their will with the intent of molestation, possible sexual harassment and/or rape and humiliating me and my pride. I see no reason to listen to your demands woman." Vegeta pushes her arm aside after spouting his views on what she did to him, his teeth bared in a semi-snarl. Of course his views on someone who should be astronomically many times weaker than him forcing him onto her bed with devious intent are negative, the very thought infuriates him. Taking another step forward and out into the corridor he feels arms grab onto him and try and pull him back, they do not succeed in doing so. She won't let go but having to drag her behind him will not slow him down in the slightest.
"Wait! Wait, Vegey. No, please don't be mad at me! I'm sorry 'bout all that but I needed to talk to you. Vegeta listen to me! Just hold it right there and let me talk damn it!" Vegeta stands still halfway to his room, listening to her argue, apologise and fruitlessly attempt to negotiate with him is distasteful but he will give her another chance to dig herself out of the deep hole she has dug for herself. Her words start off fraught with emotion and beseech him for forgiveness as the thought of him being angry towards her is tearing her up. She knew what she did or could have done to him he would not be pleased with but she also believes that he left her with little choice, and that is where the anger and shouting begin. Ryoko throws a punch at the back of his head having not noticed he has stopped to listen to what she has to say. Vegeta makes no effort to block and allows her strike to hit, he is not so weak anymore that violence from her has any meaning. She shouts his name again and the Saiyan turns around to face her. Panic and fear set in as she instantly senses an attack heading for her but before she has any time to make any slight movement Vegeta's fist is already right next to her face. He flicks her nose then retracts his arm and crosses his arms across his bare chest.
" I am not mad. If I were truly angry then you would not be alive, simple as that. Apparently life with women and a warrior's pride are mutually exclusive, or so it seems. If you wanted to talk then we could have simply talked like we are now. This Saiyan prince does not recall conversations requiring manacles. I am no-one's slave to be bound."
"Yes you are Vegey! You are and that's why I had to talk with you. I know it's weird and not easy to talk about feelings and such but you don't know what it's like for me! You're making my life utter hell for no reason. My heart wouldn't be hurting if you weren't still your dead wife's slave!" Ryoko grabs Vegeta's shoulders as she vehemently and passionately exclaims her innermost feelings to the uncaring man who has enslaved her heart, shouting into his face as he looks at her in a blasé manner. She tears herself away from him, her hands at her side clenching and unclenching. Ryoko growls and screams inside her head as Vegeta drily smirks and slowly shakes his head from side to side.
" I am not a slave. A slave does not get what he wants and Bulma gave me everything I didn't even know I desired. Trunks was one of them, and no Ryoko that once again doesn't mean I have the slightest desire for any future Saiyan hybrids. She was my wife. If you are asking me to brush aside all that she meant to me then you know you are asking for the impossible. I'm not trying to stay in the past, all I asked of you was for time." Each word he states clearly and matter-of-factly, his eyes do not leave her angry and pained stare. Vegeta wants to end her need for wanting a talk as all he sees is the women endlessly going around in circles worrying themselves, getting angry, upset and in the end the only response he can give them is what he has already told them. Not being the most knowledgable person on romance even he understands to a fair degree their need to do what they do yet it still does not negate the fact that these antics distract him from his life's goal and purpose. She is right in claiming that he does not know what it is like for either woman to be stuck with nothing but to patiently wait an unknown amount of time with their hearts on the line, problems like that never arose with his wife and that is his sole data point for any romantic relationship. Being as unsympathetic and heartless as he is it takes little for him to tire, lose interest or stop caring altogether about most things but for them he will make sure that they understand and do what is probably right by his skewed moral compass. Ryoko does not like his answer.
"It hurts though. Please Vegey, I know only you can make the pain stop. I-I don't know if I'll be able to last till you whenever decide you're ready. You have no idea what I'm going through right now! Everyday with you is a struggle and you being the arrogant bastard you are ain't making it any easier for me. I love you, so please just say that you love me too, please!" The conversation she wanted and instigated is taking its toll on the pirate. It confuses her, scares her, frightens her and she hates it but the terrible, deep rooted feeling that blooms uncontrollably and wickedly is also one and the same as the thing she cherishes and nurtures within her bosom. Ryoko will not give up her love for the Saiyan and she will do whatever it takes to prune the dark and painful thorn from the rose of her unrequited love. Her words coming straight from her heart cut her and prick her throat as she speaks them. She must make Vegeta know, spilling her soul out verbally just to spell it out to him the kind of anguish she suffers from due to him. In those golden eyes of hers is a desperate plea which he hears, however it does not change his response. There is naught she could say or do that could change the allegiance of his heart.
