Well, I've always wanted to write a fic with a song at the beginning, between, or at the end...whatever. ^^ Anyway, I was going to fit the song in between the story, but it would've just been fit in at the end....So I figured I would just put it all together at the beginning. Hope you like the fic! It's a continuation of the Nikhya series. It takes place after the fic, "Preparations... unprepared." Now enjoy!
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Lately I've been trying to fill up my days, since your gone,
speed of love is climbing and I didn't know how to hold on,
my mind won't clear, I'm out of tears,
my heart's got no room left inside,
how many dreams will end?
How long can I pretend?
How many times will love pass me by
until I find you again?
will the arms of hope surround me?
will time be a fair weather friend?
Should I call out to angels?
Or just drink myself sober again?
Can't hide, it's true
I still burn for you
your memory just won't let me go.
How many dreams will end?
How long can I pretend?
How many times will love pass me by
until I find you again?
I 'd hold you tighter , closer than ever before,
no flame would burn brighter if I could touch you once more
hold you once more,
how many dreams will end?
How long can I pretend?
How many times will love pass me by
until I find you again
.....until I find you.....
again......... (song from Richard Marx, "Until I Find You Again.")
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"Huh?...." Nikhya groaned as she sleepily opened her eyes. "What in the world? How long have I been asleep...." She snapped her eyes open wide as she realized what had happened the last night. "Oh great..." She sighed as she realized she no longer had Piccolo's arms around her and then immediately jumped out of bed.
"Probably left to go train. Those weirdo alien fighters are supposed to get here sometime soon." She smiled as she remembered what Piccolo had whispered harshly in her ear before he left, "I have to go spar with Goku for a little while. I'll be gone the whole day, so you had better rest until I get back."
She rubbed her eyes and yawned. "He's always threatening me. Bastard..." she said as she halfway smiled. "Well, guess I'd better go and---." She stopped, realizing she was about to say that she should go and get ready to train. She balled up her fists tightly, angry that she had agreed with Piccolo to stop training for the week. "I can't just stand here like an idiot... No way am I just going to lay around all day." She decided she would go demand training with Goku and Piccolo. "If they don't let me train with them, I'll have to train myself...And if Piccolo knows what's good for him...he'll let me train ..."
Nikhya knew that Goku might not have a problem with her training with he and Piccolo, but she knew she'd have a problem convincing Piccolo. She tried to come up with a plan as she rummaged through a box of her clothing. She finally grabbed up a pair of blue-jean shorts and a red tank top. She threw on her tank top and wiggled into her shorts. "There," she said as she zipped them up, "now, I'm ready." She quickly ran a brush through her hair and then slipped on her shoes. She took a deep breath as she stepped out of her hut and looked up at the sky. "Good luck, Nikhya." She muttered to herself as she blasted off toward Goku's house.
meanwhile....at the Kame house...
"What in the HELL?! Damn it!" Bulma hit the scouter that she had successfully replicated from an older model she had got a hold of.
"What is it Bulma?! What do you see on the scouter?! Is it screwing up again?" Roshi scrambled up from behind the couch and grabbed onto Bulma's arm waiting for her response.
All Bulma could do was stare straight forward with her mouth open in surprise. She tried to speak, but all that came out were the words "fighters...in...only three...days.."
"Bulma!? What are you saying?!" Roshi was more frantic than ever. Krillin was looking curiously at the two of them as he sipped his tea.
"Bulma," Krillin said as he calmly rose out of his chair and walked over to her. "What do you mean? Do you mean that the alien fighters will be here soon?"
Bulma nodded as her eyes filled with tears. "Only, three days. I'm pretty sure. I know that the scouter isn't broken."
Krillin put on a stern face. "Are you totally sure that the scouter isn't broken, Bulma?"
Bulma nodded.
"Then, I have to go tell Goku and the others. Vegeta will go berserk....but it has to be done." Krillin started to walk out of the Kame house.
