Chapter 35 – Decisions
One month.
Thirty-one days.
Seven hundred and forty four hours.
Vegeta felt as though he was going crazy. It had been one whole month since the Supreme Kai and Kibito healed and returned Bulma back to her body, give or take a few days, and she still wasn't awake.
During that time, Vegeta had tried his hardest to keep his mind off of his woman, but it was too hard. Somehow, Bulma would always tear her way to the front of his mind, yelling and screaming at him to think about her and only her. The woman wasn't even awake and she was as annoying as hell! However, even if she didn't mentally scream and shout at him, she was always the first thing he thought about, no matter how important the situation they were in was.
Since the Cold Empire was now free of King Cold's and his two sons' reign, the Cold Empire was falling apart. Also, because his and Bulma's followers had killed all of the Colds' loyal followers, only those who were forced to work for him unwillingly had survived. It had been hard trying to find out who was there by choice and who wasn't, but somehow, they had managed, mostly thanks to a few humans who had the ability to see through lies.
Right now, Vegeta had the choice to either keep the Cold's Empire and make it his own, or leave it be as a no-man's land, where there was no ruler and those who didn't wish to follow him or Bulma could stay there and live in peace. It was a hard decision to make and whilst Vegeta wanted to make it his own, just so that he could be more powerful, he also knew that it wasn't only his choice – Bulma also had a say in what they did with their Empire.
A part of him wanted to take control of it, just so that he can prove to all those in the Universe that the Saiyan race was a powerful one, a race that would not and could not be defeated easily. He wanted people to tremble in fear at just the sound of his name, he wanted them to bow down before him and worship him.
However, what Vegeta did not want, was to be a tyrant.
Taking control of the Cold Empire and forcing all those who had once been ruled by King Cold to then be ruled by him, would make Vegeta no better than the Colds'. Whilst he wanted people to tremble with fear, he did not want them to despise him. He did not want his mate and his future family to be in danger just because he wished for more power.
Vegeta had seen what power could do people. After all, his mother had died because King Cold wanted more power, because he wanted to rule the entire Universe. Vegeta did not want that. He didn't want to become the person he had always hated. He didn't want children to be left without parents because of his thirst for power, just like he and his brother had been, just like Bulma had been.
Every day without fail, his younger brother would come and visit him, just to make sure that Vegeta hadn't completely lost it.
Unlike the last time Bulma had lost control of her mind, Vegeta now left their rooms, he showered daily, ate when hungry and also trained. Even though he could not stand the thought of leaving Bulma on her own in case she woke up, Vegeta knew he now had other responsibilities. Also, his younger brother Tarble stayed with her whilst he was away. Like every other pack, they had bonds between their minds, allowing them to communicate telepathically with one another. Vegeta had never really used the mind connections between them before, mostly because he preferred to keep everything to himself and didn't particularly care for others' thoughts. However, now that his father had passed over into the next dimension, there was a strange feeling of emptiness in their minds. Ever since the day they were born, the two brothers had had their mother and father's presence in their minds. When their mother had died, because they were so young, it was easy to distract them. Now though, they were both painfully aware of their loss.
Tarble always tried to stay positive, thinking that their father would now be with their mother, but Vegeta could never be as positive as him. Their mother, the Saiyan Queen, had been a pure hearted woman – she despised killing unless it was to protect her pack and people. Their father had no problem with murdering people. At one point, he had allowed his thirst for revenge to get the best of him and attacked his own people! However, King Vegeta had always been there for them. Whenever they were in danger, he was right there on the front line, fighting for them. Even though he had always been advised against going straight into battles with only lower classes by his side, the King did it anyway. They may have only been lower classes, but they were still Saiyans, they were still his people. As their King, it had been his duty to protect them with his life.
And now, that duty had been passed onto his eldest son, Prince Vegeta.
Vegeta wasn't too sure what to think about that. Whilst he had always dreamed about becoming King and ruling the Saiyan Empire, he had never imagined it being so soon. He was still young, he wanted to mature first and gain more experience so that he could be the best King his Empire ever had. Also, Vegeta knew how busy being King was and he did not want to be away from Bulma for great lengths of time.
It was stupid, childish even, but that was how Vegeta felt. Nobody ever asked him how he was feeling, besides his mate. Nobody ever asked him what he actually wanted, except for his woman. Nobody ever needed him and he had never needed them, but with Bulma, it was different. Many thought of him as a cold hearted bastard, as someone who was arrogant, proud and power-hungry. Perhaps they were right, perhaps they weren't. Vegeta would never let anybody in besides Bulma and he was determined to keep it that way. After all, how could people fear him or follow him, knowing that he had a soft side? Knowing that around his mate, he was a completely different person? That would put not only himself at danger, but Bulma also and that was something he was not going to risk, no matter what happened.