" No. I shall grieve and you shall wait, that is all that can be done. You are blind to think that me lying to you would solve anything. Goodbye."
The warrior turns and walks the rest of the way down the corridor and into his room. He closes the door behind him and leaves Ryoko stood on her own. With a thick air of melancholy surrounding her, with her shoulders slumped and her eyes dull, she teleports the few metres back to her own room and just resignedly falls backwards onto her bed. Tossing and turning restlessly she curses Vegeta: despising his cold lack of attention and affection towards her, his single mindedness towards training and her foul luck at being so besotted and infatuated with him. Ryoko buries her head into her pillow. She just feels like screaming her lungs out at the unfairness of it all, how she finally becomes romantically smitten but is denied the happiness of becoming his lover. Groaning in her sombre mood she exhales loudly and then the faintest of smiles births itself on her lips as she smells the musky scent of the man she loves on her own pillow.
Vegeta growls to himself inside his room, dropping his ruined clothing by the doorway as he frowns and bedamns Ryoko for having overpowered him and shaming him in the process. He became one of the weaklings and that makes him seethe. Honestly he cares a lot less about her attempts on his body than this slash at his pride. She meant no harm by it though, not in that sense at least, and so he won't hold it too much against her; his deceased wife also being one who greatly injured and diminished his Saiyan pride. Sniffing the air his acute sense of smell tells him that he can at least skip one activity that would distract him from training. There is no stench to his body and his wounds are clean, so apparently Ryoko did have some fun with him whilst he was none the wiser. Spared the chore of personal hygiene, he grabs a white vest and navy tracksuit bottoms and stretches his limbs after getting dressed. Something is still lacking though, his body though mostly recovered and his ki reserves being mostly restored are still only at a mostly and not 100% like he would prefer. At this level the fusion of his son could probably take him down even with the tomfoolery it likes to revel in.
Noises from outside his room surface his mind from his brooding, the sound of feet running up and down stairs. No doubt the rest of the household heard Ryoko shouting at him and so he can easily deduce that the knock on effect from that is Ayeka being displeased at him or with him. At what point in his life did his quest for greatness and power beyond imagining give way to pleasing women Vegeta wonders to himself. Thinking on such things does not improve his mood but he knows that if he does not deal with this now then like a Saiyan it will just be that much stronger and harder to defeat the next time around. He stands still with his hand on the door knob. Something is amiss. Vegeta can sense three ki signatures from within the room of the Juraian's, one of which is much lower than it should be. He just cannot have a nice simple day of training anymore and leaves to walk down the corridor and see what all this commotion is about.
The smell. It hits his nostrils before he even reaches the open door and his mind freezes. That is not the smell of health coming from the room of royalty, but the smell of sickness. Vegeta's mighty fists clench and harden. Another room smelt similar to this once and he swore to himself that never again would that happen ever. Trepidatiously he enters the room and looks down upon one of the beds. He stares emptily before shaking his head and forcing his eyes shut. Kiyone and Mihoshi look at him uneasily and warily as he is acting strangely and due to being scared of him but then go back to tending to the woman shivering and coughing under the cover's of her bed. Wrapped up tightly to try and keep her warm is the first princess of Jurai; her skin white as ice, her breathing fast and the gossamer, amaranthine sea of her loose hair spilling across her pillows and over the side of the bed itself.
"Woman, what … Woman tell me what is wrong with Lady Ayeka. Now." The proud and mighty Saiyan prince stands unmoving from the doorway as if he has seen a ghost, and he has for this tainted scent he can smell haunts him and terrifies him. The teal haired officer he is addressing doesn't bother to turn and face him, she is occupied with her duties of looking after the health and well-being of the Juraians and she is not too keen on seeing the mug of a murderer.
"Hypothermia. Y'know the kind of thing that happens to people when they get left in a blizzard. Oh, but of course you were far too busy last night by the sound of things."
