Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ but it would be a lot cooler if I did...
AN: Nearly there. Hope the story has been as good to read as it is to write. Though I will admit I did have to wait for some inspiration on this last part. Let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Vegeta walked out of his chambers like a new man. He had bathed, shaved and changed clothes. Dressed in fine dark blue silk with faint silver patterns on his blouse and trousers he walked to meet his mother. She had summoned him for some reason.
He snuck into the kitchen on the way there. The sights and smells filled him with joy. On every tongue was the familiar tones and laughter in Saiyan. The food was spiced in familiar spices he had eaten since he was a child. He couldn't remember them all garlic, black pepper and others just outside the trail of memory but deeply etched in his mind as great food.
The scullery maids tried not to make a fuss as he passed. However many stopped and stared especially the new ones he did not recognize. A pretty young blonde with green eyes offered him honey dipped sweet cakes fresh from the oven. Vegeta could not help but eye her up out of habit. She was young, buxom and curvy exactly his type.
"Would you like some honey cakes my prince? They are hot and fresh from the oven," She asked in a simple yet alluring tone.
Vegeta paused a moment. He looked over her once more. Her black and white serving dress hugged her curves with the front exposed to reveal the right amount of cleavage. The old Vegeta would have started to seduce her there and then.
It had truthfully been a long time since he had last been with a woman. He wanted it more now that he could remember in the past. He could use the comfort of kisses and the pleasure of sex. More than anything he wanted the feeling on someone close to him again, her skin warming his as they embraced in his bed. He could see it now as clearly as if it were a dream, instead he let out a sigh.
"Of course," He said simply in reply with a smile.
He merely took the cake, gave her a wink and spanked her bottom lightly as she left. She giggled it off in a sound just as sweet as the cake he was eating. Perhaps the old Vegeta was not completely gone. Still he would go no further than that and exited the kitchens.
After a short walk he made his ways to Royal Gardens. Bushes were expertly crafted in animals both predator and prey. Flowers from all over Saiya and even some exotic places were planted here. However it being winter they were not in bloom. Everything was covered in a blanket of pure white snow.
It smelled of earth, plants and water as it always did. He nearly teared up just being here. He had no idea how homesick you could be so far from home. He was sure the others were feeling the same in their own ways.
It felt good to just be back among Saiyans again. He delighted in simply hearing his own language in a crowd. He saw familiar sight and smells. Everything felt so right being home. He had no idea how his old self took this all for granted.
For the time being he merely sat at a bench in a row of trees from all the colors he even knew and smelled the air. He felt a cool breeze wash over him. Curious that his mother wanted to meet here among the gardens, while in the warmer months it was a treasure during the winter it was not nearly as glamorous.
"Ah my vagabond son returns," Queen Galatea called out to him.
She stood before him tall and proud and he rose to greet her. She wore a dark green almost black velvet gown with golden trimmings, dark leather gloves and a fur lined cloak fastened with a broach to her shoulder with a royal symbol. Her dark green eyes beheld a fierceness age could not temper.
"Very funny mother," Vegeta said simply in reply.
The queen stepped forward and pushed her finger in Vegeta's chest and threatened, "The rumors I have been hearing better not be true."
"It largely depends on what they are," Vegeta remarked slyly with a shrug.
He was struck hard by the queen's exquisite leather gloves for that. It was only then he noticed that she was actually shorter than him now. His cheek still stung as he rubbed it. She looked furious she was definitely in no mood for banter.
"If you need it spelled out for you the people are saying that Adrestia fucked a foreign general so you could live," the queen almost shouted.
"That's not…" Vegeta began and struggled to come up with the right words, "It didn't happen like that. In any case what do you care what the people say."
"Still such a petulant child and you're nearly twenty now," the queen remarked unimpressed by the answer. "Very well since your tutors failed you I will educate you. What the people say, the nobles say, and what both of them think determine who rules this land. Is that clear enough for you?"
"But we're the royal family," Vegeta blurted out and reeled back as she raised her hand again.
"You're an idiot sometime. Or perhaps it's my fault for letting you have a happy childhood," She said as she thought for a moment. "In any case as with any monarchs our power largely rests on whom supports us. It is even more so since the War of Succession left only your father as the heir."
"Didn't you win that war?" Vegeta remembered as he had only heard tales of the time.
"Fool we merely survived it. We were the last faction left standing. That is hardly the glorious victory you fools think it is," she told him.
"Then why celebrate it the way we do as a grand victory?" Vegeta questioned.
"To unite our people, if we have enough support we survive if not our entire family line goes extinct and we are replaced by another," the queen pointed out to him.
"That can never happen," Vegeta commented with a scoff.
That did earn him another slap on his other cheek. Both were red and stung now.
