AN: Warning - some mild profanity and violence in this chapter. I'm not usually a fan of crass language if something could be said in a more delicate way, but sometimes such sacrifices need to be made to keep to the spirit of certain characters - in this case our favorite surly Saiyan Prince.

Also, chapters will be coming slower from now on. Just a head's up - I've currently got a lot on my plate at work.

Chapter 13 (Meet the Sons)

"So Bulma," Yamcha started, a nervous tremor in his voice. Having lead the scar-faced warrior to the nearby tanning chair with bottle of oil in hand, Bulma now waited patiently for him to apply it on her offered back.

"What uhm…" he continued "I've never met a mermaid before. To be honest I always thought they were mythical… stupid really when I've seen so many strange and magical creatures already," The man had yet to touch her back, fidgeting with the bottle of tanning oil instead and Bulma couldn't help but grin amusedly at his discomfort. "What I'm trying to ask is, are you the only mermaid around or do more of your kind live on land?"

"Why do you want to find more of my kind, Yamcha? Am I not pretty enough for you?" she mock scolded, batting her eyelashes flirtatiously.

"No, no!" he shouted, waving his hands defensively which caused the bottle to fly from his grip. It took real effort not to laugh at the poor guy. She must really intimidate him, she thought with a swell of vanity. She watched him retrieve the bottle, taking a quick glance at Vegeta as Yamcha's back was turned. If looks could kill, Bulma thought, Yamcha would be a pile of ash. Although, she didn't think she would fare much better she conceded with a cringe, averting her eyes from his his burning glare. Nevertheless, Ms. Briefs' plans and haven't failed her yet so she would persevere, she decided stubbornly.

"Men become complacent when they know there's no competition. Introduce a little healthy competition and you'll see him respond in no time…" were her exact words. So when Yamcha returned she decided to spice things up by untying the halter ties of her bikini top, holding the cups to her breast to bare only her back.

"I think you're very beautiful," Yamcha blurted upon his return and the mermaid preened, "I just wondered why this is the first time I've come across your kind."

He then finally did manage to put the oil on her back. His touch seemed to match the tone of their conversation: nervous and hesitant, and when he seemed to try and finish as quick as possible, Bulma sighed in exasperation.

"Tie for me?" she offered next, referring to her loosened top. That too he did with minimal skin contact and an audible gulp. Maybe he needs some more time to loosen up, Bulma surmised.

Deciding that a story would be the perfect distraction to his skittish behavior, Bulma lay back on the tanning chair and started her narrative.

"As far as I know, I'm the only one of my kind to have reached the surface in almost three hundred years. That's when venturing to the surface became illegal for us. I don't know whether any of my kind followed me here… I don't even know if it's possible with a the dragon guarding the way here."

"What dragon?" Krillin piped up, who was also seemingly drawn by her story.

"Our people have a legendary dragon - sort of like your wish granting dragon - who guards the pathway between the Mer-realm and the surface world. The merpeople weren't allowed to interact with land people ever since one of our Queens - Aquellé the Cursed - she was called, swam away from home and was impregnated by a land dweller. It is said she made a deal with the sea God, Neptune to grant her legs to find her love on land in return for devoting her first born son to him… or was it sacrifice? I can't remember. Either way, she went back on her word and kept her son, so she was punished. Only females were born to the throne after that. Our queens have not born a male heir in generations. "

"That's not how I remember it" Master Roshi's voice sounded out. Bulma sat up abruptly, staring wide eyed at the martial arts master. He was, for the first time, wearing a serious expression, despite the fact that she was currently half naked.

"What do you mean 'remember'? What do you know of this story?" she demanded.

"I don't know where you got your information from, Missy - but I know for a fact that Aquellé didn't get her legs from some deity. She wished for it using the Dragon balls."

Everyone's attention was suddenly on Roshi, Even the antisocial pair sitting under the tree.

"And how exactly do you know this 'for a fact'?" she asked skeptically.