"Watch your tongue woman or you can watch that idiot's being torn from her mouth. Get Washu in here now." Vegeta sends a harrowing stare at both officers as Mihoshi cowers and timidly mewls at this threat. He is not going to tolerate any nonsense whatsoever from these two, certainly not in his current mood and not with Ayeka being in the state she is in. He does not want to rely on Washu, he seriously hates that woman, but the circumstances require her expertise and knowledge. If she had a machine to splice someone's DNA and change their species then he firmly believes she can aid the princess in curing her illness. However, after her use has been expended then he will be seeing to her about the whole occurrence within her lab yesterday, she is not getting off with what she did with only one missing tooth. Kiyone did try earlier to find Washu but she is not an easy person to locate when inside her lab. She turns and asks her blonde haired partner to go and give it another try and Mihoshi nods but doesn't move. Vegeta is still stood in the doorway, reluctant to enter this room but not nearly as reluctant as Mihoshi is to try and get past him. The police woman stands there nervously, her eyes looking at the Saiyan and then darting away in fear in case he sees her looking. Kiyone speaks up to help her friend.
" Psycho, if you want Washu here then move out of the way." Vegeta silently steps out of the doorway and stands by Ayeka's bed as Mihoshi hurriedly walks past. Kiyone tries to ignore the man near her as she monitors Ayeka. The Juraian weakly fidgets under the thick blankets and her eyelids occasionally flutter like a person trapped in a dream as she battles with the creeping frost within her system. She looks in pain yet all Vegeta can see is a different face staring back at him. He walks past the officer charged with protecting her and picks up a still steaming bowl of soup from the bedside cabinet. The Saiyan need to consume food is strong within him, he hasn't eaten a good filling meal in a long time, but he restrains himself and holds it for the time being. This food is for Ayeka when she wakes up and he will be ready with it for when she does.
"Do the police have any medical or first aid training that could come in use now?" He breaks the icy silence between them. This whole situation he hates. It fills him with the same impotent rage that consumed him during his service under Frieza as he knows there is nothing he can do. Kiyone looks at him and then back at Ayeka before responding.
"Some, but that's not what I specialised in, neither does Mihoshi before you ask, and of course you only know how to end lives so fat load of good you being here is after you let her get like this in the first place before skulking off with that pirate." She really is pushing her luck by aggravating him so much yet she can see that his attention is not focused on her and as she is of some use at the moment attacking her will only prove detrimental for the princess. The one thing mainly unnerving her about the killer of planets next to her, besides his proximity, is how tense and stiff his whole body is. If she didn't know any better she would even go so far as to say he looked scared.
A couple of minutes pass as they keep watch on Ayeka with no sign of Mihoshi or Washu. Vegeta might be able to go and retrieve Washu and leave Mihoshi lost and stranded within the confines of the laboratory faster than the blink of an eye but he will not leave this poorly woman's sight. Kiyone is right in that he knows only how to kill and destroy, the only thing he ever created was Trunks, but he will not let the past repeat itself by doing nothing. He feels the bowl within his hands become cool. The air ruptures and hums with pulsing energy and bright golden light illuminates the whole room. He might not be a doctor but the massive amounts of ki literally radiating from him when in a transformed state should do something for Ayeka and if not it will warm the room up at the very least. Vegeta stands as a super Saiyan acting as a beacon of heat and energy whilst an awed and frightened woman backs away from him. Unsure of what she is looking at or feeling as flames of gold wash over her, the police woman questions the Saiyan prince as to what he's doing for the only other time he saw him like this was during fights with his son.
" I am doing what I can." His electric blue eyes do not blink or move away from the face of the fair maiden upon her bed. Too many times has his power been for naught, but not this time. He will be of use, his training will have been worthwhile and he will save her. Kiyone takes a few more steps away from him and stays at the other end of the bed. She does not trust him nor does she trust this blonde version of himself that is electrifying the air with his presence. Ayeka coughs and rolls onto her side towards the conflagrating man. If the godly powers of the legendary super Saiyan are enough to keep one woman warm then that is enough for Vegeta.
A quarter of an hour has passed before Mihoshi returns, stands shocked and scared in the doorway at the transformed man and then hurriedly goes next to her partner as Washu pokes her head around the door. Vegeta's penetrating blue eyes lock onto her as the scientist looks over the ill Juraian and then nods to herself.
"Yep, sure seems like hypothermia to me, if what Mihoshi said was right. If she's not displaying any other symptoms then just keep her like that and it should sort itself out, or if you want to be more thorough then I could do a few tests to see if there is anything else and find some more unconventional treatment I've got somewhere."