Bulma got up quickly and grabbed Krillin's shoulder. "No...let me tell Vegeta. You go tell Goku and the others, okay?"
Krillin nodded and walked out of the Kame house to his hover car.
Roshi looked up at Bulma. "I guess you should go get your hover car ready... you should tell Nikhya too.."
Bulma nodded solemnly. "I'll try to find her after I tell Vegeta."
Bulma walked outside, leaving Roshi to worry about the oncoming danger by himself. She sighed as she hopped into the hover car and started it up. Soon, she was out of sight of the Kame house, and on her way to the Capsule Corp....
At Goku's house....
Piccolo stopped throwing punches at Goku as he sensed a familiar power closing in on the area. Goku was about to blast him into a nearby tree, but realized the power also. They both looked up into the sky and waited for a moment. Goku smiled as he realized who it was. "It's Nikhya!"
Piccolo looked in the other direction... "and Krillin."
Goku scratched his head. "I wonder what's going on."
Piccolo clenched his fists. "I have a feeling whatever it is, it's not good."
Krillin didn't wave and didn't smile as he walked up to Goku. "That's odd." Goku thought to himself. "What's wrong Krillin?" Goku said abruptly as he put on a stern face.
Piccolo stood with his arms crossed, waiting for Krillin to speak. "I sensed Nikhya before I arrived...Wait for her to arrive...then I'll tell you." Krillin spoke. All of them were silent until Nikhya landed next to Piccolo. Nikhya nodded at Krillin as he looked up at her. "I know what's going on...I met Bulma on my way over here." She clenched her teeth as she spoke. "Tell them Krillin."
Krillin looked up at both Goku and Piccolo. "The fighters...will be here in three days." Neither Goku nor Piccolo looked very surprised.
Piccolo turned to Nikhya. "Are you ready to go back?"
Nikhya shot Piccolo an angry look. "What in the hell are you talking about, 'go back'?! Of course I'm not ready to go back yet! You haven't finished training me!" Nikhya felt foolish. She knew he could no longer train her with the fighters just three days away from arriving.
"Come on Krillin. Lets go inside. We've gotta figure out exactly what we'll be doing the next three days." Goku motioned for Krillin to follow him into the house.
"Well, as you can see, I don't have any more time to train you. I'm going to train with Goku and the rest of
them for the remaining time we have. You are strong enough to go back now." Piccolo turned his back to go inside with Goku and Krillin.
"But, I can't just go back! I can't just forget about you guys!" Nikhya was glowing with anger.
Piccolo stopped in his tracks, "You can't exactly stay here either. You have no choice but to go back. If you would like to stay behind for a little longer, I suggest you stay no longer than two days." He began to move toward the house again.
"And if I stay.." Nikhya yelled after him. "I'm training with you guys!"
Piccolo turned around to face her. "No."
"What do you mean, NO?! I'm staying and training with you the last few days. No matter what you say, you can't make me leave." Nikhya flushed as she walked past Piccolo. "I'm staying, unless I feel otherwise."
She walked into the house with Piccolo following her. "Goku, Krillin.." she spoke as she entered the room they were in.
The two men looked up as she entered. "Yes, Nikhya?"
"Is it okay with you.." she swallowed hard, "if I were to stay here and train with you these last few days?"
Goku got up from his chair and stood in front of her. "Are you sure that's what you want?" He said, looking over in Piccolo's direction. "The future depends on your survival, and if the aliens come before expected, you might not live."
Nikhya looked back at Piccolo and back at Goku. She bit her lip as she tried to decide. "I guess I have no choice...but I will stay for today and tomorrow at least...I should probably train myself for a little while anyway before I go. I need to learn a little more self-discipline anyway." She turned to leave. "Thanks anyway Goku...Krillin.." They nodded as she walked out of the room. "Thanks Piccolo..." She whispered as she passed him.
Piccolo's eyes followed her until she was out the front door. He turned back to Krillin and Goku. "Now...Shall we?" Goku walked toward Piccolo as Krillin got up from his chair. "Lets go."