"Simple: I was there."

This statement was met with various shocked denials. Among a chorus of "No way!" and "Seriously?" her own "Impossible!" rang out the loudest.

"How could you have been alive?" she asked.

"They're called Dragon Balls, Girly and my wish for longevity was part of the deal I made with Aquellé in return for helping her find the balls located on land. She had by then already found all the balls that were kept in the ocean by the merpeople. I was already in possession of one of them and my good friend Gohan's many times over predecessor had one too."

A brief silence ensued as the gathered group seemed to digest this information before it was broken by Yamcha: "Man," he said, "what a head trip"

"Do you think it's fate or just the world not being as big as we think it is?" Puar squeaked at his side.

"Fate" Chiaotzu answered, "definitely fate… I mean, it's too big of a coincidence that you would end up here, given your ancestral history with Master Roshi."

"You may be right, Chiaotzu" Bulma agreed. "Oh, and Roshi… my name is Bulma. Call me anything but that and I'll destroy the other pair of binoculars you have hidden behind your back" she said with a sadisticly pleasant tone.

"Do your worst mermaid!" he shouted, dashing off shamelessly, "I've plenty more hidden around my island." Bulma sighed, feeling the weight of the world heavy on her shoulders, before dismissing it from her thoughts altogether to focus on the present.

"Hey Krillin," she said suddenly, turning to the vertically challenged warrior, "You'll tell me where he keeps his binoculars won't you?" Her answer was a bright smile and she laughed out loud.

"Come on homeboy," she said, rising. "Let's go hunt some Island Treasure"

"I've got a better idea," Krillin suddenly said, "want to see where he keeps the Dragon Ball?"
"Ooh, I actually haven't seen one before."

"Then you're lucky you're a mermaid - it's quite deep down" he said, leading her to the surf.

"You just want to see my tail" she scoffed jokingly to which he replied:

"You got me there", rubbing his head.

"Can I come too?" asked Yamcha.

Vegeta was boiling inside. He never had any particularly strong dislike for any of the human fighters, but at that moment he would have gladly ripped the head off the scar-faced one and pissed on his still twitching body… and it was all that woman's fault, he seethed. He didn't know what she was trying to accomplish by allowing that weakling hands all over her and he didn't care for it one bit. She was his woman. He may not have claimed her in any official sense, but they had an understanding, didn't they? How dare she bat those ocean-blue eyes at anyone but him… or was it all a game to her? Playing with the affection of all the males she seems to ensnare so easily, and tossing them aside when she does not get what she want from them. Not for the first time, Vegeta considered that maybe that was all he was to her all along, a donor to secure the next heir of her monarchy. Then again, she has been hanging around that crazy Briefs woman, being influenced by human culture in all its disgusting norms, which begs the question: What did he mean to her, really? The female species was deceptively fickle and annoyingly enigmatic. Maybe he was making a mistake in trusting the depth of her loyalty to him. He could make her body burn with the heat of passion, that much he knew to be true, but he was also the only worthy male that she's encountered since developing breeding capabilities - as she so puts it. She has shown no interest in the human males she had encountered thus far, but Earth's fighters were no ordinary humans. They were warriors like he was, maybe not on his levels but warriors none the less. Maybe that was the allure, he thought. So despite his certainty that she must care for him somewhat, he was yet unsure if she will continue to burn for him given a larger variety of fighting fit males to choose from. The uncertainty of it all was near driving him insane.

Vegeta took another deep breath, feeling the rage bubble within him with frustration at its stem. Any more effort he puts into this relationship could prove futile if the woman was already looking for greener pastures. Vegeta spied the woman in his peripheral. As she dived below the ocean surf he abandoned his farce of a meditation session and started pacing, thankful that she couldn't see how badly she affected his composure with her antics. If she was already causing him this much emotional turmoil, he thought, was it worth the trouble to keep pursuing her affections? He should cast her aside. It seemed the smartest , most logical choice, but the damned woman was already so deep underneath his thick Saiyan hide that extracting her would prove just as tedious - if not more so than leaving her there. Besides, he was pretty sure he wouldn't like what would happen if he did cast her aside, he thought, turning a baleful eye towards where Yamcha last disappeared underwater with Bulma and the midget. The other option would then be to claim her truly as his.