"It happens all the time all over the world. Saiyans are not so different than the rest of the world despite how we pretend to be," the queen told him.
Vegeta thought about what his mother said and admitted, "She is no longer a virgin it is true, and a man despoiled her during her captivity. That's all I know for sure, she hasn't exactly confided in me since then."
Vegeta was quite bitter about that. Not that he needed to know every detail of course. It was just that he wanted her to laugh, cry, and make fun of him again the way she used to. She and Kakarot are the ones who know him the most. The world seemed strange with her being so distant.
"This does not bode well then, the warriors faction will upset. More upset than they already are with just the rumors," the queen pointed out.
"Why should anyone besides her father care?" Vegeta asked.
"Can't you see that she was supposed to be your betrothed?" the queen told him as if he were an idiot.
"Since when?" Vegeta responded.
"Such an idiot, I raised an idiot," the queen said with a sigh. "A beautiful, young woman from one of the Warrior's noble families is placed in the squad of prince known to love women. What did you think she was sent there for?"
Vegeta gave it some thought. He had truthfully never wondered why Adrestia or Nerine had been sent to his squad. He just assumed it was a random assignment based on the fact that those two never looked at him that way, but everything his mother said made sense.
"What now?" Vegeta asked unsure what the next appropriate move was.
"Now we deny the story of course. We hold court, go to parties, and pretend it never happened. With a little luck everything will blow over and you can still marry her," the queen informed him.
"Who said anything about getting married?" Vegeta blurted out confused.
His mother hit him so hard he nearly fell over.
"She gave up her purity for you!" the queen said. "You have no idea what that means for a woman. The least you can do marry her."
Vegeta wanted to protest. He even stood up and loomed over his mother. Yet her fearsome predatory gaze made him shrink back like a little boy. He simply nodded without protest. It was true that he had not considered it. He would do anything for Adrestia right now.
"There is something I must do first, and then afterwards I will do as you ask," Vegeta told her firmly with resolve.
"It had better be worth the fate of your kingdom," the queen said in a deadly serious tone.
"A life debt always is," Vegeta answered simply.
0-0-0
In the throne room, the king and queen held court today. They were both dressed finely as were all the nobles present. The king wore was dressed in red, gold and black with a purple fur lined cloak. The queen wore a deep blue and silver gown in her purple cloak. It was a major holiday after all, celebrated as long as anyone could remember to mark the defeat of the God of Chaos by the Great Mother and Zelus.
As the king sat on his throne, he noted it was quite the festive mood. The feast was tonight and nobles from all over the countries and even some from other countries would gather here. Nothing was out of the ordinary as far as he could tell. There had been a slight ruckus with his idiot son's return at the gate. But thus far the nobles had not really stirred.
The queen gripped his hand ever so gently. He looked into those beautiful eyes and felt calm. Things were not so bad. Let them spread rumors in the tawdry pubs like they always did about nobles. No one cared before no matter how ridiculous the tales got.
A royal guard dressed in formal armor with a purple tabard took his appointed place a few steps in front of the throne. He carried a blunt black and gold ceremonial rod. A royal clerk dressed in a simple blue robe with a scroll in his hands. The guard slammed his ceremonial rod on the floor to indicate silence from the gathered crowd.
The royal clerk read from a scroll aloud, "Lord Adrastus Tizona petitions the king for justice on behalf of his daughter."
Gasps and whispers erupted from the nobles as Adrastus Tizona stepped forward from the crowd. He was dressed in blue and silver blouse, matching blue trousers and polished black leather boots. He bore determined look on his face with barely hidden fury behind it.
"Silence!" the guard ordered as he cracked his staff on the floor loudly. The crowd hushed immediately.
"Lord Tizona it is good to see you," the king said to the man.
"I wish I could say the same," Adrastus replied with a hint of venom.
"What justice do you come here for?" the king asked.
"You know why I am here. You all know why," Adrastus said as he looked at all the gathered nobles. "My daughter's purity is gone. I demand the prince be held responsible."
"So it is true!" a noble shouted from the crowd.
"She whored herself!" another cried.
"Order!" the guard commanded the nobles once again as he banged the rod.
"I understand your frustration, but the prince can't be held responsible for the actions of your daughter," the king told him.
"My frustration?" Adrastus shouted back indignantly. "How can you? You don't have daughters. My queen you know what I speak of."
The king looked over at his wife. She looked conflicted. Her hands gripped her throne tightly. This was a delicate situation to be sure it had to be played right.
"What is it you wish of the prince?" the queen finally asked.
"First I'd like to hear his side of the story from his own mouth so we all know what happened," Adrastus said boldly.