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Nikhya held back her tears as she neared her hut in the forest. " So weak....damn my weakness..." she wiped her eyes quickly as she landed next to her hut. "Guess I should get started..." she sighed as she realized she'd have to use her split form to train herself properly. "Okay...here we go..."
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Bulma flinched as a lamp hit the wall of her room. "Damn it, Vegeta! Just because you haven't reached your maximum fighting level yet, doesn't mean you can throw that shit around the room! It's not going to help anything. Listen for just a second, will you?!"
Vegeta stopped and looked over at Bulma angrily. "How can I be calm when I haven't even surpassed Kakorott yet?! Those fighters will be here in three days and I can feel their powers.. They are just as strong as Freeza was. Think about it woman! A bunch of Freeza's running around on Earth, and none of us are at the fighting level we want to be at yet!"
"Listen Vegeta! Goku beat Freeza once, and he can beat these damned weaklings too! I would also like to mention that all the other fighters are here, and much stronger than they were when they traveled to Namek! It will be all too easy to beat their sorry asses!" Bulma took a deep breath and looked Vegeta straight in his cold deep eyes. "We have hope on our side..."
"Hope does nothing...Hope IS nothing but a backup for weaklings..." Vegeta turned to leave.
Bulma grabbed his shoulder tightly and stopped him from going any further. "You don't believe that..."
"Don't I?" Vegeta easily shook himself from her grip and brushed off his shoulder. "Stay here woman...it'll be safer."
"No way, when these things come, I'm going to be there. Do you think I'm just going to hide when I know these fighters could destroy the whole planet anyway!? I want to see what they look like, how they fight. I'm not hiding underneath some damned rock when it'll do me no good...and when in the hell did you ever start caring about my saftely." Bulma stood with her hands planted firmly on her hips. "Well?!"
"Fine, I can't exactly stop you." Vegeta smiled as he thought to himself, "Such a weakling, and yet so brave..." He laughed as he turned to face Bulma. "In fact, I think I'll actually take you along so you won't have to drive."
"What in the he--?!?!" Bulma couldn't finish her sentence, for Vegeta had already picked her up and was flying toward Goku's house."
"VEGETAAAA!!!! You know I HATE FLYING!!!!" Bulma screamed as she held onto Vegeta's neck with a grip no human could've ever lived through.....
"Yes, of course I do...why else do you think I'm flying you there?" Vegeta laughed aloud again as he blasted off faster..
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Nikhya fell face first into the lake as her counterpart rolled on the ground laughing. "That was a great hit I just gave you! Aw, geez, you shoulda seen it!" she said calming down a bit... "Oh, wait a second...YOU DID SEE IT, but a little to LATE!!" she laughed even harder at her lame attempt at a joke.
Nikhya rose up out of the water and glared at her split form. " Oh yeah?...let me show you a real great hit..." She blasted her other self into a nearby tree and quickly appeared in front of her with an evil smirk on her face. "Ha, now who's laughing!?" she said as she gave the figure a series of punches, driving her further into the tree. Nikhya backed up and let her other self fall to the ground. She laughed again as she gawked at the imprint of her body in the tree. "Come on, it's dark already.," She said lightly chuckling, "I think I've beat my own tail enough for today."
Her other self spit out blood as she lifted herself up from the ground. "Fine, I'm getting tired anyway.." Nikhya focused as she let her other self merge with her. She snapped her head back and smiled as she completed the merge. "That's always interesting..."
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Goku backed away from Piccolo and wiped his brow. "Phew, that was a workout. You are much stronger Piccolo."
"T-yeah, but not strong enough yet." Piccolo threw a punch at a tree, which ended up flying across the yard. "Damn it, I need more time to train."
Goku grabbed Piccolo's shoulder. "We all need more time, but we haven't got it. We'll have to make do with the power levels we have now. Remember, though, we still have two days...it's enough time to get SOME training done... But now that it's night, we all need to get to bed and get some rest."