Saiyans were by nature largely promiscuous until they found their true-mates, whom they would then claim in a short, private ceremony. It involved creating a telepathic and empathic bond with that person that cannot be broken save death. Needless to say, the death of one's mate would be a traumatic experience for both parties to experience and often left the surviving mate severely mentally broken. It was not surprising then that mated couples were a rare occurrence. It left a vulnerability that is badly suited to a warrior race. It's one benefit however, was stronger offspring. All elite Saiyans were produced by mated couples - usually nobility that were older and seasoned warriors. No young Saiyan warrior seeking the glory of battle would want to tie himself to another so intimately, which was for the best as the mortality rate of the young were notoriously high. The Saiyan Prince was by no means a young upstart, but neither was his fate so secure that he could mate with the woman in good conscience. He had no idea the state of mind he would leave his mate in if he was felled by the androids, less so with Bulma being such a strong telepath. No. He decided resolutely - now is not the time for marriage. It would gain him peace of mind in one area in his life and take it from another if he claimed her now.

Vegeta's pacing had, by this time, worn a trail in the sand and the frustrated Saiyan had yet to come to a decision about his romantic woes. At his wits end, he was all but desperate enough to pick a bloody daisy and start counting off love-me-love-me-not on its petals. So he could not claim her, Vegeta thought, recounting once more all his options, because he might die in two and a half years. He would not cast her aside, because he didn't want anyone else to have her... That left one more option, he thought with a sinister smirk: he could bed her so thoroughly that she forgets all but her own name. It would mean going back on his previous resolve, but it would most certainly put all thoughts of scarface far from her mind and relieve some of the tension caused by his prolonged subjection to sexual frustration. Vegeta briefly considered what Bulma's reaction to his sudden change of heart would be and was hit by a sudden revelation that brought him to halt. He already told her he wouldn't lay with her until he became a Super Saiyan, a notion she vehemently protested. Therefore, the more he examined his sudden change of resolve, the more he felt strings of feminine manipulation attached to this decision. The little sea-which practically backed him into a corner, didn't she? They've already established that Bulma would use any means to get what she wanted from him, was this just another one of her games to get him to break his resolve? He wouldn't put it past the wily woman. It was one of her traits that he actually found extremely attractive. It was a bold move for sure, he thought with the smugness of slowly returning confidence, but two can play that game.

What would she do if he simply… did not react? The thought brought a smile to his face. A smile that faded once he realised that non-reaction would probably spur more outrageous flirting which would definitely put a strain on his self-control. Kakarot would not take kindly to him decapitating his friends. Therefore, the best option would then be to remove himself from the equation. With no Vegeta around to taunt, Bulma would probably stop pursuing Yamcha… probably. So, he would call the devious mermaid's bluff and if it turns out that she's truly interested in the other, inferior warrior… Well, then he would go ahead with his previous plan that involved vigorous carnal relations to the effect that she would completely lose her senses. Thereby banishing all thoughts of that pisspoor excuse for competition from her mind. Problem solved. Vegeta, you are a genious. He self-congratulated.

Mind made up, Vegeta took one last look at the spot in the water the three warriors disappeared from, and took flight. He passed a single air car on his way back, crammed full of a bear-like giant that he recognized as the Ox-King - Kakarot's father in law, Kakarot's harpie wife occupied the passenger seat and his boy was sitting in the back.

"Hey Vegeta" Kakarot greeted cheerfully, he was sitting cross-legged on the top of the vehicle but jumped off at Vegeta's appearance, "leaving already?"