When they return to Vegeta-sei, preparations were going to begin and then a month after, he would be crowned King of the Saiyan Empire. Then, Bulma would be crowned Queen of her own Empire, the Human Empire. Vegeta wasn't sure if she would still wish to bond with him or in her words, marry him. He knew that he hadn't been a very good mate lately. When she had been lonely, he had continued training as though nothing was wrong. When she had been grieving, where was he? He was training. It seemed as though whenever she needed him, he was never there for her.
Their Empires were not connected yet, so Bulma still had the chance to leave if that was what she wished. Even though it killed Vegeta inside just to think about it, he knew that he could not stop her if that was what she wanted. He wasn't one to shower his mate with love or whisper soft words of endearments into their ears, but what he did have, was a strong bond with this woman. It was a bond that would be damn near impossible to break and even if he didn't show it, he would work his ass off to keep it from breaking. She was his woman, his mate. There was more chance of hell freezing over than him letting her go so easily.
He shook his head angrily before sitting down on the chair besides his and Bulma's bed. He could not see Bulma actually leaving him, but then again, she had always been strange and she always did what he least expected. Every time she was given some sort of decision, Bulma went ahead and did the exact opposite of what Vegeta expected her to do.
Looking down at her now, watching her peaceful expression as she took deep, even breaths, it was enough for Vegeta's eyes to start to feel heavy. His tail unwound from around his waist and beat against his seat in content for a few minutes before Vegeta stood up and closed the small distance between him and Bulma. Silently and almost as though in a daze, Vegeta removed his armour until he was only in his underwear and pulled back the covers. As soon as he was led down, Vegeta turned onto his side and pulled Bulma against him, her back pressing against his chest and his arms wrapped securely around her in a possessive and protective hold. A soft sigh reached his ears and he felt a small smile play along the corners of his lips. Without even thinking, Vegeta pressed his lips to her ear, whispering that she better wake up soon, before wrapping his tail around her and tightening his hold.
As his eyes closed, Vegeta allowed himself to be lulled to sleep by the soft breathing coming from his mate.
O.o.O
Warmth.
That was the first thing Bulma could feel.
She wasn't sure how long it had been, but she definitely knew that it had been a while.
Ever since her parents had faded away and gone back to the other dimension, Bulma had been meditating and focusing on the energy around her. At some point, she had been able to feel Kakarot and Raditz and more frequently than others, she had been able to feel Tarble. Vegeta was always a constant presence around her, but Bulma could tell that he wasn't actually with her. Unlike last time, she could tell that he hadn't stayed with her every minute of every day.
Sometimes, she would only be able to feel his presence. Other times, it was as though he was actually holding her and sharing his body warmth with her – which was exactly what she could feel now.
Breathing in deeply, Bulma sighed in content as she breathed in Vegeta's scent and the hold on her tightened. It was as though he was everywhere and it made her heart warm.
Even if he left for a while, he always came back. Bulma knew for a fact that things were going to be chaotic now, and she knew that everything was going to be dumped on both of their shoulders. Not for the first time, she wondered how King Vegeta had managed to do it. Whilst she had been busy training, he had taken on the workload for her Empire, since everyone was way too busy for her to be crowned Queen.
Queen Bulma.
It kind of had a ring to it, now that she thought about it. Bulma, the Queen of all Humans and Saiyans. Did that sound right? Bulma grinned. It sure as hell did!
"You better wake up soon, woman."
Her grin faded to a loving smile. He was with her! As the voice spoke, something warm wrapped around her waist just as something solid pressed against her back. Bulma could probably guess that it was his tail around her waist as well as his arms and it was his chest against her back.
Wait.
Was he cuddling her?
Bulma's eyes widened. He was cuddling her! Damn it. Why can't she be awake now? Here he was, lying in bed with her, thinking she wouldn't be able to tell that he was cuddling her when really, she could. Damn it. Damn it. Sure, it was a nice feeling, but Bulma wanted to actually feel it. She wanted to be able to feel him instead of having to guess what parts of him were touching her.
She squeezed her eyes closed, concentrating hard and willing herself to wake up.
O.o.O
There was a disturbance with the energy in his room.
Vegeta kept his eyes closed and feigned sleep as he used his senses to check out his room, but found nothing. There was nothing at all out of the ordinary, but if not that, then what had woken him up? If there wasn't an intruder in his bedroom, then what could-
His eyes widened a fraction before he glanced down at Bulma. She couldn't be… could she? Surely not! Whilst tightening his hold on his mate, Vegeta used his ki and the bond between them to try and find out what was wrong with her ki. If she really was what he presumed… then… then what? What would they do then? It would be a scandal, completely outrageous! Vegeta felt his heart start to pound in his chest as he continued to search her ki.
