"Earthling woman."
Bulma blinked in surprise, not expecting him to address her at all. He'd made it abundantly clear he wanted to be left alone ever since they set foot on her airship. It was all he could do to not squirm in the crowded vehicle full of namekian refugees and Chichi scolding Gohan in the corner.
"Kakarot mentioned he underwent training in a gravity simulator," he said simply, his arms crossed. "Where would I have access to that technology?"
He was quick, wasn't he? Straight to the point.
"Oh? That?" She smiled. "My dad gets credit for that one mostly."
"Your father?"
"We started working on it before the trip to Namek, but he engineered the rest in my absence," she offered, reeling in her hook. "Of course, if you want access to that kind of tech you need to stick with my family at the Capsule Corp compound. We're the most advanced this planet has to offer."
His frown deepened. There was an inherent distrust in his gaze, but just under the surface there was curiosity. "And are there more of these gravity simulators there?"
It was nonsensical to be speaking to him like this. Only hours ago she had been horrified to see him appear abruptly with the others in the clearing. Even so, there was a comfort in being home again—they weren't on other planets or in space anymore. No, he was on HER turf and stranded with no space pod to retreat to. He must have considered that already. And something told her that for all his bluster, he really wasn't going to do anything nefarious.
"It was originally intended to just be gravity control for the space ships, but since Goku wanted to get stronger on his way to Namek dad tweaked the system a bit. I'm sure he has a backup. Can't trust Goku with any of our prototypes." She smirked, knowing she got him. He was hanging on her every word. Good.
He nodded, shifting on his heel. "Then I shall remain in this Capsule Corp for the time being, earthling woman."
"The name's Bulma," she blurted before he escaped her vicinity. She almost kicked herself for how casually she was speaking to him. But she had an inkling he only respected people with a spine. It wouldn't do to cower around him. "It's a lot easier than calling me 'earthling woman,' no?"
He narrowed his eyes at her, sizing her up. No doubt, a snarky comment dying to slip out. But given that he was currently at the mercy of the Earth, he said curtly, "Very well, Bulma."
He ignored everyone after that, quietly retreating to the far corner. He stared out one of the windows, his sharp gaze trained on the outside world with disdain.
They needed some kind of incentive or hold over him with Goku dead. She needed to keep this taciturn saiyan occupied for the time being. As it stood, not even Piccolo could hold him off.
He was also undeniably calculating. No doubt, he was deliberating his options as swiftly as he had come up with a solution for reviving the others. Those guarded eyes shone with a harsh awareness completely absent in Goku's. The scientific part of her brain gravitated towards that cool, detached logic. Relished it even.
Nevertheless, there was something different about him since his first appearance. He was the same terrifying man she met on Namek. There was no doubt he was a killer. But now there was a quiet, almost sad quality to him. Introspective. Withdrawn. Vulnerable, even. Whatever caused his death on Namek must have taken a toll on him, among other developments since the battle on Earth.
It almost made her wonder. Was it possible? Was there a glimmer of a chance that he wasn't so bad? Was she sensing, for lack of a better word, "humanity" in him? He was more or less the last of his kind aside from Goku—if Raditz' account was to be believed. If they could accept even the likes of Piccolo into the z-gang, there must be a case to be had for the enigmatic saiyan.
She bit her lip, conflicted. She should hate him. She's had so many nightmares involving him. Yet, could she really hate him when he was standing there in front of the ramp of her airship glancing around at the compound in an almost boyish wonder, his silly spiky hair billowing all elegantly in the breeze?
Inviting him home had been a pragmatic move on her part. In spite of the ditzy and impulsive airs she projected, she wasn't stupid. It truly was in their best interest not to antagonize him.
She should have guffawed at the prospect of housing their enemy. It was just so dumb. So ridiculous. But watching the saiyan be overwhelmed from her periphery by her bubbly mother and stuttering helplessly at her assertion that he was a hero, she could only conclude it was so ridiculous as to be brilliant. Ingenious even. As brawny and arrogant as her new houseguest was, he was defenseless in the face of culture shock or the sociable elements of earth. He was as a good as a goner in her lair when he wasn't posturing about his mighty strength or his princely rank. She grinned as Panchy made quick work of giving the wide-eyed saiyan a tour, speaking a mile a minute and utterly oblivious to his apparent distress. He'll endure it awkwardly, of course, if he ever wants to best Goku. Yes, this she could work with.
And maybe her comment to him in the clearing held more truth than she was ready to admit...
Still. This was VEGETA. It just wasn't right.
He had no business looking this cute. And it was decidedly NOT a factor in her very rational, logical, scientific decision.