Vegeta, not pausing in his homeward flight, forcing Kakarot to join his pace replied with a nonchalant "Not my scene" before putting on a burst of speed, trailing blue energy all the way back to the compound.

"He what?" the mermaid's indignant screech grated on all non-human ears. Piccolo visibly winced, a shudder moving down his spine before his face reclaimed the serene expression of meditation.

"Well, to his defense" Krillin said nervously, "he was telling the truth. These type of events are as much Vegeta's scene as they are Piccolo's. I'm kind of relieved he left to be honest - his sour mood was really pooping this party."

"Not helping, Krillin!" Bulma turned her ire away from the news-bearer - The wild-haired Saiyan who arrived ahead of his family and much to his relief, glowered at the vertically challenged warrior at her side, still in dripping blue swimming trunks. "How in Neptune's blue sea am I going to get back to Capsule Corp now? That inconsiderate ape!"

"If all you're worried about is a lift home I can solve that problem for you - instantly" Goku spoke up with a wink.

"Uhh!" Bulma threw her hands in the air, exasperated. Things were not going according to plan at all, she lamented silently. Then, she remembered her manners and threw in a belated "Thank you, Goku" lest her new friends think her rude too.

The commotion was interrupted by the arrival of a small red hovercar. The vehicle scarcely landed when the door swung open and out jumped a lithe black-haired woman in what Bulma recognised as an oriental-styled pantsuit. She barely hit the floor herself before she started hollering.

"Goku! How could you leave your family like that and fly off to Kami-knows where?"

"Auw, but Chichi we were heading in the same direction." Goku started his supplication.

"That's not the point Goku! You do this all the time… just up and disappear without a word and expect things to be alright just because you can be back in an instant. This was supposed to be a family trip you don't just ditch your family on a family trip!"

"But Chichi, it was only the last few miles."

"No excuses. Next time you disappear, don't expect dinner to be waiting for you when you return." At this the warrior practically turned blue in the face and Bulma decided that she liked Chichi already.

"You wouldn't do that to me, would you?" Goku returned nervously. Chichi was in a propor huff, with her arms crossed and her head turned off to the side to avoid meeting her husband's eyes. At Goku's soft supplication, however she relaxed marginally and with a deprecating smile admitted,

"No, I probably wouldn't. That still doesn't mean I will condone you running off without me all the time. Oh, Goku" she lamented in a sigh, "What on Earth am I gonna do with you?"

"Hopefully, keep feeding me forever" he said straight faced and it was so comically romantic Bulma couldn't help but smile wistfully.

Chichi, probably feeling that Goku was sufficiently sorry, then turned her attention to the rest of the group and greeted everyone with camaraderie. Master Roshi was greeted with a icy "Roshi" before her eyes finally landed on Bulma. After a seemingly thorough perusal of her person, one black eyebrow winged up sardonically and Bulma suddenly felt very self-conscious in her dripping, skimpy bikini. Bowing awkwardly, Bulma introduced herself.

"Hi, I'm Bulma. Nice to meet you."

A pause, in which Bulma rose again to watch the face of the strangely intimidating matriarch

"Bulma, eh? And what did the old pervert offer you to convince you to come to this depraved place, I wonder?"

At the bite in her tone, all manner of respect she had been subconsciously building for this woman went out the window. Like that, is it? Bulma thought slyly, having been long since accommodated to the catty subtleties of female conflict.

"The old man?" Bulma answered with a scoff, "Actually, It was your husband that invited me personally, Chichi." she continued with just the right amount of innuendo and watched the black-haired woman's eyes widen with shock. "Popped right into my home just last week."

"Is that so?" Chichi answered, seemingly cordial with eyes blazing at her husband who had suddenly gone red in the face.

"Yep."

"And why exactly would my husband feel the need to make house calls to invite skanks, such as yourself to what was supposed to be for friends and family cook-out, Goku, care to explain?"