Piccolo sighed as he turned to face Goku. "Thanks Goku..." He turned to Gohan and Krillin who had been sparring half the day with he and Goku. "You too guys..." They both nodded. Gohan ran up to Piccolo and smiled.
"Tomorrow then?" Gohan smiled with anticipation.
Piccolo halfway smiled and then nodded.
"G'night then Piccolo!" Gohan waved frantically to Piccolo as he flew out of sight.
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Nikhya smiled weakly as she looked up at the night sky and sighed. She looked up at the tree she was standing under and giggled. "Can't remember the last time I sat up in my tree, relaxed, and watched the stars." She de-materialized and reappeared up in one of the tree's higher branches. She sat up against the tree trunk on the branch, and looked up through a clearing of branches up at the moon...
The moon washed her face in its light as she stared in despair at it. She sighed as she began to think about Piccolo. She outlined her lips with her fingers as tears ran down her face. "I never...even got to tell you...ever since THAT happened..." she put her face into her hands and sobbed, "that I love you...and what great timing...I have to leave tomorrow." She looked back up at the moon as her sobs died down, "I won't get to see you tomorrow, Piccolo...you'll be training...too busy to see me. All of you..." She bit her lip as she realized it would be better that way. "This way, they won't have to see me cry...HE won't have to see me cry." She jumped down from the tree and wiped her eyes as she walked toward her hut.
Still wiping her eyes, she bumped into something that had just moved in her way. "Hey!" *sniff* "What in the he-?!" she stopped as she looked up and saw the last figure she thought she expected she would see...
"Piccolo...." She whispered under her breath. "Piccolo!!" she laughed aloud, jumped up, and grabbed him around the neck, hugging him tightly.
"Nikhya, I-..." Piccolo began, but was interrupted...
"Piccolo, I thought you would stay over there or something...or train all night or something...or..or.." She looked up at him, her eyes still gleaming from left over tears. "I just thought I wouldn't see you again before I left.." she said as she met his gaze. She blinked as she realized something.. "Piccolo, why did you come back?"
He smirked as he looked down at her wide eyes waiting for his response. He was about to answer her in words, but instead chuckled when Nikhya began to bite her lip in anticipation. He held her chin in his hand and gently tipped her face up to give her a light kiss on her rosy lips.
Nikhya opened her eyes wide as he placed his lips on hers. He pulled away slowly as she closed her eyes. She bit her lip again and then opened her eyes. She took a deep breath and pulled Piccolo down to her, hoping what she was about to suggest was the right thing.... She kissed him deeply as she held his body closely against hers. He surprised her by leaning into it as if he had been expecting it.
She pulled away breathing nervously... "Piccolo...I don't want to leave you, without telling you something first..."
Piccolo looked curiously down at her as she spoke.
"Piccolo...I have to tell you that...I feel very strongly for y--...what I mean to say is that...ummm." Nikhya hesitated, "Piccolo... I love you..."
Piccolo smiled as she started shaking... He brought her close to him and hugged her tightly. "I shouldn't be so soft...damn it..." he thought to himself. He took a deep breath as he stroked Nikhya's hair to comfort her. Feelings swirled around inside him, confusing him, telling him he should be with Nikhya, and others telling him he should be somewhere else, without her. He took another deep breath and shut his eyes tightly. He softly pushed her away and was about to walk off... Nikhya grabbed his shoulder as he turned around to leave.
"No..." She materialized in front of him, shooting him a cold look and shook her head, "You are going to tell me how you feel about me now. You can't avoid it any longer. I'm not leaving this place until you tell me."
Piccolo looked down at her with a bit of anger in his eyes. Nikhya looked back at him with pure love in her eyes, softening his anger. She began to cry as she grabbed onto him and held him tightly. "Tell me, Piccolo! Tell me everything that you feel. Don't leave me in the dark...don't leave me all alone. You can't just come up here, kiss me like that, and then walk away!" She softly cried into his chest as she gripped his shirt in her fists. She looked up at him, her eyes red from crying with tears still running down her face.