"How's the tooth?" Vegeta chuckles and turns around to face Washu properly. The scientist has her answer as to whether or not she is allows to hospitalise Ayeka within her realm, the Saiyan maliciously grinning at her and thoroughly unnerving her. In the background and unnoticed Kiyone shakes her head and declines Washu's offer whilst the scientist backs away slowly from the door.
"You're lucky that right now I have better things to do than to squash worms like you, but don't think for one second you're in the clear. You will pay for what you did to Ryoko, consider yourself warned. I'm looking forward to watching you squirm." Mihoshi hides behind her partner as emerald eyes dart about wildly to try and find an escape route for herself. His evil smirk terrifies her and she knows all too well that what he did to her yesterday is but the tip of the iceberg to the world of pain he can make her suffer through. Ayeka mumbles something incoherent in her sleep which distracts the Saiyan's attention. Without the threat of death staring her in the face her great mind churns out the only idea she can think of to save her skin.
"Can't a simple sorry suffice? I mean Ryoko doesn't wish any harm on me so there's no reason for you to, right?" Washu smiles uneasily as she hopes that this simple logic that the person she wronged feels no ill will towards her and so everything can be glossed over convinces the Saiyan prince to spare her. Inch by inch she tries to creep away undetected.
" Kakarot is the one who gives second chances, I do not. Go and enjoy what little of your life remains." Vegeta doesn't bother to look at her as he sentences her life and makes a shooing gesture with his hand towards the doorway she has already hurriedly vacated. He shakes his head and sighs, teaching her a lesson is now another thing he recalls he has to do today instead of training. His eyes glance sideways towards the teal haired rozzer to see if she has anything to say on him blatantly announcing his intent to torture and possibly kill someone, Kiyone remains silent though for she also values her own life. One look at those harsh blue eyes is enough to dissuade her from trying to push a sense of justice or right onto the killer. Behind those eyes though a different scene altogether is relentlessly and perpetually unfolding.
Flashbacks as merciless as he is propagate and torment his mind. The heavenly aura surrounding him is unsteady, fluctuating and flaring in synch with his troubled mind. His flaming fingers rub at his temples as Vegeta attempts to calm and relax himself. With a deep exhale the light shining from his body all but diminishes. Sometimes the Saiyan prince hates his capacity for feeling emotions and wishes that they would leave him. They have tied him down, stripped him of his pride and cost him more than a few battles yet they also gave him this home on this planet with his son. He looks down at the soup steaming and boiling again in his hands and sets it back down on the bedside cabinet, the aroma wafting up from it has the distinct and subtle scents of Sasami's cooking. Breakfast sounds a very good idea to him but there are much more important things for him to be worrying about than stuffing his face. Mihoshi gently taps her partner on the shoulder and asks if she should go and look for some medicine or antibiotics.
"No Mihoshi, they won't do anything here. Hypothermia isn't an infection to be medicated, just a dip in her body temperature that needs to be rectified like Mr. Sunshine over there is doing." Mihoshi nods at this answer to her question and smiles weakly at her friend.
"Honestly I preferred the nickname 'Psycho'. Are you sure that my heat is all that she needs so that she survives?" The Saiyan's eyes keep locked on the resting Juraian as he questions their knowledge on this thing called hypothermia. He doesn't believe that such a simple thing as being cold could be all that is wrong with the slumbering princess, it just cannot be something so minor or weak. Until he sees evidence to the contrary from Ayeka herself he will dutifully treat this as if she is on her deathbed and will do everything he possibly can do to aid her.
"This is only a moderate case, as far as I can tell, her life wasn't in any danger really so you can calm down before you blow a fuse or something. Currently we might as well replace you with a radiator, or are you waiting for us to leave to test out whether the prince's kiss will awaken the princess and save her from this terrible curse?" Kiyone thought that after carefully watching him simmer down into a more placated state and ridiculing his transformation that there was room for her to try and alleviate the situation with a joke or two. She forgot herself though. Mockery of the prince of all Saiyans is never tolerated. A snarling and enraged face appears staring at her. Mihoshi stumbles backwards letting out a short cry of fear.