Chichi, it seemed was exerting more and more effort to stay calm. It wasn't easy for Bulma either for that matter, whose temper prickled at being called a skank. She looked around to the gathered assembly who all stood frozen, waiting with bated breath for the fireworks to begin… again. Poor Goku stared at his wife in utter confusion with no idea how he ended up back in hot water.
"I thought she had potential" was his simple, honest answer. A tick in her right eye was all that preceded the explosion that was Mrs Chichi Son's temper.

"Potential for what? Swimsuit model auditions? And here I slave for 16 hours a day, cooking your food alone, not to mention the rest of the chores while you're off seeking the company of woman other than your devoted wife…"

"It's a wonder he's stayed married for so long with all that that guy knows about women" Krillin said softly at her side. She would've laughed if it weren't for the fact that Chichi suddenly turned her wrath towards Bulma.

"... and you! You should be ashamed of yourself, carrying on with a married man!" she shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at Bulma. With a sigh, the no longer angry mermaid decided to put the scorned woman's suspicions to rest.

"Look, Lady I hardly know your husband. I've seen him all but three times in my life. I'm not 'carrying around' with him. I'm here to join the group of people training to fight the androids in three years. That's why he invited me."

Chichi took a deep breath, seemingly to continue her tirade when she suddenly let it out with a surprised huff. She stared at Bulma blankly in an attempt to process this information before a blush heated her cheeks and she uttered an ashamed "Oh" instead.

"You know, you really shouldn't make assumptions based on what a girl looks like." Bulma ended smugly.

"I apologise"

"Accepted"

Normalcy seemingly restored, the festivities continued and Bulma met the rest on Goku's family.

"Hi, I'm Gohan. Pleased to meet you." A wild-haired boy bowed formally in front of her. Bulma smiled and ruffled his black mane,

"Ditto, kid." she replied and his answering smile was bright as any child could be.

"Dad's right you know. You have some real potential. Your power-level is very high. Why don't you keep it hidden? Master Piccolo says it's never a good thing to keep your power level up, it's an... uh advertisement to where the bad guys can find you."

"Master Piccolo ey?" she said, glancing in the Namekian's direction. "Well he seems like a smart guy. To be honest Kid, I've kinda been slacking in my training, been doing sciency things with Doctor Briefs instead so I haven't gotten to it lately. That and my own Sensei is way too dedicated to his own training to give me the time of day usually"

"I like Science too, Ms. Bulma. My mom makes me study a lot and Science is my favorite subject… and Maths too." Gohan said. In about the same instant his mother was at Bulma's side, and eager look in her eyes.

"So Bulma, I couldn't help but overhear… you work with Doctor Briefs you say?"

"Yes" she answered hesitantly.

"However do you find the time to train and work? It must be a nightmare."

"It's no cakewalk."

"Who's your Martial Art's master?"

"Uh… Vegeta. Mostly I self-train though."

"Vegeta?" she asked, looking taken aback. "That evil son of a…" she paused glancing at her son in mild embarrassment before continuing, "Well, that definitely won't do. Vegeta's strong but I hardly see him as a teacher. One has to have patience for that sort of thing."

"Where are you going with this, Chichi?" Bulma put in suspiciously. Giving her son another contemplative glance, Chichi dragged Bulma away to the house. Once safely out of earshot of the other guests she laid out her proposition.

"Look, Gohan hasn't been working well with the tutor's I've gotten for him, and I really don't have the necessary finances to hire the expensive kind… and he's starting to ask questions, you know. I myself, and Goku as you've probably guessed, didn't have the basic education needed to make a decent life for ourselves and it hasn't been easy. Living off the land is good and all, but as you can imagine very limited. The world is moving ahead without us. I want my son to move along with it... I think you and I can help one another" she finally concluded.

"Oh?"

"You need a teacher. A dedicated Martial Art's teacher and my son needs a tutor."