The murmurs grew from that statement. There was a low hiss among the crowd as they whispered. No demand had even been made of a prince. But the king could order anything.
"Very well," the king called out, "Send for my son."
0-0-0
Vegeta stood in front of the dais facing his father and mother as he was ordered to do. He wore his formal uniform of the order once more. His hands were clasped behind him. He had never had to answer for anything in his life before. Not truly, he was the prince and aside from a few swats on the backside by his mother nothing was ever done to him. He didn't even know how to follow court procedures.
"Vegeta, Crown Prince of Saiya, you have been summoned before me to answer for the demands of justice made the father of your companion Adrestia Tizona," his father informed him.
"What demands does he make of me?" Vegeta asked his father.
"Tell us what happened to your squad while you were captured," his father asked him.
Vegeta went over what he knew. He started with him being captured in the battle. Then he recounted his torture at the hand of the guards, and Zarbon's taunts. Finally he told of their escape. The crowd gasped and sighed at his testimony.
The parts of the crowd erupted in shouts and curses when he was done. Ten more royal guards emerged from side corridors with rods in hand to keep the crowd back from the prince and from each other. Now the crowd was almost separated by faction as the Warrior and Goddess Faction in separate groups along with a third group of mixed nobles. The guard at the dais banged his rod for order once more.
Once the crowd died down the king spoke again, "So you did not actually see this Zarbon do anything to Adrestia?"
"I did not," Vegeta answered simply.
"Are you calling Adrestia a liar?" one the warrior faction yelled in fury held back by a guard.
"Maybe he's just calling her a whore!" someone from the goddess faction shouted.
More guards rushed in from the corridors to keep order. Things were definitely getting tense as shouts erupted from all over. Hands reached between the guards for the nobles in the other faction. The guard additional guards managed to hold the crowds apart.
"Silence!" the guard with long rod shouted as he banged it on the floor.
"I may not have seen it happen to her but I believe it did. Adrestia has no reason to lie to me," Vegeta told them all.
"Lord Tizona step forward," the king ordered.
Vegeta looked at the man as he walked up. He got a hard stare in return. He certainly didn't blame the man for not liking him. It was his fault Adrestia had tagged along in the first place. The man stood five paces to the left of him and looked ahead to the king and queen without another glance at Vegeta.
"You heard the testimony of the crown prince. What do you sort of justice do you demand?" the king asked him.
"I demand the prince marry my daughter," Lord Tizona told them. "He is directly responsible for my daughter's loss or purity and hope for a good match so he must take responsibility by marrying her just as if he deflowered her himself."
"Outrageous!" someone shouted.
"The prince deserves a virgin!" someone else shouted.
The crowd tore at itself with this latest demand. Crown Princes had traditionally married virgins from the Temple of Cybele. As of late though, they had married virgins from noble families. A prince had never once married a girl who was not pure.
At least twenty more guards flooded the chamber just to keep order. Nobles clawed at each other with their bare hands. Some even threw fists as the guards cracked down on the exceptionally rowdy ones.
"I'll do it!" the prince shouted at the top of lungs.
The crowd finally silenced and died down. Now only whispers and murmurs remained easily silenced by the guards.
"My son, do not be so hasty," the king told him.
"He is right father. Adrestia and all my squad mates are my responsibility. If it is required of me I will marry her," Vegeta told him again.
"How romantic," the queen almost sneered.
"I mean it mother," Vegeta reiterated. "I cannot make up for what has happened but I will do everything in my power to make things right."
"Very well," Lord Tizona said with a nod as he accepted the prince's proposal.
"If there is nothing else then this matter is closed," the king informed the court.
"I am afraid it is not your highness," a voice said before the crowd could erupt.
Grandmaster Bio stepped forward. He was dressed from head to toe in blue silk with silver inlays on his tunic and trousers; his fine cloak was white as snow with a blue flamed sword in it. He bowed his head with respect before standing tall once more.
"I am afraid the prince has admitted to several serious violations of code from the order," the grandmaster told the king.
"What of it?" the king asked him.
"Therefore the prince will be henceforth expelled from the order," the grandmaster informed him.
"That is ridiculous," the king said as he banged on the throne. "Such a thing has never happened before."
"Neither has a squad leader ever let his subordinates get captured and violated on a mission. Special violations must be handed special punishments," Grandmaster Bio informed the court.
"You try my patience Bio, I am still the king," he told the grandmaster.
"And I am head of the Celestial Blade, I decide who is let in and who is let go," Grandmaster Bio said boldly.
"Very well," Vegeta said before anymore fuss was made.
The prince removed his blue tabard that had worn for almost four years now. He folded it carefully and handed it to the grandmaster. There were still whispers from the crowd as he turned and exited the grand hall not waiting for an answer.