" Do you find this funny woman? Is this all such a joke to you that you aren't even taking this seriously?" Lightning and plasma erupt around Vegeta, dangerously crackling through the air around him and his aura intensifies. Kiyone takes a hurried step back and opens her mouth to talk but before she can the enraged warrior begins shouting again.
"You had no intention of asking for my power to heal Ayeka. What were you going to do without me? Hope it just goes away and gets better on its own? You are fools! Damned circus clowns, the lot of you!" Fury and anger course through his veins, the telling signs of rage play across his ferocious face. Exacerbated and incensed by her careless words and lack of action the police woman is taking to aid Ayeka, Vegeta struggles to not lash out in violence at these two normal beings. He cannot cope with them acting so casual about someone who's very life could be in great jeopardy, he cannot forgive them for such senseless stupidity and he is seriously struggling with this situation as it is. This whole thing is too much for him to bear. It cuts him down to the bone just the smell of the room but to look upon that pale face is driving him to the brink of madness.
"I WILL NOT LOSE ANOTHER WOMAN TO SOME FUCKING VIRUS! You two are as incompetent as the humans who live on this planet, begone or I'll turn you into dust!" The deep bellowing roar of Vegeta resounds across the land. Kiyone and Mihoshi find themselves staring at the door to Ayeka's room slammed shut before them with a stunned and terrified look upon their faces.
Heaving gasps of air explode out from his lungs as he stands there and then screams in impotent rage at himself. Pain wracks him from the inside out. Bulma. Her face is so vivid and clear in his imagination, his warped mind's eye insipidly showcasing her dead and lifeless face to him constantly. This haunting visage is not leaving him and every second it terrorises him and tears his soul asunder. A great and unyielding horror grips his heart. Disease has robbed from him his most valuable possession and he desperately does not want it to take from him again. Life crushing hands grip at his skull, trying hopelessly to physically end his mental torture. He is mighty and strong but faced with this tsunami of grief and paralysing fear he is left powerless. Legs that could withstand atomic blasts and meteoric impacts with ease come crashing down, Vegeta falls to his knees as the thought of losing someone else due to illness and his lack of use destroys him. Physical pain means nothing to him, it is meaningless and easily ignored, however this other side of pain which he is still unaccustomed to proves utterly devastating to his usually stable psyche. Bulma's death tore him apart and it has come back to savage him again.
Huddled over with his head in his hands Vegeta growls and snarls like a rabid beast. The proud Saiyan prince is wholly and unconditionally terrified. Bulma's death crippled and broke him. Dealing with the long term effects of grief and the loss of loved ones was something he previously only put others through, his emotions after being repressed and beaten out of him his whole life just cannot handle this second coming of sickness. For a split-second his hair begins to elongate before he wrestles himself in control of his transformed state once again. Blood-curdling and horrifying are his screams. Most of them born from grief and mourning for his wife at this chilling reminder of how he lost her. Some from his terror, fear and worry that the same fate has doomed the princess of Jurai. Saiyans and emotional stress do not mix well. Violence and death usually follow as a means of escaping it but a promise prevents him from taking that route.
"... Vegeta? ..." Ayeka's hushed voice whispers from the bed. Having been abruptly woken up by the raucous commotion of a grieving widower her eyes open halfway and squint at the blinding brightness pulsating and emanating from the man driven to his knees. She is confused and quite alarmed by his presence in her bedchamber and his ear-splitting bellowing and howling which breaks her heart to hear. Vegeta falls silent upon hearing her, not moving an inch from his position in the middle of the floor. The lightning sparking and arcing around his body dissipates, his upright blonde spikes lessen in rigidity and his breathing slows and deepens.
She awoke. She said his name. He cannot fathom how this is possible. Illness equates to death within his mind, and if it does not then he questions why his wife was taken from him. If such easy to defeat sicknesses exist then why did his wife not contract them instead, instead of dying why could she not have lived? The wave of relief surging over him at the sound of her voice is met by a tide of bitterness at how his wife was not as lucky as she. She has witnessed him in a moment of great weakness now and it shames him to be seen in such a state but not for a second does he believe that she is out of the woods yet. His greater concern at the moment is not for his pride but for her survival. Ayeka softly calls his name again in question to why a super Saiyan is crouched in her room. Taking a deep inhalation he stands and walks to the princess's bedside with a gentle smile upon his face.