"Woah woah. Let me stop you there. I don't know if you know this but I haven't been working with the Doctor that long myself. All I know of this world's science and technology industry I've picked up in the four weeks I've been studying it."

"Four weeks?" she seemed confused.

"I'm not exactly human, you know." she said, and Chichi's frown deepened.

"I've been living underwater for all but three months of my life. I'm a mermaid."

Chichi snorted, watching Bulma's face as if waiting for the "Psyche!" that would generally follow such an outrageous statement. When it didn't come her eyes widened in amazement.

"You're serious?"

Bulma nodded, "Ask Krillin and Yamcha. I just took them swimming. If they can remember… I usually make people forget they've seen me in my true form if I talk to them underwater. Both Krillin and Yamcha said they remember every single moment so I don't know, maybe it only affects weak-minded, or shall I rather say, normal humans beings that way… I should mention this finding to Dr. Brief..."

"So you can't help me?" Chichi interjected with a wave, putting and end to Bulma's rambling.

Bulma noted the disappointment on the mother's face and sighed.

"Well, I didn't necessarily say that."

"What do you mean?" she asked, tentatively hopeful.

"Well, according to this world's standards I'm technically a genius" Bulma said with no small amount of pride and Chichi beamed in response.

"That's just what I want to hear."

Five minutes later the two women emerged, cool faced and resolute. Bulma sought her bag and immediately started removing all her jewelry while Chichi went to stand on a cleared space of beach and started stretching. After tying her hair up, Bulma, who had by this time garnered curious looks from all involved, went to stand opposite Chichi at about ten steps distance. Only when Chici lowered into her fighting stance did anyone bother speaking up.

"Uh… what's going on?" Tien asked to no-one in particular."
"I'm auditioning" was Chichi's simple answer.

"You look like you're about to spar" Yamcha put in redundantly.

"We are" Bulma said sternly.

"I've offered to become Bulma's new Sensei." Chichi said finally while a visible ki-field started swirling around her form, white in color. Bulma similarly raised her defenses creating a blue aura around her while storm clouds started rolling in, alive with electricity.

"Well shoot, if you wanted a new Master you could have just asked, lil' lady." Roshi piped up. He was answered with a simultaneous "Shut up Pervert/Slimeball" by the woman squaring off. Goku sat cross legged on the beach, an excited grin on his face. The others followed suit and settled down to watch as well. Even Piccolo was standing by.

In an instant, Chichi rushed in with an aerial side kick, which Bulma effectively dodged. The clouds above Bulma was swirling slowly. Master Roshi had settled at Goku's side.

"Bulma's stronger," he mentioned with a critical eye as the two became engaged in the delicate art of combat, "but her movements are hesitant. Not yet natural"

"She also cannot control her energy well, she's creating an energy pool from the elements around her. If she learns to reign in the leaked energy she'll gain power and cause less harm to the environment." Goku answered, taking his eyes off the battle long enough to note the turbulent weather.

"It's wastage" Master Roshi agreed.

"The battle probably will go to Chichi." This came from Tien, who was standing off to their side.

"You think your wife will be properly equipped to handle Bulma?" Krillin asked his long time friend. "She won't be able to teach her any ki manipulation, but I think that doesn't really matter so much at this point as Bulma is more in need of basic hand-to-hand combat skills" Goku answered objectively.

As the fighting continued it became more obvious who was the better fighter, which was why no one was surprised when a redirected leg managed to hit Bulma in the face and send her flying into the ocean.

It took some time for Bulma to surface. She floated far into the surf, propelling her torso from the deep water with the rhythmic swish of her flukes. Bulma touched her jaw softly, noting the tenderness then and admitted that she had indeed been outmatched. She smirked at the watching crowd, and watched a panting Chichi take the customary bow that signified the end to their session. Bulma reciprocated, a bit awkwardly and watched the raven-haired fighter drop her guard. As everyone seemingly relaxed Bulma saw an opportunity and struck out. Quick as an Eel, a spear of water rose from the surf, targeting Chichi. Goku tried to intercept the weapon but predicting this, Bulma reshaped her stream, splitting it into arcs that formed a sphere of spiked icicles that he wouldn't be able to protect her from with a lowered guard. The ice knives burst into a cool mist right before they found their intended target and lingered harmlessly around the couple.