Piccolo clenched his teeth and pushed her away again. "No, Nikhya." He balled up his fists tightly as he walked away reluctantly.
Nikhya fell to her knees, reaching out to Piccolo and sobbing. "Don't you dare leave me Piccolo! Come back here and stop being such a damned coward! You are so afraid of what you can't understand! It's ridiculous..."
Piccolo turned to face her once again. He quickly walked up to her, grabbed her up, and held her tightly. "Who are you to tell me I'm afraid? If you hadn't come here, I wouldn't feel like this, and there wouldn't be a problem."
She became angry and glowed silver as she powered up. "What do you mean 'I wouldn't feel like this'? How do you feel?! That's what I want to know from you! I want to know how you feel about me, Piccolo!" She tried to punch him, but he blocked it quickly. He spun around still holding her tightly and pressed her harshly up against a nearby tree.
She yelled out as Piccolo pressed her up harder against the tree. "AGH..." she looked at Piccolo angrily and yelled in his face, "BAKA! Why won't you TELL ME?! WHY?!"
"Because, I CAN'T...I don't KNOW how I feel! Ever since you came here and started training with me, you made me feel like...like"
Nikhya struggled, Piccolo still holding her to the tree, as she looked at him with curiosity. "......?"
"You made me feel like there was a place in my heart that had been filled...I've been trying to think about other things...trying to make myself think of something else besides..."
He let her go, feeling a bit ashamed of himself for getting so out of control. " Trying to make myself think of something else besides you."
Nikhya slapped him across the face, leaving a slight blush on Piccolo's cheek. "THAT is for not telling me that sooner. And this..." she said getting closer to his face.
"is for telling me now..." She gave him another passionate kiss as he grabbed her and held her tightly.
They broke away from each other and stood in silence. Piccolo broke the silence by taking in a big breath and letting it out slowly. He looked down at Nikhya and swallowed hard. "What I came here tonight for, was to tell you I felt something for you, but I just didn't know what. Then I got.." he winced, " 'scared' and decided I was just confused......and now...I know what I feel."
Nikhya smiled and winked. "You're getting too mushy on me..."
Piccolo smirked, "What? Do you want me to call you a bitch and slap you on the ass?"
She laughed and playfully pushed him away. "No, I want you to tell me that you love me."
Piccolo grabbed her arm and pulled her close again. "I love you...."
Nikhya stopped smiling and looked up at him. "I didn't think you'd actually do it without hesitating first..."
Piccolo smiled, "I bet you didn't think I was going to do this either..." He picked her up and started carrying to her hut.
"What didn't I think you were going to do? Pick me up, or haul me off? Or both?" Nikhya smiled.
"There's a third factor...." Piccolo smiled mischievously.
Nikhya grabbed him around his neck and held on tightly. "Oh?" she giggled, "What is it?"
"Guess..." He said as he entered her hut and put her down.
"I'd rather have you show me...I'm not good at guessing games..." She said, putting her arms back around his neck.
Piccolo leaned over and kissed her lightly, "I don't mind..."
"Good..." She giggled seductively as she deepened the kiss.
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Well, lemons and I don't go together hand in hand...I always end up making things too descriptive and I always feel terrible(dirty? ^_~) after I write one. So, I've decided not to write TOO hot of a story. Sorry, but you'll have to work up your imagination a little if you want a little extra action. I hope you liked this story...I know it changed moods a bit quickly, but my stories change the way I do. ^^;;; Anywho, I'd love for you to review this. Tell me if it's good enough to continue any longer. Nikhya still has to leave the next day after this happens, and I'd like to continue it so as not to leave you all hanging....just give some suggestions, cause my vision is kinda hazy right now. ^^ I'd really appreciate it if you have the time to review. Again, I hope you enjoyed it! ^^ Thanks a lot for reading!