"Lady Ayeka how are you, how do you feel? Just lay down and rest. I will make sure you do not lose to this 'Hypothermia'." Vegeta kneels down next to her as he scans over her body with both eye and sixth sense to make sure she is not precariously teetering on the edge between life and death like he believes she is. He speaks unnaturally quickly compared to how he normally talks and his muscles are full of tension. The princess looks up from her pillow at the shining, golden man obviously worried for her and promising to take care of her. Warmth fills her body from his proximity, like being snuggled up near an open hearth, but a much greater warmth flows into her body from the feigned smile on his face hiding his blatant concern and worry for her.
She goes to lift her head up from the pillow but he gently places his hand on her forehead and stops her from getting up. Vegeta descends back into base form and quenches his power level so that he can feel her temperature. He looks confused at why her head does not feel unnaturally cold to his skin until he sees her flushed cheeks strongly contrasting against her pale skin. Transforming back into his ki radiating form he takes his hand off her forehead, brushes a lock of purple hair from her face and sets about tightly tucking her into her blankets.
"V-Vegeta wait, no … y-you don't have to do this. I'm fine, just feeling a bit under the weather today. I'll be right as rain after a quick lay down tis all." The maiden protests and fidgets, alarm bells ringing inside her head from his actions. She tries to argue that she doesn't need all this attention and him tending to her as such but in truth the fair princess is getting highly embarrassed and ashamed at being touched by a man whilst in her bed. Ayeka blushes bright red as he continues to attend to wrapping her up in her bedding, fluffing her pillows and the like. The Saiyan's hands though abruptly stop upon her last two sentences. A grimace of unbearable pain and anguish contort his face. Those words, echoes of the last thing Bulma ever told him, grip his heart with undiluted terror and crush it with clasps of unwanted remembrance. He stands back up with his blue eyes averted from her and looking instead at the floor. For a minute he stands stock still not saying a word, engulfed and consumed within his mind in an internal and emotional war. From her pillow the stricken Ayeka watches this stoic man and the struggle he is going through, the struggle she is putting him through. Having realised that Vegeta is drawing an extreme amount of similarities between her current state and how his second half passed away she feels guilt over pushing onto him so many excruciating reminders. Her mere presence is making him relive the single most hard and unpleasant moment in his life. If she is causing him such abject pain then she would prefer it if he left despite the happiness it brings her to be cared for by the man she loves.
"No. You are not fine, you are sick. But don't worry, I, Vegeta the prince of all Saiyans, will look after you and make sure you defeat this affliction." The proud Saiyan states firmly and with a serious attitude about him. His unnaturally hued eyes meet her half open red gaze and he nods at her. He can see it in her stare and expression that she has figured out what is causing his erratic and offbeat behaviour and shows her that he will overcome this personal weakness of his on her behalf; surrendering and running away from this would shatter his Saiyan pride. This warrior will confront that which threatens him and tackle it head-on, he shall fight through his discomfort and pain to emerge stronger and do it for the sake of this Juraian princess and himself. Vegeta smiles down at Ayeka and she warmly and cheerfully smiles back at him. Hearing those words coming from his lips means a lot to Ayeka. A great joyous fluttering arises in her heart, the man she loves is voluntarily putting himself through agony for her sake, he is putting her own well-being and comfort far above his own. The promise he made to her yesterday in the snow he meant and is keeping. Such words of bravado and heroism anyone could throw around but the princess knows he means it without a shadow of a doubt. He will absolutely lay down his life for her, no second thoughts or hesitation. With the splendour of a super Saiyan washing over her, Ayeka's love for him blooms and blossoms for him within this moment. Though nowhere near perfect he does truly care for her.
Vegeta turns and picks up the bowl of piping hot soup. Now that she is awake he can offer to her this temptation before his hunger inevitably conquers his self restraint. He's not too sure how long it will take for his radiating ki and hot food to bring her back to full health but his cunning mind has already dismissed the rapid fire solution of offloading a large amount of ki into her body. Quickly he realised that such a monumental amount of energy would be well beyond her control and if any mistake were to occur then she would sear her own insides or cause damage from such a breakneck burst of heat. Slow and steady will win this race, despite his want to train he simply cannot go anywhere until she is healthy once again no matter how long it may take.