"Impressive" came the deep baritone of the Green warrior. "You may be lacking in skill when it comes to Martial Arts, but you have the ruthlessness of a true warrior." Bulma smirked.

'You can hardly expect me to be an expert human martial artist when I've been a fish my whole life, now can you?' Her sassy telepathic voice rung out and was clearly heard by all warriors present. A twitch of his mouth was all that testified to Piccolo's amusement.

The other warriors, it seemed were a bit slow to catch on to what just happened and just stood around looking shellshocked.

"All I saw was a demon-possessed spray of water coming out of seemingly nowhere." Krillin finally admitted, putting two and two together. "Neat trick, Bulma." The other guests seemed to relax as Bulma threw the colloquial human sign of 'Peace' with the arm that her bikini bottoms were tied around, before diving back underwater.

Back at the compound, an exhausted Bulma was deposited right before the Gravity Trainer, that was alive and humming with the activity its Saiyan inhabitant. The sensation of being instantly transplaced to a completely different scene left the mermaid quite disoriented and she sat down abruptly once her feet touched the ground.

"Don't worry, the feeling will pass in a moment and you'll be right as rain." she heard Goku's voice at her side, "Anyway, I gotta go. It was nice to get to know you Bulma. I'll see you next week." And with that, he was off again.

Standing up again, Bulma briefly considered confronting Vegeta as to his little abandonment stunt, but with a yawn decided that tomorrow was as good day as any to get into a verbal sparring session with the stubborn Saiyan. She was simply too tired. Transforming more than once a day really takes it out of me, she thought, recalling her second transformation. Not that the sparring session preceding it made things any better.

Yamcha had carried her mermaid form the the privacy of the bathroom after she swam to shore, where she completed her transformation and put her bottoms and wrap dress back on. She spent the rest of the day lounging in the beach chairs chatting lazily to whomever she could. She managed to squeeze in a short nap and was woken by the chill in the air just after sunset.

All in all, the day ended pleasantly, with Chichi making the final arrangement with her son's new tutor before they got into their hover car.

"So His dad will drop him off at 10, Monday morning for three hours and we start our own lessons at 4pm… that'll give me enough time to have dinner ready" she said mostly to herself.

"Yes Chichi" Bulma answered, fighting hard to hide the exasperation from her tone. It was the third time this arrangement was reiterated. From the corner of her eye, Bulma saw Krillin nudge Yamcha towards her and he stumbled awkwardly to stand beside her just as the son's car was lifting off.

"Uh… Bulma?" he started hesitantly and Bulma suppressed a sigh.

"You ready to go?" Goku interrupted suddenly on Bulma's other side.

"Just about" she answered before turning to face the poor sot of a warrior. He was handsome despite his scars and clearly felt some sort of attraction to Bulma, but without Vegeta, his response towards her previous flirtation really had no purpose, she admitted guilty. She chose Yamcha for her plan because his open resentment towards Vegeta irritated her. Getting to know him better, though, she found that he was really not that bad. Thinking to put a stop to this deception, Bulma turned a patient expression on the warrior.

"Yes, Yamcha?"

"Uh… it was nice to meet you." He ended lamely and Bulma couldn't suppress her mirth at his shyness. Laughing, she said, "It was nice to meet you too" and having already said all of her goodbyes, was swiftly transported away by Goku.

Thank Neptune tomorrow is Sunday, she thought with a sigh as she drifted off to sleep.

AN: And so ends the Barbecue Scene... Tune in next time to Deep Blue to discover what devious machinations Bulma will think up next in her attempt to seduce to seemingly unconquerable Saiyan Prince.

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