Something was definitely different about it, but what was it? Vegeta found himself growing annoyed when he couldn't quite sense what was wrong, what was different.
Vegeta shot up out of bed, pulled on his training shorts and paced around his room. Every couple of minutes, he would glance over to Bulma.
It had been over an hour now since he felt the disturbance and she was still unconscious, but now that he had sensed the difference in her ki, it seemed to be screaming in his face, overwhelming his senses.
It was utterly impossible to ignore.
Was his mate pregnant?
They weren't even bonded or married yet! To make matters worse, they were royalty. It would be improper if they weren't officially together before she gave birth. Also, Kakarot's harpy was pregnant for only a couple of months and was huge, so it would be obvious if they were got married whilst she was pregnant. People would think that that was the only reason why they were bonding or marrying. They would think that because they were royalty, their child couldn't be a bastard – it would be utterly disgraceful.
Really, they should not have even been sleeping together before bondage because of this very reason! His father had warned him, told him that the council wouldn't be pleased if they caught wind of what he and Bulma got up to, but Vegeta had told his old man to keep out of it. What happened between him and Bulma was their business and no one else's.
Perhaps he should have listened to his father?
It felt like everything was suffocating him. First, it was the war. Second, it was his father's death. Third, it was the Cold Empire and whether or not he wanted to make it his own. Fourth, it was the preparations for when he became King. And now fifth, there was a possibility that his mate was pregnant.
Vegeta ran a hand through his hair and paused when he heard Bulma's heartbeat pick up. In an instant, he was at her side, watching her intently as her eyes squeezed tightly.
How would she react to the news? Would Bulma be happy that there was a chance she was pregnant, or would she be just as unsure as he was?
They had never talked about having children before and honestly, Vegeta had never really thought about having them either. Sure, he knew that one day he would have a couple of brats, but not any time soon! When he had children, Vegeta wanted to be stronger so that no matter what, he could always and would always be able to protect his pack. He had survived against Cooler only because he became a Super Saiyan. What if someone stronger came along and he didn't stand a chance?
Vegeta shook his head furiously. No, he was the Prince of all Saiyans – soon to be King! There was no one who was stronger than him. He was the strongest warrior in the Universe, rivalled by none! If someone wanted to try and harm his pack, well, Vegeta would just like to see them try.
Looking back down at Bulma, his eyes trailed to her stomach.
There wasn't any sign of a bump and her stomach looked just as flat as it usually did. If she was pregnant, wouldn't the Supreme Kai have mentioned something? Wouldn't the tall red guy have said something whilst he was healing her?
His eyes widened.
Then, something that surprised even Kibito happened. A crimson red colour started to show in little parts of her spirit.
Was that because of him, or because she was pregnant?
For a couple of minutes, Vegeta humoured the thought of being a father, but no matter how hard he tried, he just could not see himself as one. He had a ridiculously thin temper and wasn't the most patient of people – could he really be a father? Would he be able to be a father?
Before his thoughts could continue, a presence on the other side of his door caught Vegeta's attention, but before they could knock, he opened the door.
"What is it, Tarble?"
Tarble's eyes widened at the sight of his older brother. He looked completely exhausted and stressed. As Tarble's eyes wandered into the room, he could understand why. Bulma still wasn't awake yet, so obviously he would be worried about her. "Your scouter is switched off, so I came to tell you dinner is about to be served."
"I will not be eating with you tonight." Vegeta told his brother, but just as he was about to shut the door, Tarble phased into the room. "Tarble what-"
"What's wrong?"
Vegeta's eyes narrowed a fraction as he shut the door and faced his younger brother. "What do you mean 'what's wrong?'?"
Tarble looked over to his brother, who was currently glaring at him. Taking a deep breath, Tarble continued. "It isn't like you to miss dinner, brother and it also isn't like you to switch your scouter off and ignore your duties."
"Leave me be, Tarble." Vegeta growled warningly. "I am tired and wish to go to sleep."
Seeing that he wouldn't be able to get his older brother to speak to him, Tarble sighed and walked towards the door. "Bulma will wake up, Vegeta." He told him and gave a small smile before leaving.
"She'd better," Vegeta mumbled under his breath as the door shut behind Tarble.
A/N - BULMA MIGHT BE PREGNANT? What a shocker.
This chapter was supposed to be three separate chapters, but they were all way too short and I preferred them this way anyways.
I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that this story will be over in about five chapters. The good news, is that there will be a sequel! I've already told you all about this, but it'll be called 'Battle of the Minds' and two weeks or so after this story is finished, I will start posting the sequel. At the moment, I've written about ten chapters of it, but I've got writer's block. It shouldn't matter though, especially if I continue updating once a week! :-)
HOPE YOU ENJOYED AND DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW! :-)