"Lady Ayeka this is Sasami's cooking, it will make you better so open up." He kneels down beside her with a bowl in one hand and a steaming spoon in the other. Ayeka looks at the spoon and the face behind it. Out of embarrassment she pulls the covers over the lower part of her face to hide her growing blush at the thought of being spoon fed by her prince. Her eyes avoid his, this whole predicament proving too intimate for her. Vegeta raises a blonde eyebrow and sighs. He swallows the soup on the spoon so that it does not go to waste and his stomach loudly grumbles at the first morsel it has had in over 12 hours.
"Ayeka, do you want to heal or not? I thought this is something you'd prefer to being looked after by Tweedledee and Tweedledum. If you believe you are well enough you can feed yourself, if not then I'm going to have to fed you, OK?" Vegeta swallows another mouthful of the soup for his Saiyan appetites can only be held back for so long. His angelic blue eyes stare at those peeking out from behind her blankets and await for her to reply. Ayeka's eyes avoid his as she still attempts to hide her blush with shivering hands. Being fed by him whilst in bed is a very intimate and romantic thought to her which she would secretly enjoy yet he's done something that pushes her limit as a maiden as to what temptations she will allow herself to succumb to.
" … But … but you've used that spoon Lord Vegeta. … If I use it … then ..." Quietly she mutters, her large red eyes flickering to his glowing face before ashamedly turning away and burying her whole head under her covers. He is asking her to use the same piece of tableware as he has already used, an item with his saliva on it, and she just has to refuse such an offer. The thought of doing something so improper for a princess makes all of her pale face turn red. Vegeta looks at the metal implement in his hand, curling it around his finger and then straightening it again. Neither this item in question, nor Ayeka's extreme ladylike sensibilities will stop him from healing her. Putting the spoon back into the bowl he draws back the covers from Ayeka's head.
" Is an indirect kiss really your biggest concern right now? I don't understand how you could see such an act as sharing cutlery so embarrassing and shameful considering everything else we have been through, my fiancée. You must eat to get better, I will not allow you to forfeit your health over such things." Vegeta is not going to take this nonsense of her getting embarrassed over a simple spoon. He reminds her of the many other things that have occurred between them and the marital agreements that were arranged for them to put into perspective how insignificant feeding in such a manner appears to him. She gazes up at him with rosy cheeks and a silly little smile that has grown on her face from him calling her his fiancée, no matter if it might never come to be hearing him say that fills her heart every time and leaves her defenceless against him. The Saiyan does raise a good argument. Should she be worried about an indirect kiss and make his job more difficult for him than it already is when she is sick and he is battling with demons of his not so distant past. Should she even be embarrassed by an indirect kiss after they have already shared a kiss together on the lips no less. Ayeka fidgets about in her bed uncomfortable in her embarrassment but then closes her eyes and nods.
" Well … i-if you insist Lord Vegeta … I'm sorry for making things harder for you."
" Do not apologise for something that is not your fault. You did not choose this, the blame lies on that damn woman dwelling in my cupboard and her insidious schemes."
Ayeka opens her mouth and looks at Vegeta sheepishly with a blush across her face as she waits for him to feed her. He reaches across behind her instead and sorts out her pillows so that she can sit up better and so drink the soup easier. After doing that and making sure she is comfortable he nods at her and fills the spoon in his hand full with the delicious soup the youngest Juraian has lovingly made for her older sister. Vegeta raises the spoon and softly blows on it, cooling the hot liquid down to a simmer as the bowl continues to boil and steam from the heat he is constantly exuding in his current form. The Juraian royal's mouth closes slightly and then opens again as he moves the laden spoon towards her. He puts the spoon into her mouth. She drinks and swallows the soup and he removes the spoon from her mouth. Ayeka smiles warmly at him and his unnatural caring behaviour as he tends to her.
They continue like this until half of the bowl is gone and Ayeka tells him that she is done eating for the time being. Hungry himself, Vegeta asks her if he can have the rest, she replies with a yes and a kind expression, and he gulps down the whole other half of the bowl in one go. His stomach is nowhere near satisfied, the bottomless pit that it is, and he sits there wishing for more food to sate his hunger and for this foulness afflicting Ayeka to be banished. The Saiyan prince sits waiting for Ayeka to require nursing again whilst heating up her room and the princess rests in her bed happily knowing that her prince is there to protect her even if the given foe is one that he cannot punch.
Two gleaming orbs of gold glitter and then disappear into the woodwork of the ceiling unseen by Vegeta and Ayeka.
